Free Republic

Most of us feel we make it through each day as upstanding citizens. Picking up our trash, holding the door, and saying “hello” on the street are markers of a polite person. However, a playback reel could reveal something surprising and, to some, horrifying: We’re all rude! That’s right — we can be impolite sometimes, even when trying our best not to be. Whether due to excitement, distraction, or frustration, sometimes our best efforts slip and give way to less-than-impressive behavior. Do your good manners go out the window in these daily situations? Etiquette plays a significant role in building...

A 2010 Time Magazine article about the plateau effect—Americans not seeing significant rises in happiness levels as income rises above $75,000—inspired my first intensive study on the relationship between money and happiness. Though roughly 15 years have passed, and more nuanced conclusions have been analyzed, the eye-opening revelation remains an essential reminder for retirees. Namely, happiness isn’t only about the money itself. What people do with that money can often be the difference between a happy and unhappy retirement.

A new study involving over 700,000 U.S. veterans reports that people who adopt eight healthy lifestyle habits by middle age can expect to live substantially longer than those with few or none of these habits. The eight habits are: being physically active, being free from opioid addiction, not smoking, managing stress, having a good diet, not regularly binge drinking, having good sleep hygiene, and having positive social relationships. According to the results, men who have all eight habits at age 40 would be predicted to live an average of 24 years longer than men with none of these habits. For...

When the 66 Express Lanes opened a year ago, officials promised the tolls would mean a smoother ride on the interstate, a major east-west thoroughfare from Northern Virginia into the District that is infamous for its headache-inducing congestion. The state’s promise — less congestion and faster travel times during rush hour — has been fulfilled for many commuters able to pay or carpool, but the new toll system has had an adverse effect for many of the remaining road users. For some commuters, the rush-hour period has simply shifted later — outside the toll hours — and dumped them onto...

Barack Obama is not really changing gun law. He can't. What he IS doing is creating more jobs for the FBI and BATF and increasing the manpower of both agencies for future use. Also, he is stirring people to anger to be able to mark those who react the most for future reference as well. Don't play the game.

When we think of great mystics and wonder-working saints, we often think of those who lived centuries ago. Yet, St. Pio of Pietrelcina was both a mystic and a performer of many miracles—and he died in 1968, only 46 years ago.In many ways, this saint was and is a contradiction to our scientific, rational age, and despite their eagerness to prove him a fraud, skeptics remain consistently unable to explain the many miracles that accompanied St. Pio’s life.But while St. Pio is remembered as a miracle worker, he was perhaps best known in his day as a spiritual father to countless souls. He gave wise and holy counsel...

Today, in cloisters and schools around America, the sound of young voices is ringing out. These sisters’ voices resound in classrooms, lift in chant, laugh on the playing field — and bring their fresh, healthy orthodox Catholicism into the spiritual desert. In September 1971, Sister Imelda Marie, O.P. stepped into our eighth grade classroom. She was greeted by a stunned silence. Sister smiled awkwardly, and then turned on her heel to write pre-algebra equations on the chalkboard. From the back of the classroom came a stifled giggle, then a raised hand. “Sister, where’s your habit?” Sister Imelda was a formal...

5 Habits That Are Hazardous To Your (Spiritual) Health Mar 17th, 2013by Gary Zimak. Although Lent is winding to a close, there is still plenty of time to work on the many bad habits that hurt our relationship with the Lord. If you were to make even the smallest progress overcoming one of your bad habits, then your Lent would be a success. While God never expects us to overcome our imperfections by ourselves, He does expect us to take the first step and try to fight against these tendencies. Here are 5 bad habits that, if not controlled, will...

This morning, after my exercise class (where there was a lengthy discussion on personal responsibility and that American culture used to stress that one was to go out of the way to not inconvenience others and respect other people’s property and space) I stopped at a chain discounter to pick up a few household staples that happen to be cheaper there than anywhere else. I walked across the parking lot, grabbed a cart and started pushing it through the store in search of the items I needed. Before long, a sight that is all too common in this country these...

Have you ever tried to quit something you knew that was very bad for you? Maybe for your spirit, your family or even your body? When we develop a habit, it is a very hard thing to just walk away from; it requires effort and mental strength to leave it behind.

Is it really possible for anyone to live happily to 100? The good news is that your body was designed to be 100 - you just have to get out of the way. Getting out of the way means taking an honest look at the habits and lifestyle you are living with today. Most of us have developed habits that limit our true health potential. But don't let these bad habits of the past discourage you - it is never too late to make new choices. What you did in the past can be changed, and your body will respond...

