Free Republic

...brown paper can be made into a beautiful wrapping option, especially when spruced up with a sprig of evergreen, a dehydrated orange slice...

The Senate voted overwhelmingly to advance the USA Freedom Act Sunday evening, but too late to prevent Sen. Rand Paul from being able to force a short-term expiration of Patriot Act surveillance authorities at midnight. The overwhelming vote Sunday came after Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., threw in the towel on advancing any short-term extensions of the Patriot Act authorities under the continuing objections of Paul, the fellow Kentuckian he has endorsed for the presidency. The Senate voted 77-17, far above the 60-vote threshold to advance the bill. Several more steps are required, however, before a vote on final passage,...

I managed to slip away from business long enough mid-day Friday in Madison to visit the capitol in the daylight, and capture the scene inside at the moment Governor Walker signed the bill eliminating collective bargaining for some classes of Wisconsin public employees. Below is another quickly-edited, four-minute highlight reel. The scene is really rather feeble, as you will see, but nonetheless conveys the infantilism of the modern left. This time I offer some voice-over commentary of my own, but couldn't resist calling in reinforcements from Monty Python on a couple of points.

It is possible that such a phenomenon could occur when matter around a newborn star forms into planets. In a planet's orbit around a star, there are two places where a third body can safely orbit. These spots, known as Lagrange points, are 120 degrees in front of and behind whichever body is smaller. The discovered co-orbiting planets, located in the four-planet system KOI-730, are always 120 degrees apart, permanent fixtures in each others' night skies. Fifty million years after the birth of our solar system, the moon may have formed from the debris of a collision between Earth and...

Vice President Joe Biden won’t be lectured by Republicans about killing Christmas. “Don’t tell me about Christmas,” said Biden, a former Delaware senator, in an interview with NBC’s Andrea Mitchell. “I understand Christmas. I've been a senator for a long time. I've been there many years where we go right up to Christmas.”

No denial. France of today is a magnificent nation. The almost perfect blend of shopping opportunities, beauty of architechture and landscape, nice freeways, marvelous food, well educated people and high-tech solutions are just about everywhere. Today, even a place like Paris or Monaco (not "de jure" French) has become poorer than Hamburg, Switzerland, Inner City London and Scandinavia, but Paris and Monaco still live up to their former reputation in many ways. Personally, I admire good old France. Just have a look at it: 25% study Sociology 25% are retired 25% are unemployed 25% are on strike Where does the...

They wanted to make Christmas bright for patients at St. Joseph's Children's Hospital. But, quite by accident, a group of parents, teachers and sisters from the Villa Madonna Catholic School stepped into the Christmas wars. Improbably, their opponent was St. Joseph's Children's Hospital, which has its roots in the Catholic Church. At issue: whether the group could distribute religious-themed gifts to patients. During a Dec. 11 visit, the hospital staff assessed the group's offerings and quickly made a decision. Ornaments that read "Joy to the World" and "Peace on Earth" were in. Nativity lapel pins, ornaments bearing a "Merry Christmas"...

The bigger a dinosaur was, the warmer its blood, a study of the big beasts' fossil remains shows.

America has a split personality when it comes to paying for a just, free society. On the one hand, there's almost universal acceptance of the sacrifices needed to defend the nation from military and terrorist threats. This has created a bipartisan consensus to devote $453 billion, well over half of all discretionary federal spending this year, to defense. Most even accept the ultimate sacrifice of our brave military servicemen and women, who give their lives defending the nation. The question is, why accept the costs of defending our country from external threats while turning our backs on domestic programs that...

Reprinted from NewsMax.com Thursday, Dec. 22, 2005 5:21 p.m. EST 22 Congressmen Hate Christmas This year's "War for Christmas" – keeping "Christ" in the holiday has apparently been won. And, like many "wars," there has even been a Congressional resolution in support of keeping Christmas alive and well. On December 15 the House of Representatives passed a resolution "protecting the symbols and traditions of Christmas" by an overwhelming 401-22 vote. Representative JoAnn Davis (R-VA), the resolution's sponsor, said the resolution was necessary to counter "political correctness run amok." "No one," she said, "should feel like they have done something wrong...

In city halls and public parks across the country, stories-high evergreens are being erected and decked with glowing lights and sparkling ornaments. They look - and smell - like Christmas trees. But not so fast. In places as varied as Chicago, Reno and Prairie Village, Kan., they're "holiday" trees. In other spots, such as Atlanta, they have no name at all. This year, the tree-name game has sparked a backlash, with some Americans crying humbug and Christian groups threatening lawsuits over what they say is religious discrimination. Perhaps the most heated debate is brewing in Boston. The city's Parks and...

If you're expecting a hearty "Merry Christmas" as you're doing your shopping; you might be disappointed. Usual holiday ads say things like Christmas, but you might want get used to hearing and seeing the term holiday. Because some stores are cutting Christmas out and putting a generic phrase in. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, but don't expect to hear someone say it. "I love Christmas, so I don't mind," says Rebecca Reyes. Wal-mart is one of many stores asking its employees to replace Christmas with "Happy Holidays". The company says its trying not to offend anyone, by...

Christmas Under Siege: The Big Picture Tuesday, December 07, 2004 By Bill O'Reilly Christmas under siege — the big picture. That is the subject of this evening's "Talking Points Memo." All over the country, Christmas is taking flak. In Denver this past weekend, no religious floats were permitted in the holiday parade there. In New York City, Mayor Bloomberg unveiled the holiday tree and no Christian Christmas symbols are allowed in the public schools. Federated Department Stores, [that's] Macy's, have done away with the Christmas greeting, "Merry Christmas." Now, all of this anti-Christian stuff is absurd, and may even...

A pro-family organization has issued an alert to those who may be considering giving to one of the nation's largest charities this holiday season. The group's spokesman is warding donors away from United Way, and he also wants shoppers to know a thing or two about Target stores. Bob Knight, director of the Culture and Family Institute, says the United Way has been crossed off his gift list. That is because the well-known charity refuses to share its money with the Boy Scouts of America while it openly supports numerous pro-homosexual groups with its money. "I don't know why people...

Brit artist outrages 9/11 families Families of Sept. 11 victims joined New York leaders in denouncing shock artist Damien Hirst yesterday after he contended Osama Bin Laden and his henchmen "need congratulating" for their "visually stunning" atrocity. Hirst, who has made a fortune trotting out animal cadavers as conceptual art, says the World Trade Center attack was "kind of like an artwork in its own right." "It was wicked," the British gallery huckster allowed in an interview with the BBC News Online. "But it was devised in this way for this kind of impact. It was devised visually. You've got...

Americans who value the Constitution should stand with Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., and oppose George Bush's attempted power grab in conjunction with establishing a Department of Homeland Security. The Bushies are trying to frame the debate as either protecting bureaucracy or providing security for Americans. In fact, the debate is about preventing an authoritarian president from sacrificing the Constitution in the name of providing security. Let me remind you that those who prefer security to freedom will lose both. Bush wants to be able to disregard labor contracts and civil-service rules, as well as move money within the department as...