Free Republic

Every life unjustly killed deserves justice. In the cause to make things right, I will not join a movement that has nearly everything wrong. More innocent lives have now been killed (#BlueLivesMatter, too) since these predominantly violent protests began over George Floyd’s horrific death. What about the black lives killed in this nationwide chaos? Do they matter?“Well, you don’t have to agree with everything. Just pick out the good things in the #BlackLivesMatter movement,” I’m told. Really? Let’s apply that same logic to another example. I’ve been repeatedly approached to partner with New Black Panthers in anti-abortion billboard campaigns. We...

We tend to think if the road is hard, we are on the wrong road. With adoption, the opposite is usually true: The road is hard because we are doing it right. Myka Stauffer of YouTube fame has “re-homed” her autistic, adopted Chinese child, Huxley. Stauffer became widely known in large part due to the video documentation of her adoption journey. Huxley’s emotional gotcha-day video has more than 5 million views.Over the following two years, Stauffer posted regular updates of Huxley’s progress, including his autism diagnosis and references to his therapy. A few months ago, fans started noticing Huxley’s increasing...

Believe it or not, thereÂ’s something better than a grande Starbucks Frappuccino, an iPhone, or an afternoon reading a good book. As COVID-19 cases continue declining in many states, new threats are emerging: Alongside growing unemployment rates and an increase in depression, births are declining. According to provisional figures from the Centers for Disease Control and PreventionÂ’s National Center for Health Statistics, births in America are down to their lowest number in 35 years.Nearly 4 million babies were born in the U.S. last year, but that was still a 1 percent birth decrease and 2 percent fertility decrease from 2017....

What Mothers Need To Make Us Strong When families are strong, the nation is strong. What makes families strong is love and that love is centred on the mother. Australia’s most conservative recent Prime Minister was a staunch opponent of unnecessary taxes. But he had his own proposal to tax big business to protect and nurture the family. He wanted every mother on incomes up to $AUD150,000 (much closer to $100,000 in US dollars on typical exchange rates) to be able to have 6 months fully paid leave to be with a new baby. The $AUD150,000 cap was reduced to...

Carrying the weight of a parent’s unhappiness is a heavy burden for a child. It makes sense that children prone to self-blame would develop anxiety from their mother's depression. We’ve all heard the saying, “If mom’s unhappy, everyone’s unhappy.” I think it’s a little unfair to moms, but it’s meant as a playful way of saying what most of us have experienced at some point: Moms set the mood for the family. If mom is unhappy, the whole family feels it. Mothers wield tremendous influence in the home, and for most families this isn’t a problem.Moms can have ups and...

Ok, I get it. I'm at risk. If we open up the country I might die. You know, I'll miss my wife, my children, and my grandchildren. I'll miss my other family. They're called FReepers. BUT HELLS BELLS, I've had my time. I don't want the future ruined for my children and my grandchildren, as well as the families of multiple millions of my precious fellow citizens. So please, President Trump, and all Governors, open it back up as fast as you safely can. God Bless America and MAGA!!!!!

My mother Phyllis Schlafly made quite a name for herself in the fight over the Equal Rights Amendment, but here are a few little-known facts about her. 1. She was painfully shy. It was easier for her to speak at a podium to a huge crowd than to engage in small-talk with one person. She spent her life trying to conquer her shyness. 2. She had a keen sense of humor and used humor to score debate points. She once sang “Bella’s Bunch is Coming to Town” to the tune of the Santa Claus version. 3. She recited the rosary...

OZARK COUNTY, Mo. -- In a Facebook post Thursday, Ozark County Sheriff Darrin Reed asked community members to check on their elderly neighbors and family members from a distance. The Ozark County Sheriff's Office tells KY3 that four elderly residents were found deceased over the past ten days. Ozark County Deputy Cpl. Curtis Dobbs says none of the deaths were suspicious nor related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Deputies say all four residents died from natural causes. It's unclear when the residents died, but Reed says they were deceased for awhile.

GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Boys adventure movement Trail Life USA (www.TrailLifeUSA.com) today announced its first-ever “National Backyard Campout” -- encouraging families to “make memories” during the COVID-19 lockdown. At a time when “outward bound” has become “homebound” for families across the nation, Trail Life USA is inviting America’s families to take a break from their COVID-19 preoccupation and have a camping adventure in their own backyards April 17. “Our Troops have had to hold their meetings online for the past few weeks during self-isolating,” said Mark Hancock, CEO of Trail Life USA, which has more than 30,000 members in 830-plus troops...

When pastor Frank Carl delivers a sermon at Genoa Church in Westerville, Ohio, he typically hears a chorus of “amens.” On Sunday, he instead heard a deafening blast of honks. And Carl wasn’t at the pulpit—he was about 25 feet off the ground on a scissor lift. “It’s not what I had in mind when I accepted a higher calling,” he told TIME of the experience, laughing. **SNIP** To continue providing services, churches have employed a variety of digital alternatives like livestreams, apps and YouTube videos. But over the past week, an increasing number of pastors have turned instead to...

Faith Blooms in Adversity March 28th, 2020 Fear is a powerful force. It can make us anxious, paralyze us, frustrate us, or harden us against our loved ones and neighbors. But on the other hand, it can shake us into action, teach us, motivate us, and give us occasion to pronounce our loyalties. The difference seems a matter of perception and reception of hardship, hinging on our decisions and attitude. Today’s COVID-19 pandemic presents two grave concerns: first, of course, the disease itself; second, an unprecedented disruption of our society. Obviously there is no lack of information for navigating the...

I publish a health, fitness, and culture blog. These are lifetime passions of mine. Like most people, I have my political opinions, but I try to keep them away from the blog. I want to help everybody who seeks it; and don’t want to alienate people who may not agree with some of my non-related views. But the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has changed all that. Like it or not, the Coronavirus situation has fused health and politics, due to the massive governmental response necessary to contain the virus. As a natural health and fitness proponent, I feel a need to...

Like many families, ours is separated by COVID. My son and I are together at hour house in the San Francisco Bay on the Peninsula. Our oldest daughter and boyfriend are in the East Bay. Our middle daughter is in Denver at her home. My wife is at our vacation home in North Idaho with our doggie. Our eldest came up with the idea of using Zoom to have a Family Game Night. She's our creative one and thought the game "Scattergories" would be fun and easy to play over video conferencing. It's been a favorite family game for a...

What are families doing and what are plans during this odd time. I am in house and keeping busy. Summer in the south.. already.

Just a simple prayer request for family. Dad's (91) death was expected last year after a few years of dementia decline. Mom's (88) death was sort of a shock, even though her heart was weak. She was very clear minded and engaging. She told my sister last week she was dreading the anniversary of Dad's death. Like so many couples, they were very close. It's not uncommon for grief to reunite couples. Both were very strong Christians.

Last Sunday, President Trump declared a National Day of Prayer for those affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19). The president proclaimed: “We are a country that, throughout our history, has looked to God for protection and strength in times like these.” Housing and Urban Development Secretary Dr. Ben Carson said, especially in times of crisis, “There's nothing wrong with godly principles, no matter what your faith is: loving your neighbor, caring about the people around you, developing your God-given talents to the utmost so that you become valuable to the people around you, having values and principles that govern your life."...

Full story at Wash Examiner… https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/washington-secrets/terrible-monster-or-caring-father-mulvaney-tells-on-trump

A little more than two weeks before I planned to meet the feminist theorist Sophie Lewis, her mother died. She had been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer in March, requiring Lewis to travel back and forth between her home in Philadelphia and a hospital in the UK—a journey she technically wasn’t allowed to make due to the pending status of her green card. When her mother passed away in late November, she did so thousands of miles away, while Lewis and her brother sang the Taylor Swift song “Safe and Sound” to her over Skype. Earlier that month, at a...

A man was telling his buddy : "You won't believe what happened last night. My daughter walked into the living room and said: Dad, cancel my allowance immediately, forget my college tuition loan, rent my room out, throw all my clothes out the window, take my TV and my laptop. Please take any of my jewelry to the Salvation Army or Cash Converters. Then sell my car, take my front door key away, and throw me out of the house. Then disown me and never talk to me again. And don't forget to write me out of your will and...

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes discusses his Faith in Jesus Christ prior to Chiefs Faith & Family Chapel. https://vimeo.com/341814100?ref=fb-share