This is an animation of a red-shoulder hawk and what he might be thinking about people staring at him.

Doctoral student makes discovery on Neanderthal eating habits by Michael Moffett Hatchet Reporter Issue date: 2/7/08 A doctoral student studying hominid paleobiology has pioneered a method for analyzing reindeer bones from around 65,000 to 12,000 years ago, an accomplishment that allows scientists to further understand the eating habits of early humans. Early humans flocked to reindeer meat when the temperature dropped, J. Tyler Faith discovered. "We see a steady increase in the abundance of reindeer, associated with declines in summer temperature," Faith said. Faith analyzed bones from the Grotte XVI archaeological site in southern France in order to better understand...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Even in middle age, adopting a healthy lifestyle can lower the risk for heart disease and premature death within years of changing habits, researchers reported on Thursday. Middle-aged adults who began eating five or more fruits and vegetables every day, exercising for at least 2 1/2 hours a week, keeping weight down and not smoking decreased their risk of heart disease by 35 percent and risk of death by 40 percent in the four years after they started. "The adopters of a healthy lifestyle basically caught up. Within four years, their mortality rate and rate of heart...

Vitamin supplements taken by millions of people every day for their health could be increasing their risk of death a new Danish-led study suggests. The study is published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The international research team reviewed the published evidence on beta carotene, vitamin A, vitamin E, Vitamin C and selenium. The team was led by Dr Goran Bjelakovic, from Copenhagen University Hospital, Denmark. These dietary supplements are marketed as antioxidants and people take them in the hope they will improve health and guard against diseases like cancer and heart disease by eliminating the free radicals...

NEW YORK - Internet users worried about spyware and adware are shunning specific Web sites, avoiding file-sharing networks, even switching browsers. Many have also stopped opening e-mail attachments without first making sure they are safe, the Pew Internet and American Life Project said in a study issued Wednesday. "People are scaling back on some Internet activities," said Susannah Fox, the study's main author. "People are feeling less adventurous, less free to do whatever they want to do online." Like no other Internet threat before it, spyware is getting people's attention, she said. "It maybe will bring more awareness of all...

Thirty years ago Saigon fell. I was a company commander in the 2 nd Battalion, 508 th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 82 nd Airborne Division. When our Vietnam veterans cursed the war, I remembered one of the greatest speeches I ever heard - the day the Vietnam peace was announced to my Winter Ranger class in ’73. The senior Ranger Sergeant cursed everything about the Vietnam War and everyone involved, friend or foe, in a poetic rant of imaginative, sincere, foul-mouthed hatred. He swore most passionately about the waste of his buddies’ lives. He blamed everyone and everything he knew to...

Apparently, if we’re to believe his friend’s tape recordings, George W. Bush smoked pot at some time in his life. In some quarters, this president is taking some heat for having actually inhaled. Well, I’m confessing that I, too, smoked a little weed in my younger days. Unlike some people, such as Bill Maher, I’m not bragging about it. It’s simply something I did, like riding a bike and practicing my hook shot three hours a day, and now I don’t. Therefore, unlike many of my fellow conservatives, when I discuss marijuana, I’ve had first hand experience with it. To...

Mummy Hair Reveals Drinking Habits By Rossella Lorenzi, Discovery News Sept. 23, 2004 Mummy hair has revealed the first direct evidence of alcohol consumption in ancient populations, according to new forensic research.The study, still in its preliminary stage, examined hair samples from spontaneously mummified remains discovered in one of the most arid regions of the world, the Atacama Desert of northern Chile and southern Peru. The research was presented at the 5th World Congress on Mummy Studies in Turin, Italy, this month. “ In modern human hair the levels would generally be in the ranges of social drinking, but we...

People from all walks of life keep asking me the same question: “Are there moderate Muslims?” I know myself that there are, but… Many of the moderates are faced with intimidation by militant Muslims (“Islamists”). Muslims also have to contend with their own old cultural habits, hateful religious leaders, a bigoted press, and schools that teach hatred and homicide bombings. As usual, just as things seem the darkest, I happen upon something that brightens my spirit -- at least a little. Last week, FOXNews mentioned the organization “Free Muslim Coalition Against Terrorism” (FMCAT). I immediately went to their website, and...