Free Republic

<p>U.S. national security agencies are on alert for a terrorist attack after the discovery that a Middle Eastern man carried out suspicious surveillance of the Washington Monument, the Pentagon and other buildings in the area.</p> <p>The man in question videotaped the Washington Monument on the Mall on Sept. 1 and paced off several distances around the monument, according to U.S. intelligence officials.</p>

WASHINGTON - The big wall of stars at the National World War II Memorial struck a nerve with George McKinney. The wall has 4,000 gold stars, each representing about 100 U.S. soldiers killed in the war. McKinney, an Army veteran, said he knew so many people - friends and relatives - killed in the war that they would account for an entire star. He got choked up as recalled them. "I lost a brother," he said as a few tears rolled down his cheek. His older brother Cecil died when his plane crashed during a training flight. Joyce Siler, another...

 ONLINE NEWS September 24, 2003 2004 WORLD MONUMENTS WATCH LIST OF100 MOST ENDANGERED SITES ANNOUNCED Endangered cultural heritage monuments listed this year range from ancient Ephesus in Turkey to Paraguay's railroad. (Courtesy World Monuments Fund) Endangered cultural heritage monuments listed this year range from ancient Ephesus in Turkey to Paraguay's railroad. (Courtesy World Monuments Fund) or the first time, the World Monuments Watch list of 100 Most Endangered Sites covers every continent, including its first Antarctica nomination, explorer Ernest Shackleton's hut. The list, announced today by the World Monuments Fund (WMF), also features for the first time sites in...

COEUR d'ALENE-- They lurk on the lawns, usually near a tree or the corner of a building. But nobody seems to notice the Ten Commandments chiseled into granite monoliths at many county courthouses, city halls and public parks in Idaho. And residents aren't demanding that Kootenai County, Post Falls or Hayden remove Western civilization's oldest rules for life from public property. ‘‘There are so many other things to worry about in our nation other than 10 sentences that say be nice to each other and don't cheat on your wife,” Kootenai County Commissioner Gus Johnson said. ‘‘It's a historical document,...

Thou shalt not make unto the public any graven image of the Ten Commandments? All across the country, individuals and groups have sued municipalities for the removal of monuments bearing images with religious significance. A series of landmark Supreme Court decisions in the 1980s launched this labyrinthine area of First Amendment jurisprudence by indicating that a religious symbol on public property may, under certain circumstances, convey an impermissible state endorsement of religion or preference for religion over nonreligion. Today, cities across the country must decide what to do with plaques, images, crosses, or statuary that have stood for decades, but...

<p>Attacks against President Clinton's proclamation restricting access to seven national monuments and millions of acres of public land have reached the Supreme Court, where President Bush's administration is defending the discretion Mr. Bush once denounced.</p> <p>The Justice Department is asking the justices to reject two challenges to Clinton proclamations that Mr. Bush and running mate Dick Cheney, in the 2000 campaign, called "willy-nilly" and vowed to review, perhaps nullify. The question of Mr. Clinton possibly exceeding president's powers was a charged issue.</p>

The Bush administration will not challenge 17 national monuments that former President Clinton designated, including the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument in Southern Oregon. Instead, the Interior Department announced plans Wednesday to proceed with management plans that will guide the myriad activities on monument lands, including recreation, road closures, grazing and fire suppression. Agency officials promised that the plans would be developed with "maximum input" from local residents, many of whom complained bitterly about being ignored when the monuments were established. "While I share concerns about the way in which these monuments were created, it's our job now to see that we...