Free Republic

Oakland grocers set to fight vandals Police say they will have more details this week in the attacks on two liquor stores By William Brand, STAFF WRITER NATION OF ISLAM minister Tony Muhammad, standing in front of Muhammad Mosque 26 in Oakland on Saturday, says the Nation had no part in the destruction inside two West Oakland liquor stores Wednesday night. (GREG TARCZYNSKI) OAKLAND — The president of the Yemini American Grocery Association said Saturday that grocers have the right to defend themselves if their stores are invaded like two West Oakland markets were hit Wednesday night. The association, which...

Steele banking on Bush visit But presidential tie seen by some as a liability By Jennifer Skalka Sun reporter Originally published November 26, 2005 President Bush's approval ratings have hit an all-time low in Maryland, but Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele, a candidate for U.S. Senate, is betting that Bush still has cachet with the state's most dedicated Republican donors. The president will headline his first fundraiser for Steele on Wednesday at M&T Bank Stadium, home of the Baltimore Ravens. Tickets to the lunch, for which business attire is required, range from $125 for general admission to $5,000 for a...

The biggest idiot. The largest doofus. The numbnut that can't be ignored. The goofball that performs beyond anyone's imagination...My nominee - someone who constantly reminds us all just how corrupt the impeached *Crinton administration was, is, and continues to be... Berger Is Fined For Smuggling Classified PapersWahington Post Online Friday, September 9, 2005 By Carol D. Leonnig A federal judge yesterday ordered former national security adviser Samuel R. "Sandy" Berger to pay a $50,000 fine and give up his security clearance for three years as the penalty for smuggling classified terrorism documents out of the National Archives in 2003. The...

My question - if the Beast kisses both *Billy Jeff and Ellen, doesn't that make her just another carrier? (I sure hope she's kept her shot record current...) Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (R) is seen with talk show host Ellen DeGeneres on the Staten Island Ferry touring the New York waterways, in this undated handout photograph released by Warner Bros. on November 19, 2005. This segment airs on Monday, November 21st as part of Ellen's New York Five Borough Show. EDITORIAL USE ONLY REUTERS/Albert Ferreira/Warner Bros./Handout

Passport plan won't better border security The Saratogian, 11/20/2005 Imagine having to show a passport to visit a friend or relative or go to a business luncheon. That's what residents along New York's northern border face because of the proposed Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. While a driver's license or birth certificate is all that's needed now, the initiative would require passports by 2008 at all land crossings into the United States. This is an effort to block terrorists, but it's a stumble in homeland security that ignores actual gaps in border protection. Terrorists tend not to bother with niceties such...

Preserving the Earth, One Joke at a Time By MICHAEL JANOFSKY Published: November 19, 2005 Jeffrey Tambor performing at the comedy show "Earth to America." Isaac Brekken for The New York TimesLAS VEGAS, Nov. 18 - Ice caps are melting. Oceans are rising. Villages are disappearing. Wild animals are not quite sure what is going on. Pretty funny stuff, eh? Well, on Thursday night it was, as a parade of comedians and a few serious actors joined forces here at Caesars Palace for two and a half hours of environmental consciousness-raising in a live show called "Earth to America," focused...

Bush backs Putin on nuke fuel supply for Iran By Joseph Curl The Washington Times November 19, 2005 Members and supporters of the Union of Jewish Students in France shout slogans near Iran's embassy in Paris November 2, 2005. About 100 demonstrators gathered to protest against Iran's politics after Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called for Israel's destruction. REUTERS/Victor TonelliPUSAN, South Korea -- President Bush told Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday that the United States supports Moscow's proposal to allow Iran to enrich uranium for a nuclear power plant at a facility to be built in Russia. The two leaders have...

Black caucus suing over budget cutsBy ELLEN TANDY etandy@wbrz.com 2theadvocate.com staff From a report by News 2's John Pastorek jp@wbrz.com Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco gestures during her address at the opening of a joint session of the state legislature in the House chambers of the State Capitol Sunday evening Nov. 6, 2005 in Baton Rouge, LA.. The Govenor called a special session of the legislature to deal with hurricane recovery efforts in the wake of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. (AP Photos/Stephan Savoia) A Baton Rouge judge Wednesday put off hearing a lawsuit against Gov. Kathleen Blanco's budget cuts. The Legislative...

Probes may have 'chilling effect' on media By Nick Madigan Sun Reporter Originally published November 16, 2005 The investigations into anonymous leaks in the nation's capital could confound the symbiotic relationship between government officials and reporters, according to observers of the interaction between the press and the politicians they cover. The probes, first in the Valerie Plame case and now in The Washington Post's story about covert CIA prisons, have prompted questions about the benefits and pitfalls of leaking national security secrets, and whether the prospect of investigations into their provenance will mean the leaks could dry up. "What if...

Judicial society announces Greensboro location Michelle Cater Rash The Business Journal of the Greater Triad Area - 3:09 PM EST Monday The American Judicature Society formally announced Monday that its new Institute of Forensic Science and Public Policy will be coming to downtown Greensboro. Close to 100 city leaders, attorneys and judges gathered in the former City Club on the top floor of the Jefferson Pilot building for the announcement. The institute will be a think tank to look at forensic science standards for use by law enforcement agencies, attorneys and courts. The institute will be advised by the society's...

