Free Republic

A Houston 18-year-old has been arrested and charged with illegally distributing explosive-making information and attempting to support the Islamic State organization. The U.S. Justice Department said Monday that Kaan Sercan Damlarkaya, a U.S. citizen, was arrested on Dec. 8 following an undercover FBI operation. A statement says Damlarkaya said he intended to travel overseas and fight for IS and said he tried to get to Syria twice. He told agents that he would commit a U.S. attack if efforts to travel overseas failed. It also says Damlarkaya provided to alleged IS supporters a formula for explosive Triacetone Triperoxide and instructions...

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- An 18-year-old Houston man is facing charges related to terrorism, accused of distributing instructions for making bombs and helping to support ISIS. Kaan Sercan Damlarkaya was arrested on Friday. Authorities say in August, Damlarkaya was communicating online with undercover FBI agents and other sources. He reportedly told them he planned to go overseas to fight for ISIS. But if he couldn't do that, he allegedly planned to commit an attack in the U.S. Damlarkaya provided instructions on how to build an AK-47 or AR-15 assault rifle from readily available parts in order to avoid detection from...

People forgot the asterisk. Or maybe they never noticed it in the first place. The consequences of that oversight took full form about a week ago, and the result is that the prospects for several major highway projects in Central Texas and the state’s other urban centers are now uncertain. Back during the 2013 legislative session, when Texas Department of Transportation officials and their lawmaker allies began pushing for more money through a constitutional amendment, they said that TxDOT needed an extra $5 billion a year to fight traffic congestion. Just give us that much money and all will be...

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The Houston Muslim community invited their neighbors to a special event aimed at building bridges between cultures and ending stereotypes about Muslims. The event provided attendees the opportunity to meet their Muslim neighbors, ask questions, clear misconceptions, dispel stereotypes, and create friendships. "Muslims are hosting this event for our neighbors to provide them with an opportunity to get to know the Muslim community and Learn about Islam," said Sultan Salahuddin of ICNA Houston.

The Houston Press' 28-year run as the region's alternative weekly ended at approximately 3 p.m. Friday when the nine full-time editorial staff members learned they had lost their jobs and print publication would cease. In a post this afternoon, the newspaper's parent company cited "devastation" from Hurricane Harvey as the final straw. The Press, one of the nation's first alt weeklies to have an online presence, will be produced as a web-only product. Andy Van De Voorde, executive associate editor at parent company Voice Media Group, said in an interview that houstonpress.com would continue to provide news and culture coverage...

Houston Texans owner Bob McNair apologized, but his regrettable comments won’t be forgotten by his players that easily. McNair reportedly said, “We can’t have the inmates running the prison” during last week’s meetings between players and owners over the national anthem issue. McNair said he was using a figure of speech, but anyone should be able to understand why players wouldn’t be so quick to forgive. The Texans considered a walkout Friday, according to Sarah Barshop of ESPN, and star receiver DeAndre Hopkins did leave. Texans coach Bill O’Brien said Hopkins took a “personal day” after he wasn’t seen at...

Almost 140 men, including a Houston police officer, found out too late that the new management were actually undercover vice officers operating the massage parlor that had been a well-known underground brothel in the past. Dozens of men including two attorneys, a teacher and the police officer, were arrested earlier this month during a 10-day sting, law officials announced Thursday... Acevedo said the undercover police charged the average rate in Houston of $60 as a door fee and $120 for sex acts... there are 250 to 520 illicit massage parlors operating in Houston at any given time, Acevedo said.

World Series 2017 Houston Astros - American League Los Angeles Dodgers - National League Starts today at 508 PDT at Dodger Stadium and it will be HOT 103 3 hours before game time. Two good teams, both good pitching and good bull pens.

No city in America runs on anything resembling a free-market model. But Texas' major cities are probably the closest thing, with vast improvements to their economies and living standards to show for it. Their looser land-use laws mean that housing supply grows quickly, stabilizing prices. Their lighter tax and regulatory structure helps businesses locate there and grow. And—shenanigans from the governor's office notwithstanding—their openness to immigrants means they have cheap and robust labor forces.But one market-oriented aspect little discussed is Texas' approach to transportation. The state has 25 toll roads, more than any other state. They are particularly common in Houston and Dallas,...

HOUSTON -- Good news for drivers heading into Monday morning: Sam Houston Tollway's main lanes are now fully open in both directions. That means tens of thousands of commuters can now get back to their regular routes. But with the good news comes some bad news: Harris County Tolls will start up again Tuesday at 4 a.m. on all toll roads except for the section of Sam Houston Tollway between Highway 59 and Highway 290. Tolls will be waived because some feeder roads are still closed. Fort Bend County Tolls resume Monday. The toll way opening is a few days...

