Free Republic

Here's what you need to know about this hot button topic.Key Points: -Political controversy has stoked new conversations around the fluoridation of water and whether the mineral is safe to consume. -Water fluoridation, or the practice of adding fluoride to sources of drinking water, has been credited as one of the greatest public health innovations of the 20th century and helps protect tooth enamel and prevent cavities. -Dental experts and research say that water fluoridation provides vital dental support for communities, is proven to reduce rates of tooth decay, and is safe when kept at recommended concentrations. Although the addition...

Could Cardinal Parolin be validly elected pope?For Cardinal Parolin, the Vatican II 'renewal' is to be brought about through compromise with the proponents of liberalism and naturalism, rather than by combatting these errors.Pietro Parolin is widely regarded as one of the leading candidates who may be elected at the next conclave. Parolin was named a cardinal by Francis in 2014 and has been a member of his influential Council of Cardinal Advisers since that year. He played a prominent role in Francis’s radical revolution and has been a strong supporter of “synodality”, which he sees as a continuation of Vatican...

Charles McGonigal may be the most corrupt FBI official in modern history—and yet somehow, his name has barely made a blip on the radar. This wasn’t some mid-level pencil-pusher. McGonigal was one of the top counterintelligence agents at the FBI’s New York field office. He was directly involved in the bureau’s most sensitive operations, including the infamous “Crossfire Hurricane” probe into (phony) Trump–Russia “collusion.” And after that whole fraudulent mess, it turns out that he was secretly taking money from a Kremlin-linked oligarch and helping shake down Albanian oligarchs on the side. You can’t make this up, right? Now here...

The “end of history” is over and Europe is experiencing a “transatlantic crisis”, says Ursula von der Leyen, former Angela Merkel acolyte turned European Commission supremo. “Another, new European Union” is needed to shape the “new world order” emerging out of power struggles between the United States, China, and Russia the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen told a German newspaper. Speaking to Die Zeit, the top Eurocrat expressed her interpretation of events that “The West as we knew it no longer exists”, stating that beyond the old understanding of what countries were Western and which not,...

Pete Buttigieg. Wes Moore. Gavin Newsom. Gretchen Whitmer. Stephen A. Smith!!!???!!??Since the November election, the ESPN commentator has been bashing Democratic leadership for losing to Donald Trump and floating himself as a potential 2028 candidate and savior for the party and the country. And Smith’s dalliance with politics isn’t one-sided. Pod Save America, Fox News, CNN, ABC News, the New Yorker and other major outlets have sought out Smith for his first takes on immigration, tariffs and other issues.President Stephen A. Smith? Has everyone gone crazy? Not completely. Many nonpartisan pundits and Democrats themselves think the party needs a leader...

A top economic adviser to President Trump confidently predicted Monday the US would not experience a recession this year — despite widespread uncertainty over the administration’s tariff regime. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told Fox Business Network “100% not, 100% not” when asked by host Maria Bartiromo about the possibility of a sustained downturn. “If you look at the jobs numbers, they’re very, very strong,” Hassett explained. “When I talk anecdotally to CEOs, I say things like, ‘Well, jeez, is the uncertainty over tariffs looking like it’s gonna be a big drag?’ And they’re saying things like, ‘No, in...

Trump may have accidentally confessed to insider trading and market manipulation on Truth Social. “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!! DJT,” the president wrote on Wednesday, a mere four hours before announcing a 90-day pause on most retaliatory tariffs except for China, yet another market-shocking announcement that caused stocks to shoot up. Insider trading is a very illegal practice that involves using special or private information to give yourself an advantage in buying and selling stocks. Someone with knowledge of an economic policy change that would cause the markets to shoot back up would be posting about how great...

The triumphal arch holds a very important place in the annals of Western architecture and urbanism. In Roman times it played a lofty honorific role, even though most Roman arches commemorated civic achievements and personages rather than military victories. The freestanding monumental arch was a syncretic creation, structurally derived from Etruscan gateways and decoratively enriched with Hellenistic architectural and sculptural forms. Its distinctive presence, which accommodated an astonishing variety in massing and detail, enriched towns and cities across the Roman empire, from Spain to Syria. The monumental arch should be regarded as a universal entity—eminently appropriate, one would think, to...

I know this is the stuff of science fiction fantasy, but does anyone think there are, or have ever been, any person who was immortal on this earth, Other than Jesus Christ, Enoch or Elijah? Jesus Christ is a special case, because he really DID die. Buy He raised Himself. There is a case for Melchizedek being a real man, who has "neither beginning of days nor end of life." It would make sense for God to have a single human presence to establish human continuity through the ages, there being a breakdown in communication and forgetfulness between mortal generations...