Ga. Woman Charged After Marrying Teen Boy 1 hour, 36 minutes ago GAINESVILLE, Ga. - A 37-year-old woman has been charged with child molestation for allegedly having a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old boy whom she married last week. The Gainesville Times quoted unidentified members of the boy's family as saying that Lisa Lynnette Clark is pregnant with the boy's child and that they were married Tuesday. The boy's grandmother, Judy Hayles, said she received an official notice of the marriage because she is the boy's guardian. She had filed a complaint against Clark on Oct. 6. Clark was arrested...

9/11 Panel Gives White House Mixed ReviewBy BARRY SCHWEID, AP Diplomatic Writer 1 hour, 10 minutes ago Fred Fielding, a member of the Sept. 11 commission, prepares to join other panelists in a progress report on the 2004 recommendations aimed at guarding against future terrorist attacks, at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, Monday, Nov. 14, 2005. Fielding, a former Nixon White House counsel, praised U.S. attempts to integrate the Arab and Muslim world into the global trading system and in fighting terrorism financing. The Bush administration was given a mixed review and was criticized for not...

House takes up leak reviewThursday, November 10, 2005 8:01 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) - The House Intelligence Committee will look into a possible leak of classified information about secret CIA prisons but will not reopen its 2003 inquiry into prewar intelligence on Iraq. As calls for intelligence-related reviews grow on Capitol Hill, Rep. Peter Hoekstra, R-Mich., said Thursday his committee will study several specific leaks of classified information, including a Nov. 2 Washington Post story that discussed the existence of secret CIA prisons overseas. The story said the ‘‘black sites'' were in eight countries, including democracies in Eastern Europe. Hoekstra...

Support for Category 5 Storm Protection in New Orleans Ebbs in D.C. BY BILL WALSH And BRUCE ALPERT Newhouse News Service Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco speaks at a Rebuilding and Recovery Conference in New Orleans, La., Thursday, Nov. 10, 2005. Blanco talked about the effects of Hurricane Katrina and how the state would have to rebuild. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak) WASHINGTON -- In the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the tattered Gulf Coast received an outpouring of sympathy -- and money -- from Washington. Congress appropriated $62 billion for relief and recovery, and President Bush vowed to rebuild New Orleans "higher...

Feds Indict 2 in Missile-Smuggling Scheme 47 minutes ago LOS ANGELES - A federal grand jury indicted two men Wednesday for allegedly conspiring to smuggle surface-to-air missiles into the United States for use abroad. Such missiles are designed to bring down aircraft. The U.S. attorney's office said the charges marked the first time a 2004 anti-terrorism law has been used. The law calls for a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years and the possibility of life in prison without parole if convicted. Chao Tung Wu, 51, and Yi Qing Chen, 41, are naturalized U.S. citizens born in China, authorities said....

Officials hope tax 'reform' is now dead By: RICHARD ROTH 11/08/2005 HILLSDALE-The President's Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform, which was established in January 2005 to recommend options that would make the tax code simpler, fairer and more conducive to economic growth, issued its final report last week. Among the panels recommendations are a reduction in the deduction for mortgage interest, and the elimination of deductions for state and local taxes. But none of the area's representatives in Washington expect those recommendations to result in legislation. While they did not specifically address the mortgage interest deduction, both senators and both...

Al Franken (L) speaks to U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) in Boston, Massachusetts in this July 29, 2004 file photo. He pioneered mock television news 30 years ago and wrote a satirical book about becoming the 44th president of the United States. So when comedian Al Franken says he is considering a run for the U.S. Senate you have to ask--is he serious? To accompany feature Arts-Franken. REUTERS/Gary Hershorn/Files

Vermont may sue to stop tire burn November 6, 2005 By Darren M Allen Staff Writer MONTPELIER — If New York environmental officials choose to disregard Vermont's opposition to plans by International Paper Co. to burn up to 72 tons of shredded tires at its Ticonderoga, N.Y., paper mill for a two-week test, Vermont will likely take the matter to court. Gov. James Douglas and his administration, in cooperation with the Vermont Attorney General's Office, are prepared to exercise every legal avenue at their disposal, the governor's press secretary said last week. "Gov. Douglas has asked the Agency of Administration...

State Battles Likely if Roe Overturned By DAVID CRARY, Associated Press Writer Sat Nov 5,11:56 PM ET NEW YORK - Undoubtedly, there would be tumult — likely roiling every statehouse in the nation. Beyond that, little is certain about what would unfold if the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the divisive 1973 decision establishing a woman's right to have an abortion. Reversal remains only a hypothesis for now, yet both sides in the abortion debate are discussing the demise of Roe as an increasingly serious possibility. President Bush's nomination of conservative Samuel Alito to replace moderate Justice Sandra Day...

Congress Plans to Raise Budget for Census By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press Writer 32 minutes ago WASHINGTON - The census always been about more than just counting people and divvying up seats in Congress. The first one, in 1790, was used to find out how many "free white males" were available for military service. The 1870 census documented freed slaves who had been denied the right to vote. In 1940, it assessed housing conditions following the Great Depression. Times change and so does the census, evolving over two centuries to reflect America's shifting economy and values. Today, it is on...