Free Republic

Five Turkish soldiers and one civilian personnel were killed in Syria on Sunday, Turkey's first fatalities as a result of direct confrontation between the countries since the start of Syria's civil war in 2011. Nine other troops were also wounded in northwest Syria's Idlib province after they came under heavy artillery fire from the Syrian government Sunday, according to a Turkey defense department statement which added that the troops were reinforcements. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said up to 35 Syrian government soldiers had been killed Monday in response, and pledged further retaliation. Erdogan said up to 40 Syrian targets...

Crony Bidding And Gross Incompetence Reign.. At a time when Coloradans are desperately pleading for improved and new roadways the agency in charge of the same, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), is mired in the greatest crisis of its long-storied existence . ... In December 2018, Governor Jared Polis appointed 35-year-old Shoshana Lew as his new Executive Director, a history major .. She replaced Governor Hickenlooper's appointment of 56-year-old Michael Lewis, an engineer with extensive public construction management experience. ... Lew's primary qualification .. was her close relationship to Michelle Obama who called the newly elected governor for a...

The 20-something couple with a history of small-time scams had inadvertently hacked the world’s most powerful nation for a five-figure ransom at a time of high anxiety over national security on Inauguration Day. The Romanians had launched hundreds of thousands of emails embedded with ransomware in an attachment disguised as an invoice, authorities said. The list of email addresses they bought included, by chance, the Washington, D.C., police department. A recipient there apparently took the bait, opening the attachment that locked up the street-camera system. Only a payment could produce the key. Ms. Cismaru sent a message to the Journal...

Lindsey Graham is supposedly a new convert to the MAGA movement. Almost immediately after traitor John McCain died, Lindsey Graham appeared to have a change of heart. He began backing Trump on policy matters, and when Justice Kavanaugh was under attack, Lindsey was the point-man for his defense; delivering one of the most impassioned political speeches ever. Lindsey’s speech last year was a “game-changer” and MAGA rallied around the South Carolina senator and embraced him as a new and important figurehead in the movement. Graham even took over Chuck Grassley’s place as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee – a...

Suspended Broward Sheriff Scott Israel should get his job back, a special investigator for the Florida Senate recommended, in a a stunning rebuke to Gov. Ron DeSantis. DeSantis failed to prove the charges in his suspension order, special master Dudley Goodlette wrote in a report released Wednesday.

Some Austin business owners say the homeless problem is now a homeless crisis. One downtown business owner says he may start closing early to keep employees and customers safe...In June, the Austin City Council changed the homeless ordinances to allow sitting, lying and camping in more public spaces, including sidewalks. Staley says that's when one homeless man moved in. “All his belongings are right here up against our patio and we can't do anything about it. We can't. The police can't,” said Staley. The patio on Congress Avenue was designed as a shady spot for tourists and locals to grab...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Robert Mueller was being criticized for seemingly answering questions slowly, not recalling key details of his investigation, and appearing to be confused throughout his testimony Wednesday. After a brief recess, Mueller insisted he was entirely lucid. "I hear a few murmurs out there that I've lost it," he said. "Well, I haven't lost it. I've still got it. In fact, I'm still sharp as a tack." Before testimony could resume, however, Mueller interrupted the proceedings, appearing to reach for his cell phone. "I really have to take this," he said apologetically as he reached into his pocket and pulled...

Halal slaughter in a public parking lot, while a kid witnesses a cow getting its throat cut – something that non-Muslims apparently need to get used to, judging by the account “Suddenly, Musaed whipped out a foot-long knife and slit the cow’s throat as other Saba employees wrangled the animal. The officer was stunned over the disturbing act. “You know this is a big — this is a problem. This is not something that can be done,” the cop said. How many years will that kid have nightmares? Respect it! The gory scene prompted the closure of the Saba meat...

Did A Deadly Fire Break Out On A Secret Russian Spy Sub? Here's What We Know About 'Losharik' By Mike Eckel July 02, 2019 It's one of the more unique, more capable, and more distinctive vessels in Russia's naval fleet. And it now appears to hold the distinction of being the latest Russian naval ship to suffer a catastrophic -- and, so far, unexplained -- incident. Russia's Defense Ministry said on July 2 that a submarine operated by its main naval research and development unit had suffered a fire on board, killing 14 sailors. The ship was reportedly operating in...

