Free Republic

Respect LBGT rights or get out of the EU, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte instructed Hungary's Viktor Orban at last week's gathering of the European Union in Brussels. According to Reuters, attendees described it as the "most intense personal clash among the bloc's leaders in years." What caused the clash? Hungary just passed a law that bans schools from using materials seen as pro-homosexuality. According to the AP, the new law "prohibits sharing content on homosexuality or sex reassignment to people under 18 in school sex education programs, films or advertisements." Rutte eagerly related details of his confrontation with Orban:...

"My religion defines who I am. And I've been a practicing Catholic my whole life," said Vice President Joe Biden in 2012. "I accept my church's position on abortion as ... doctrine. Life begins at conception. ... I just refuse to impose that on others." For four decades, Biden backed the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits the use of the tax dollars of Joe's fellow Catholics to pay for what they view as the killing of the innocent unborn. Last week, Joe flipped. He now backs the repeal of the Hyde Amendment. Ilyse Hogue of NARAL Pro-Choice America welcomed home the...

The left has always had great admiration for the conscientious objector. I know something about that because I was a kid in the late 60s and early 70s when the Vietnam War was being fought. Some people refused to serve in the war because of their deeply held religious beliefs. To those on the right they were cowards. To those on the left they were heroes. As the son of a military officer I got one side of the story. As a student in the public schools I got the other. My teachers did their best to convince me there...

I’m old enough to remember a time when civil rights struggles focused on noble causes such as removing the barriers that kept black people from voting. Previous generations of civil rights activists fought so blacks and whites could use the same voting booth. This generation of activists fights so men and women can use the same bathroom stall. One could say that liberal activism has really gone down the toilet. If you can wade through all of the activist hysteria, it is worth taking a look at the substance of the claims of supporters of the Charlotte, North Carolina transgendered...

Let’s take a break from the primary battles and check in on the latest antics unfolding out in California. This month, having solved all other problems plaguing their state, the California legislature has taken up a new measure which would ban government funded travel to states which they deem to be insufficiently supportive of LGBT rights. The author of the bill, Evan Lowe, seems to feel that such a move will be a way to take a stand for the little guy, I suppose. (Time) A California lawmaker has introduced a bill that would ban government-funded travel to states with...

As the debate over the Confederate Battle Flag continues to occupy the interest of the media we are constantly reminded of precisely who is “right” and who is on the wrong side of history. Listening to the talking heads on cable news you’d be tempted to think that, much like climate change, the social science is settled. Everyone is onboard for tearing the hated flag down and if you don’t agree you are part of a tiny group of racist dead enders, clutching your guns and your bibles in some remote cave in the Ozarks. Presidential candidates and Republican Party...