Free Republic

A Spanish court has ordered that the remains of Salvador Dali be exhumed after a woman who claims to be the daughter of the world-famous artist filed a paternity claim. The Madrid court said Monday the exhumation aimed "to get samples of his remains to determine whether he is the biological father of a woman from Girona (in northeastern Spain) who filed a claim to be recognised as the daughter of the artist." "The DNA study of the painter's corpse is necessary due to the lack of other biological or personal remains with which to perform the comparative study," it...

Chinese authorities have been forcing Tibetans to sign a petition opposing the Dalai Lama's return, a London-based group said, in apparent retaliation for the award of a high U.S. honour to Tibet's spiritual leader. President George W. Bush gave the exiled god-king the Congressional Gold Medal in Washington in October, infuriating Beijing. It came on the heels of the Dalai Lama's reception by German Chancellor Angela Merkel in September. The Dalai Lama, 72, has lived in exile in India since fleeing his predominantly Buddhist homeland in 1959 after a failed uprising against Communist rule. Closed-door talks between Beijing and his...

After the Korean War, the Army gave up pack animals for trucks, planes and choppers to transport troops and equipment. But recently -- remember those folks on horseback routing the Taliban in Afghanistan? -- it's become clear that Special Forces might find themselves needing horses, mules and donkeys, and perhaps the occasional camel or llama, to move around. But who remembers how to deal with these critters? No problem. Couple years ago the Army put together a 225-page field manual -- "Special Forces Use of Pack Animals" -- that provides a comprehensive overview on the care and feeding and uses...