NEW YORK - New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced he is running for president in 2020. [VIDEO AT LINK]

HARARA, May 13 (Reuters) - Zimbabwe has started rolling power cuts lasting up to eight hours that will also hit mines, a schedule from the state power utility showed on Monday, after reduced output at both the largest hydro plant and ageing coal-fired generators. The power cuts will add to mounting public anger against President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government as Zimbabweans grapple with an economic crisis that has seen shortages of U.S. dollars, fuel, food and medicines as well as soaring inflation that is eroding earnings and savings.

Once, the cannabis industry was poised to become a multibillion-dollar industry in California. Now, it could be heading for what its advocates call an “extinction event.” An estimated 10,000 marijuana growers could lose their licenses in the coming months if California lawmakers fail to pass a bill designed to grant them an extension, according to Sen. Mike McGuire, D-Healdsburg, who has sponsored Senate Bill 67.

"""Where has $850m gone? Bill de Blasio's wife can't account for staggering amount of taxpayer money that the NY Mayor gave her for mental health project""" Chirlane McCray was assigned a $850million budget for her ThriveNYC program But records show scheme has failed to keep track of what it spent the money on The small amount of data that was collected shows it fell far short of targets Despite that, organizers have expanded the budget to $1billion over five years

A little after 1:30 a.m. on June 17, 2017, Alexander Vaughan tumbled from his bunk onto the floor of his sleeping quarters on board the Navy destroyer USS Fitzgerald. The shock of cold, salty water snapped him awake. He struggled to his feet and felt a torrent rushing past his thighs. Around him, sailors were screaming. “Water on deck. Water on deck!” Vaughan fumbled for his black plastic glasses and strained to see through the darkness of the windowless compartment. Underneath the surface of the Pacific Ocean, 12 miles off the coast of Japan, the tidy world of Berthing 2...

Full TITLE: VA Evicts Groups that Help Vets; Dog Park, Baseball Stadium, Prep School Athletic Fields, Upscale Store Parking Stay ================================================================== The Los Angeles Veterans Affairs (VA) facility that illegally rents its sprawling grounds to institutions that don’t serve veterans just evicted several groups dedicated to veterans, including a nonprofit that for decades has comforted dying vets and another that helps those who are disabled. While the VA gave the volunteer organizations the boot without offering an explanation, it continues housing a parking lot for nearby upscale shops, a university baseball stadium, a dog park for the professional dog walkers...

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu secured another diplomatic victory for Israel with the dramatic announcement that Chad and the Jewish State would be reestablishing diplomatic relations. The Muslim majority nation had severed ties in 1972 following intense pressure from Libya, its menacing neighbor to the north, which at the time was led by the dictator, Col. Muammar Qaddafi. But following a visit by Chad’s President Idriss Déby to Jerusalem and a reciprocating visit by PM Netanyahu to N’Djamena, forty-seven years of animosity instantly vanished. Israel’s historic diplomatic achievement occurred despite intense efforts by the Palestinian Authority and Iran to torpedo the...

The Israeli Defence Forces on Sunday confirmed that its missiles are “currently targeting Iranian Quds in Syrian territory” just before midnight local time as reports from the Syrian News Agency confirms massive explosions in capital Damascus. “We warn the Syrian Armed Forces against attempting to harm Israeli forces or territory,” the statement released by the IDF said. It marks the first time Israel has confirmed they are striking Iranian targets in Syria and that it is happening in real time. There have been unconfirmed reports since that Syrian forces are engaging with their weaponry by the Golan Heights — a...

“The Last Days of JFK Jr.,” a two-hour special promising new details and new interviews under the ABC News banner, aired Thursday night. Not only did the program soft-pedal Kennedy’s complete and utter fault for the crash but it got crucial details wrong — claiming that the FAA said flying conditions that night were “excellent” (according to the National Transportation Safety Board review of the crash, they were extremely poor, and JFK Jr. would have known it), and that his flight instructor was unavailable that night to fly with him. In fact, the NTSB report said one of Kennedy’s instructors...

"In Havana, some of the same architectural gems that draw tens of thousands of American tourists crash to the ground every year. Causes range from weather and neglect to faulty renovations and theft of structural beams."

Fior Pichardo de Veloz, a grandmother arrested in Miami, suffered a serious indignity at the hands of the Miami-Dade County Corrections Department: jailers booked her as a man and she spent nearly 10 hours in a holding cell surrounded by leering inmates. Her shame was compounded when a federal judge threw out her lawsuit, saying the jail staffers were protected from a trial for negligence. But clearly disturbed by the outrageous mistake, a federal appeals court this month reinstated the lawsuit against the jail doctor and nurse who insisted jail officers book Pichardo as a man — even though a...