Free Republic

A bill introduced Friday by California Assembly Member Mike Gipson (D) would force insurance companies to provide lawmakers with an annual report highlighting homeowners with guns in their residence. The bill, AB 3067, says: “This bill would require an insurer, by January 1, 2026, to include questions on an application for homeowners’ or renters’ insurance seeking specified information regarding the presence and storage of any firearms kept in the household, accessory structures, or vehicles kept on the property subject to any applicable insurance policy.” It continues: “The bill would require an insurer to annually report this information to the Department...

Twiggy, a.k.a. Dame Lesley Lawson, DBE, was a very unusual 1960’s fashion model, who was born on the 19th of September, 1949, in northwest suburban London to working class parents. I find her slightly strange and unique mind's thinking quite brilliant. Here are some examples: “Confusion is the best form of communication. It’s left to be unexplained.” “I want to continue to try and break the barrier between male and female.” “I think everyone should sing – it’s so good for you, as it makes you breathe deeply, and it’s good for you emotionally, too. It’s a brilliant release way...

Hank Williams was born in Butler County, Alabama, on September 17, in 1923. 100 years ago today. He changed the way people could hear the real American voice. An astonishing contribution to world culture. Here are just a few of his best words: “I was a pretty good imitator of Roy Acuff, but then I found out they already had a Roy Acuff, so I started singin’ like myself.” “To sing like a hillbilly, you had to have lived like a hillbilly. You had to have smelt a lot of mule manure.” “Folk songs express the dreams and prayers and...

Here are four out of seven events described in this article: On 9/11, in 1599, Italian woman Beatrice Cenci died. For people in Rome she is a symbol of resistance to arrogant aristocracy. She was executed when 22 years old for murdering her father, whom she had unsuccessfully accused of repeatedly raping her. On September 11, 1852.American short story writer O. Henry was born in Greensboro, North Carolina . He wrote that: “In the Big City a man will disappear with the suddenness and completeness of the flame of a candle that is blown out.” In 2019, on September 11,...

The worst things about life in modern Australia are terrible. Government tyranny and bureaucratic stupidity are the norms. Criminal-at-large Daniel Michael Andrews is still in power as premier of Victoria. But an underlying reality is a human cultural foundation which, while under threat, has not been entirely destroyed - not yet. This foundation includes beautiful, religious, courageous, honest people like Monica. Praise the Lord.

Patsy Cline was born on the 8th of September, 1932, in Winchester, Virginia. As her words attest, she is a country music great: “You want me to act like we’ve never kissed, you want to forget; pretend we’ve never met , and I’ve tried and I’ve tried, but I haven’t yet… You walk by, and I fall to pieces.” “I’m gonna walk a little bit of dog.” “Oh, I offended you with my opinion? You should hear the the ones I keep to myself.” “Carnegie Hall was real fabulous, but you know, it ain’t as big as the Grand Ole...

Conservative writer and broadcaster Tammy Bruce was born on August 20, 1962, in Los Angeles. I love her intelligent mastery of English: "No matter how noble the original intentions, the seductions of power can turn any movement from one seeking equal rights to one that would deny them to others." "One of the goals of the Feminist Elite is to reinforce to women the idea that men are obsolete." "Gone are the days when reality fed the feminist movement." "For women who turn to welfare, Big Brother becomes Husband." I see here the seeds of a fourth wave of feminism....

The US Army's senior general in the Middle East delivered a blunt warning to Democrats yesterday that setting timetables for troop withdrawals would damage America's attempts to win the war in Iraq.In a tension-filled and sometimes acrimonious hearing on Capitol Hill, Gen John Abizaid, the head of US Central Command, said it was imperative that commanders in Iraq had the freedom to modify troop levels depending on conditions on the ground. "Specific timetables limit that flexibility," he insisted. When Senator Hillary Clinton remarked that "hope is not a strategy", Gen Abizaid agreed but added that despair was not a policy...

Freed Kember thanks rescue troops Freed hostage Norman Kember has thanked the soldiers who rescued him from kidnappers in Iraq after being reunited with his wife Pat at Heathrow airport. But the peace campaigner - criticised earlier for apparently failing to thank the rescuers - restated his opposition to foreign troops in the country. He also said he needed to reflect on whether he was "foolhardy or rational" to have gone to Iraq last year. Mr Kember, 74, of Pinner, London, and two Canadians were held for 117 days. Tribute paid Reading from a hand-written statement, Mr Kember said he...

AUSTRALIA has been asked by a United Nations committee why it has not implemented quotas to increase the number of women in public and political positions. The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women was particularly concerned about women "who may be or are subject to multiple forms of discrimination, such (as) women belonging to ethnic minorities and immigrant women". In 2004 the committee reiterated its policy in favour of affirmative action. In its answer, Australia's submission firmly rejected the idea. It said that "using the merit principle to encourage skilled and talented women to contribute to this country's...

The United States says Iran's offer to resume negotiations on its nuclear program is mere "diplomatic fog" and has barred new talks without a concrete gesture from Tehran. "The onus is on the Iranians," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said amid intense diplomatic manoeuvring over Western calls to haul Iran before the UN Security Council for its suspected nuclear weapons activities. "At this point I don't think that we see anything that indicates the Iranians are willing to engage in a serious diplomatic process," Mr McCormack said. "It's not on the EU-3 (British, French and German negotiators) or the United...