On May 6th, 2017, an armed man was sitting on his front porch in the 400 block of Glenburnie Drive in Houston, Texas. He had a concealed carry permit. His brother says that he goes to the range often. He was on his porch and had another firearm with him. An AR-15 type rifle.Three men attacked him in a drive-by shooting at about 2:15 a.m. He fired back, hitting all three. They car they were in crashed, and all three left the vehicle to continue the attack.The homeowner kept up his defense, shooting back and hitting all three men...

The northbound lanes of a main section of the West Sam Houston Tollway/Beltway 8, which were flooded by Tropical Storm Harvey, were reopened Sept. 7 after pumping out standing water, but the southbound lanes likely won’t open until the middle of this week, according to the Harris County Toll Road Authority in Houston. The authority reported Sept. 7 that the tollway section from Westheimer to Interstate 10 was a lake, with 14 feet of water, when pumps arrived. By then, the water had finally receded enough for the authority and the Texas Department of Transportation to start pumping out the...

Like many Americans during the past three weeks, I've been bombarded by news about the destructive power of Hurricane Harvey in Texas and Hurricane Irma in Florida. The stories are of misery, death, and destruction. The misery, death, and destruction are acutely difficult to accept because they have been visited upon innocents. I say that knowledgeable of the ancient argument that our personal and collective sinfulness has merited our pain. Yet that raises this question: Does anyone really deserve personal ruination because of personal sin, particularly from a God whose Son said He came to call sinners and not the...

As many students in Houston head back to school starting Sept. 11, observers say there is a need for specialized support for both children and teachers. SEPTEMBER 11, 2017 NASHUA, N.H. AND HOUSTON—Bryan McMillian was supposed to start college Aug. 28 at Prairie View A&M University, near Houston. Now, the apartment he had lined up in nearby Cypress, Texas, is flooded, and he’s trying to figure out if he can take online classes for a semester while he stays with some family in Austin. Harvey wasn’t the first hurricane to disrupt his educational journey. Katrina hit on what would have...

Mayor Sylvester Turner will ask the Houston city council for a temporary tax hike of nearly 9 percent to help pay for Harvey relief. The first item in the process to pass the increase will go in front of the city council Wednesday. The increase would be temporary, and would only be permitted to last for 12 months. The current rate of 58.6 cents per $100 valuation would go up to 63.8 cents for 12 months since the request is considering an emergency, Mayor Turner's communication director Alan Bernstein said. On an average home in Houston valued at $225,000, it...

“How many flood victims in South Texas have been rescued by the antifa navy? Just asking, because on TV this week I’ve been watching the “Cajun Navy” pull one Dunkirk after another all around the Gulf Coast. And those good old boys look like they just came off the set of “Duck Dynasty.” They could be wearing MAGA hats. Hell, I’ll bet one or two of them may have even been falsely accused of committing a fake hate crime or two since the election by some unhinged Social Justice Warrior. They are, to coin a phrase, deplorables. Hell, a Chick-fil-A...

A Houston councilman discouraged residents from donating to the Red Cross in the wake of Hurricane Harvey at a council meeting Wednesday, the Houston Chronicle reports. Council member Dave Martin, who represents the Kingwood area of Houston, begged residents "not to give a penny" to the Red Cross, but to give money instead to "another cause." "They are the most inept, unorganized organization I've ever experienced," Martin said.

Following the devastating flooding and aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, we’ve seen countless stories of rescues and donations pouring in from across the country. In addition to government entities like FEMA and the National Guard, individuals, corporations, and citizen groups are pitching in to help those affected by Harvey. Here’s a snapshot of only a few of the good deeds done: Bass Pro Shops donated eighty boats and $40,000 worth of relief supplies.“Madea” creator, actor, director and producer Tyler Perry pledged $1 million to relief efforts, $250,000 of which to go to Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church.Football player J.J. Watt led a social...

As Hurricane Harvey’s inland sea drains from Houston, the cleanup tally is rising: $180 billion for Texas alone, equal to the entire GDP of New Zealand. We in Texas and Louisiana – and perhaps Florida – direly need funds to haul debris, fix houses and schools, replace cars, and build better flood protection. With all these needs, a carbon tax can help. A federal tax on carbon would discourage emissions of carbon dioxide and other GHGs that are warming the seas and the air. Done right, a carbon tax would also bankroll cleanup campaigns led by FEMA and local agencies....

Hurricane Harvey reveals an America that many in the media seem not to know exists: a multi-ethnic, multiracial country where people, for the most part, get along. For those who claim that President Donald Trump "coarsened" our politics and "set back race relations," Hurricane Harvey was pretty bad optics. Only weeks ago, some Democrats were counting the days toward Trump's impeachment and an early departure from the presidency. But last week they saw Trump, in Texas, looking quite presidential in his role as comforter in chief. They saw photos of a president soothing and embracing survivors, no matter their...