Free Republic

No two athletes of color have been more in the news this past week than the amiable, biracial Kansas Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Los Angeles Lakers basketball great Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash Sunday. What the two shared was an independence of spirit that has apparently made leftists uneasy. In both cases, this spirit manifested itself after the 2013 trial of George Zimmerman for the shooting death of Trayvon Martin. Said Mahomes at the time, "This case was an absolute horrible tragedy, however there was no criminal activity that occurred." While alive, Kobe Bryant caught...

Oleg Atbashian, the gifted satirist and artist who founded The People’s Cube, has written a classic essay that deserves the widest possible circulation. How I Became a Thoughtcriminal is a personal account of growing up in the Soviet Union and discovering censorship, leaving it behind, and rediscovering it here. This is chapter one of the story:

Is nonconformity and freethinking a mental illness? According to the newest addition of the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), it certainly is. The manual identifies a new mental illness called “oppositional defiant disorder” or ODD. Defined as an “ongoing pattern of disobedient, hostile and defiant behavior,” symptoms include questioning authority, negativity, defiance, argumentativeness, and being easily annoyed. - See more at: http://theunboundedspirit.com/nonconformity-and-freethinking-now-considered-mental-illnesses/#sthash.2oD6Hpv1.dpuf

Is nonconformity and freethinking a mental illness? According to the newest edition of the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), it certainly is. The manual identifies a new mental illness called “oppositional defiant disorder” or ODD. Defined as an “ongoing pattern of disobedient, hostile and defiant behavior,” symptoms include questioning authority, negativity, defiance, argumentativeness, and being easily annoyed.

ALBANY, N.Y. - When Joe Fox sends his daughters away to summer camp, he's confident they will be surrounded by kids who share his family's beliefs and values. Caitlin, 16, and Elizabeth, 10, go to Camp Quest, which in 1996 created a niche getaway for children who are agnostic, atheist, or just not sure what to believe yet. American parents have plenty of summer-camp options, from Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts to the YMCA, and soccer, dance, music and drama camps. The Camp Quest concept started in 1996 with 20 kids at a site in Ohio with the slogan "Beyond...