Free Republic

The Department of Homeland Security has solicited a proposal from a Canadian security company to develop a stun bracelet. In order to enhance the security of air travel and to help manage illegal immigration, the Department of Homeland Security has solicited a proposal from a Canadian security company to develop a passenger stun bracelet.

Four cups of coffee a day seriously damage a woman’s chances of having a baby, research suggests. The effect is almost as bad as the problems in pregnancy caused by alcohol, smoking or being overweight, a fertility conference heard. Women drinking that much caffeine were 26 per cent less likely to have a baby — adding to evidence that it can harm fertility and the health of an unborn baby. Earlier this year, it was claimed that just two cups of coffee a day could double the risk of miscarriage. Coffee has also been found to increase the risk of...

Tony Blair may have secured a historic third term for the Labour Party last night but the reduction in the size of his majority will significantly change the way in which he is able to act.His power and his position in the party have depended almost entirely on the perception since his landslide victory in 1997 that he is a winner. In many parts of the country that has now been undermined. Last night's result could make it more difficult for the Prime Minister to stay in office for the whole of the next Parliament as he promised to do...

A reader writes: "Last night we were out with friends and went to the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory at Bella Terra/Huntington Beach. We were eating outside as my 5 year old daughter got an uncontrollable urge to use the bathroom and began crying and screaming 'diarrhea, diarrhea.' I ran into the store with her in my arms, begging to use the bathroom and they refused multiple times." I explained she had diarrhea and couldn't hold it and told them she was about to go on the floor. They refused again and never offered me any alternatives. I begged them to...

BEIRUT (Reuters) - At "Buns and Guns" you can order a "Kalashnikov" sandwich from a bullet-shaped menu, prepared by chefs in military fatigues with the roar of explosions as background music. This new fast food restaurant in Beirut's southern suburbs, where the Hezbollah movement holds sway, was the brainchild of co-owner Ali Hammoud. He said the war theme was a novel concept that had nothing to do with Lebanon's bloody recent history. BEIRUT (Reuters) - At "Buns and Guns" you can order a "Kalashnikov" sandwich from a bullet-shaped menu, prepared by chefs in military fatigues with the roar of explosions...

Mummy's little Lolita: The 11-year-old girl whose beauty treatments cost £300 a month to make her look like Barbie By Jenny Johnston Last updated at 5:31 PM on 05th July 2008 She wore her first set of false eyelashes at eight, and her beauty treatments cost £300 a month. A sick abuse of an 11-year-old? 'No', insists Sasha's mother, 'I just want her to be famous...' At 11, Sasha Bennington is too young to remember the days when Jordan was just a country and being branded 'fake' was something to be ashamed of. But maybe the youngster's biggest tragedy is...

Britain is on the verge of a recession and the number of permanent job vacancies is falling, two reports warn today. The British Chambers of Commerce describes the outlook as 'grim' and warns that a recession could start within months. It says it has uncovered evidence of a 'menacing deterioration' in the economic outlook. Another report, from the accountants KPMG, shows that the number of permanent job vacancies fell in June for the first time in five years.

rising prices and a global shortage of provisions. But yesterday the Prime Minister and other world leaders sat down to an 18-course gastronomic extravaganza at a G8 summit in Japan, which is focusing on the food crisis. The dinner, and a six-course lunch, at the summit of leading industrialised nations on the island of Hokkaido, included delicacies such as caviar, milkfed lamb, sea urchin and tuna, with champagne and wines flown in from Europe and the U.S.

Is there a ping list specifically for discussions and/or news concerning or related to C.S. Lewis?

Whose idea was it to send John McCain down to Mexico the day before Independence Day and have him grovel for Latino votes south of the border by visiting the Basilica de Guadalupe–a famed Catholic shrine featuring the image of the Virgin of Guadalupe, which most Mexican politicians consider off-limits for campaigning? According to Frentes Politicos (hat tip - reader Edgar M.), the stunt was the brainchild of none other than McCain’s open-borders Hispanic outreach director and former Mexican cabinet official Juan Hernandez, who apparently survived the big campaign staff shake-up:

Is there a ping list specifically for discussions and/or news concerning or related to J.R.R. Tolkien? Thanks in advance for your help.

I’ve noted the phenomenon of Big Nanny pediatricians quizzing parents about whether they own guns before. The AMA, of course, is notoriously filled with gun-grabbing activists. Read Shawn shares another example via the Raleigh News and Observer. He e-mails: “No longer satisfied with just making sure the kids are in good health, the doctors now see fit to pry into your personal life to see if you have guns in the home.”

Alarming numbers of children feel safer in the street when carrying knives or guns, Government inspectors warned today. A top-level report found that many children were still "very worried" about being bullied and were afraid of being on their own in public areas.

Dear Jim..OK, the GOP now has its candidate. McCain isn't the first choice of the majority of us on FR, and even now, there are spirited, yet for the most part, civil exchanges on the threads as to whether or not some will support the GOP nominee. One of the more unfortunate, and unpleasant events on FR was the mass banishment and/or leaving of a great many Freepers who were supporters of Rudy Guliani for the nomination. I'm posting this to see if you'd be open to the idea of inviting them to return, and see how others might feel...

To: David Hunter I just stepped away from the computer for a while - I had to cook dinner and watch the final results. I'm overwhelmed by what I'm seeing on my return...OK, I'll stay. :) Regards, Ivan 547 posted on 05/06/2005 2:56:23 PM EDT by MadIvan (One blog to bring them all...and in the Darkness bind them: http://www.theringwraith.com/) [ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 507 | View Replies | Report Abuse ]

I am off to Moran's to join the rest of the chapter in welcoming MadIvan to New York. I will attempt to post using my pocket PC and my wireless modem as we haven't arranged for a modem connection with a laptop there is no sense on lugging around the extra weight in addition to my camera and camcoder. We will try to upload some digital pictures as the party is progressing and hope that AT&T has a CDPD node nearby to transmit. Barring that, we will continue the thread once we get home.