Free Republic

Billionaire Elon Musk said Tuesday he will shift the headquarters of privately held SpaceX and social media site X to Texas from California as a result of Gov. Gavin Newsom signing a new gender identity law for students. The law, signed Monday, blocks school districts from requiring teachers to notify parents about changes in a student’s gender identity or sexual orientation without the child’s permission. It also requires the state’s Department of Education to create resources for families of LGBTQ+ students from seventh grade through high school. “This is the final straw,” Musk wrote on X. “Because of this law...

One of the great secrets of successful institutions is that people are loyal to institutions that are loyal to them. If that pact gets broken at one end then it gets broken at both... This brings me to Donald J Trump. Earlier this week the 45th President sent out one of his trademark insults on his “Truth Social” platform. The target of his ire was not any Democrat or American-hater. It was Kayleigh McEnany, his former White House press secretary. “Kayleigh ‘Milktoast’ McEnany just gave out the wrong poll numbers on FoxNews,” said Trump. “I am 34 points up on...

Starbucks, the nation's largest food and drink retailer, announced on Monday that it would be going strawless.... As is to be expected, Starbucks' decision was greeted with universal adulation.... Yet missing from this fanfare was the inconvenient fact that by ditching plastic straws, Starbucks will actually be increasing its plastic use. As it turns out, the new nitro lids that Starbucks is leaning on to replace straws are made up of more plastic than the company's current lid/straw combination.

She is the star of the Democratic party — and for Democrats that’s a big problem. Hillary Clinton’s pre-campaign for the 2016 presidential race is predicated on three givens: her landmark status as the likely first female presidential candidate of one of the two major parties; her name recognition as a Clinton; and the fact that no Democratic strategist is yet willing to risk turning over a presidential campaign to Joe Biden or Elizabeth Warren. Polls show that right now Hillary would both win the Democratic nomination and be elected president. But that likelihood assumes that four considerations will go...

A defense lawyer is calling for calm after death threats have been made against teenagers charged in the death of 15-year-old Phoebe Prince, who committed suicide after she was allegedly bullied by schoolmates. "Not to minimize what happened to Phoebe Prince in any way, but translating this into death threats and public harassment has got to stop," says Colin Keefe, who represents Sharon Chanon Velazquez, accused of tormenting Prince, who hanged herself on Jan. 14. "It's gotten way out of control," adds Keefe, who says Velazquez has been driven temporarily from her home.

Why don't we start a letter writing campaign to the court to encourage them to give solid, real sentences to these monsters and not give them a slap on the wrist? By doing that we'll ensure that justice is done.

The attorney for one of six South Hadley High School students accused of bullying Phoebe Prince in the months leading up to her suicide is asking for highly personal information about her, a move decried by a former prosecutor and victims advocates as “unconscionable.” In a six-page motion filed in Northampton Superior Court, Terrence M. Dunphy, the lawyer for Austin Renaud, asks for the names of any physicians, psychologists or rape counselors Prince saw; any medical and psychological records viewed by the prosecutor; details of any prior allegations of rape or abuse by Prince; and a statement as to whether...

United States Intelligence has concluded that Iraq decieved the United Nations by destroying stockpiled Al Samoud missiles with old engines.United States officials said the regieme of Saddam Hussein has not destroyed any Al Samoud missiles deployed in forward bases in Southern Iraq.Instead they said Iraq brought out missiles from military warehouses and replaced the engines with those from Soviet-origin SA-2 surface to air missiles, developed in the 1950's.On Friday the Kuwait daily Al Rai Al Aam quoted senior military sources as saying that Iraq has beefed up forces in the south around the city of Basra.The newspaper said that the...