Free Republic

When Malia Obama officially began her college career after moving in at Harvard University towards the end of the summer, the subject brought with it the usual type of questions you'd expect for any current or former first daughter. Among those questions is one that points to how unique of a life she might lead on campus, that question being: Does Malia Obama have security at Harvard? As far as an answer goes, a number of reports sure make it seem like she'll have not just any security around, but the Secret Service. Consider, for instance, what former President Barack...

COOK COUNTY CRIMINAL COURTHOUSE — A man on parole for second-degree murder was denied bail Monday on allegations he pistol-whipped someone during a brawl at Taco Burrito King in Greektown this weekend. Anderson, 26, was captured on surveillance video repeatedly beating a 29-year-old man with a gun about 4:20 a.m. Saturday at Taco Burrito King, 811 W. Jackson Blvd., according to an arrest report. Anderson, of the 7300 block of South Indiana Avenue, was convicted of second-degree murder in 2013 and sentenced to 18 years in prison, state records show. Details of that case were not immediately available Monday. He...

CHEROKEE COUNTY, Ga. -- Two students are in police custody, accused of plotting to attack students and staff at Etowah High School in Cherokee County, reports CBS Atlanta affiliate WGCL-TV. Police identified the suspects as Alfred Dupree and Victoria McCurley, both 17. Acting on a tip, Cherokee investigators served a warrant on both of the students' homes, authorities said. They said they found a homemade incendiary device and an undetermined powder substance at McCurley's house, and a journal at Dupree's house in which details were laid out of an attack against the school. Principal Robert Horn said local authorities were...

I have a serious question for anyone knowledgeable about taxes at the government and political level. I didn't want to post it in breaking news, but there are no topics that work in "Chat" so I'll just throw it out here to see if I can get some insight.

A California gang member’s mugshot has fans drooling on Facebook, with some even offering to pay to spring her from jail. Mirella Ponce, who authorities said is a Tiny Rascal Gang member, was arrested Monday during a routine traffic stop in Fresno. The tatted 20-year-old, who was with her infant and two other TRG gang members, was found in possession of a loaded stolen firearm during the stop. The Fresno Police Department posted her mugshot, which quickly went viral, garnering more than 3,500 shares in just two days, with many fans thirsting over her good looks. “The only crime she...

Elements of the US Department of Defense (DOD) will conduct a “communications interoperability” training exercise November 4-6, once again simulating a “very bad day” scenario. Amateur Radio and MARS organizations will take part. “This exercise will begin with a national massive coronal mass ejection event which will impact the national power grid as well as all forms of traditional communication, including landline telephone, cellphone, satellite, and Internet connectivity,” Army MARS Program Manager Paul English, WD8DBY, explained in an announcement. During the exercise, a designated DOD Headquarters entity will request county-by-county status reports for the 3,143 US counties and county equivalents,...

Sorry for the rant/vanity.

The note largely exceeded the estimated pre-auction price, which was placed between $5,000 and $8,000. The $1.56 million price included the buyer’s fee, the auction site stated. The Nobel-winning scientist wrote the note while he was in Tokyo, just after he was told he would be awarded a Nobel Prize in physics, Winner’s Auctions and Exhibitions said. A bellboy arrived at his room to deliver an item and Einstein didn't have cash to tip him. Instead, the scientist handed him a piece of paper with a message. "A calm and modest life brings more happiness than the pursuit of success...

Breaking: Lou Dobbs Reports: DOJ has just lifted the gag order on the FBI informant.

As I write, there is a crock pot of apple butter in the works, and the house smells officially autumnal - kind of an understatement. Since it has to cook for at least nine hours, the anticipation is great, and I can only assume it will be great. Although, the “great apple butter” doesn't have the same ring to it as “The Great Pumpkin,” which aired again just this week. Although I’ve seen it many times, I can’t for the life of me remember if he turns up in the end or if Linus is disappointed. I do know that...

A brother of Las Vegas mass shooter Stephen Paddock was arrested in Los Angeles on Wednesday on suspicion of possessing hundreds of images of child pornography, according to authorities.

Politicians often insist government is the only way to increase access to health care. In fact, the opposite is true: For years,“certificate of need” laws at the state level have prevented much-needed medical facilities from being built across the country.

The hypocrites never seem to surprise me with their depth of two-facedness. https://www.democraticunderground.com/10029748635

China, the world’s biggest oil importer, is set this year to implement its plan to end the global dominance of the U.S. dollar by launching a gold-backed futures contract denominated in yuan. Experts say that Beijing’s plan to start a gold-backed crude oil futures contract based on the yuan represents an important step in the country’s push to end the dollar’s global dominance. The adoption of the new crude oil benchmark by major players in global oil markets would sound the death knell of the currently dominant dollar-denominated oil futures, according to experts. Adam Levinson, head of Graticule Asset Management...

The first video of the new series, called “First Day at StemExpress Inside Planned Parenthood,” shows a former StemExpress employee recounting her first day on the job, using tweezers to sift through “a clear pie dish full of ‘POC’—products of conception.” . . . O’Donnell says she fainted on the job and woke up in the recovery room of the abortion clinic, where a nurse told her this was common and some abortion workers “never get over it.”

On Sunday, the Wall Street Journal published a gripping account of fugitive billionaire Guo Wengui’s time in the United States and efforts by Chinese security services to apprehend him. The story is well worth the read and sheds light on how agents with China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) — the country’s foreign and domestic intelligence arm — attempted to retrieve Guo in New York City, where he currently resides. (Guo has lived outside China since 2015.) Guo, who also goes by Miles Kwok, is something of a celebrity in the China-watching world for the spectacular allegations he’s gradually unveiled...

Latest on Las Vegas from today across the AP, Local and state:

[Editor’s Note: In this special Just Security article, highly respected former member of the CIA’s Senior Intelligence Service, John Sipher examines the Steele dossier using methods that an intelligence officer would to try to validate such information. Sipher concludes that the dossier’s information on campaign collusion is generally credible when measured against standard Russian intelligence practices, events subsequent to Steele’s reporting, and information that has become available in the nine months since Steele’s final report. The dossier, in Sipher’s view, is not without fault, including factual inaccuracies. Those errors, however, do not detract from an overarching framework that has proven...

I just saw Sara Carter, one of the investigative reporters who broke the story on the Russia-Clinton uranium story, state, while being interviewed by Lou Dobss on his show, that based on her conversations with Victoria Toensing, the attorney representing the FBI informant, the DOJ will lift the Non-Disclosure agreement (NDA) and this will be a full, not partial, lifting, which will allow the informant to disclose everything he learned during his 4 years as an FBI undercover operative.

Greetings from a Japan . I have a made for Japan Dell PC / Windows 7 with Windows Media Player as well as Cyberlink Power DVD pre-installed . I've used only the Windows Media Player since buying the PC 4 or so years ago and I'm pretty sure the drive is locked in to region 1 ( don't recall if I ever tried to play a region 2 DVD on it ). My daughter gave me a new external DVD drive that I would like to use for region 2 discs on the Dell ( prefer this over downloading VLC...