Shocking bodycam footage revealed the moment Texas police officers shot a man in the head with pepper bullets as he sat on the grass outside of a cemetery. Guadalupe County officers were seen in the footage on June 27, 2021, approaching now 44-year-old Ronald Smith, who was sat cross-legged on the grass, with weapons held out in front of them pointed at Smith. Smith's attorney, Andres Cano, told DailyMail.com: 'He's waiting for his wife to come get him and he sees this [guy] running across with a gun pointed at him, yelling shrieking, shouting.' 'Within ten seconds, another one rolls...

If you think President Trump is just goofing around about Greenland or just using it for some sort of negotiation leverage, you would be wrong. And President Trump FULL TRANSCRIPT: We need Greenland, very importantly, for international security. We have to have Greenland. It’s not a question of “Do you think we can do without it?” We can’t. If you look at Greenland right now, if you look at the waterways, you have Chinese and Russian ships all over the place. And we’re not going to be able to do that. We’re not relying on Denmark or anybody else to...

On Friday, Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) said on CNN’s “News Central” that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and National Security Adviser Michael Waltz should not be in government after using Signal for a chat among senior national security officials. Swalwell said, “I want to know, are they going to continue to use this type of chat environment for future operations? No one has answered that. and every member of Congress, at least on our side, should ask every intelligence official and every military official when they appear under oath before Congress. Are you using signal chat? And by the way, DOGE...

In a startling revelation, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has been implicated in a colossal USAID fraud scheme that has garnered significant attention and raised serious concerns among taxpayers. According to a tweet by Mila Joy, which has gone viral, Pritzker’s family controls 64 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that are allegedly siphoning millions of taxpayer dollars. This situation has ignited discussions surrounding political corruption, accountability, and the role of NGOs in government fundin

Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) said there’s “no doubt” that Russia and China were monitoring the U.S. officials’ devices used for a war plan text chat. “I will guarantee you, 99.99 percent with confidence, Russia and China are monitoring those two phones,” Bacon told CNN’s Manu Raju. “So I just think it’s a security violation, and there’s no doubt that Russia and China saw this stuff within hours of the actual attacks on Yemen or the Houthis.” National security adviser Mike Waltz reportedly invited The Atlantic’s top editor, Jeffrey Goldberg, into the Signal group, in which Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared...

In the last two months, Li has been all over the internet. An interview with Patrick Bet-David netted 2.5 million. As Bet-David noted, “A lot of people want to know, is she straight up, is she real?” Now, here’s what troubles me. In her interviews, Li freely shares the story of her political evolution

It’s difficult to get a clear answer on this. Google of course front loads everything to the leftist slant first few pages. I tend to use Yandex to search on contentious topics and yes I know it’s Russian but it’s good trust me if you want to find non leftist entries The left seems intent on adjudicating every deportation if possible as well as apply for the courts to challenge every Trump move with 120 plus so far mostly in DC district courts which lean left obviously Trump has been challenged in court more in two months than all presidents...

New data suggests that soaring egg prices, which became a flashpoint issue during last year's presidential election, may finally be falling. Figures released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture show that the average cost of one dozen eggs is now significantly cheaper than in recent days. The economic indicator website Trading Economics shows that a dozen eggs were $5.51 on Tuesday, more than $2 cheaper than “an all-time high of $8.17 in March of 2025.” …

Various groups over the past two centuries have suggested that the people of Atlantis migrated to Europe after their civilization was destroyed and sank into the sea. This includes the Nazis, who used this belief as a basis for their ideas about racial superiority. What do the facts reveal about the argument that the inhabitants of ancient Atlantis migrated to Europe? Who were the Atlanteans? Atlantis was a mythical island described by the ancient Greek philosopher Plato. Its inhabitants, the Atlanteans, were an advanced and powerful people, known for their wealth, technology, and military might. However, their growing arrogance and...

According to the Bible, Noah's Ark saved humanity and all the animals from certain annihilation during an ancient flood. Now, 5,000 years after those floodwaters supposedly receded, scientists claim to have discovered the location of the famous boat. An international team of researchers claims that a boat-shaped mound 18 miles (30km) south of Mount Ararat in Turkey is actually the fossilised remains of a wooden vessel. The Durupinar Formation is a 163-metre (538ft) geological structure made of a type of iron ore called limonite. It has long captivated researchers due to the fact that its shape and structure almost match...

As the James Bond franchise undergoes a major shake-up, word on the street is that the next leading 007 character could finally be a woman. It was recently confirmed that Amazon MGM Studios would be taking over Bond after the Broccoli family ceased creative control. Producers and half-siblings Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli have ‘formed a new joint venture to house the James Bond intellectual property rights’, meaning they are still co-owners. However, fans are still eagerly awaiting confirmation of who will be the next secret agent, with Aaron Taylor-Johnson having been the frontrunner for a while. But as...