Free Republic

When pastor Frank Carl delivers a sermon at Genoa Church in Westerville, Ohio, he typically hears a chorus of “amens.” On Sunday, he instead heard a deafening blast of honks. And Carl wasn’t at the pulpit—he was about 25 feet off the ground on a scissor lift. “It’s not what I had in mind when I accepted a higher calling,” he told TIME of the experience, laughing. **SNIP** To continue providing services, churches have employed a variety of digital alternatives like livestreams, apps and YouTube videos. But over the past week, an increasing number of pastors have turned instead to...

Joe Biden’s campaign is looking to expand its fundraising operation as it prepares to take on President Donald Trump in the general election. Officials within Biden’s organization have discussed bringing in a new group of regional fundraising advisors, including former aides to Sen. Kamala Harris’ and Pete Buttigieg’s campaigns, who could help them expand their donor network, according to people familiar with the matter. These people declined to be named because the talks were private. Biden had a strong March, raising more than $30 million in online donations, as the coronavirus has pushed his campaign into a fully online platform,...

A Florida man allegedly attempted to eat a stolen debit card when he was confronted by police officers after attempting to use the card to purchase goods at Walt Disney World. Orange County police deputies arrested Jose Herrera, 27, on Monday. He had been held by Disney security after being caught while buying gift cards and jewelry at Disney Springs, Walt Disney World's shopping center, with the stolen card, which is believed to have been taken from a deceased Ohio man. Herrera allegedly tried to eat the evidence of his crime, with officers witnessing him attempting to chomp down on...

Trapped in the confines of four walls, springtime spent in quarantine can feel uninspiring, if not isolating. But as Gregory Chiate’s son looked outside his window in Marin County one recent morning, he realized he wasn’t alone. On top of a towering conifer outside perched a bald eagle: the first one his father had seen since they moved there 11 years ago. The birds have been making a comeback, according to Shannon Burke, an interpretive naturalist with Marin County Parks, though it’s not necessarily because the area has been deserted by people. (Coyotes are a different story in San Francisco.)...

Legacy media may be shutting down coverage of President Trump’s daily virus task force press conferences, but his message about getting the nation back on its feet by Easter is getting through anyway. The latest Rasmussen Reports survey found that 61% of Republicans share Trump’s confidence that some parts of the country not widely impacted by the coronavirus can begin rolling back precautions by Easter. As with virtually everything coming out of Washington and the White House, though, there is a huge partisan split. Democrats, who don’t agree with much of anything Trump does, also don’t have confidence in Trump’s...

CIUDAD JUAREZ - Faced with the threat of the increased spread of coronavirus across their borders, three northern Mexicans states are calling on President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to do more to stop people entering Mexico from the U.S. The three states – Tamaulipas, Coahuila and Nuevo Leon – border Texas, which has more than 2,500 confirmed cases of the virus as of Sunday, based on more than 25,000 tests. Combined, the three Mexican states have over 90 cases, though the number of tests is not clear. The urgent call comes just days before the April 5th - 12th Holy...

The Pilgrim, an icon at the Ocean Institute, has keeled and is sinking in Dana Point Harbor. Officials at the center were informed at 5:15 a.m. Sunday, March 29, that the beloved vessel, which served as an inspiring real-world classroom to hundreds of thousands of students and visitors, had keeled starboard — tilted toward the right side — during the night at the Ocean Institute’s dock near San Juan Capistrano. It was not immediately clear Sunday morning what caused the ship to sink. A boom has been placed around the ship and an inspection is forthcoming, said Wendy Marshall, executive...

ATLANTA - The CDC estimates that as of March 21, there have been at least 39 million flu illnesses, 400,000 hospitalizations and 24,000 deaths from flu in the United States. The CDC reported that as of March 21, 155 children had died from the flu this season. Hospitalization rates in children 0-4 years old and adults 18-49 years old are now the highest CDC has on record for these age groups, surpassing the rate reported during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic. Widespread flu outbreaks are reported in Alabama, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland,...

If this were a normal election year, voter registration organizations in Florida would be deploying an army of field volunteers and organizers to supermarkets and churches now. They’d be touting ambitious registration goals, knocking on a record number of doors and targeting overlooked voters. But as the number of cases and deaths related to COVID-19 continue to swell in the nation’s most populous battleground state, “Get Out The Vote!” groups are scrapping old plans and scrambling to address the challenges posed by a society in near-lockdown. Suddenly unable to reach voters on their doorsteps, Democratic activists are scaling back voter...

EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) - A pair of drug busts netted more than $8.7 million worth of narcotics last week at a South Texas border crossing, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said. Both drug seizures occurred at the World Trade Bridge in Laredo, Texas. On Friday, border officers conducted a non-intrusive imaging inspection on a tractor-trailer hauling a shipment of plastic containers. With the help of a drug-sniffing dog, officers found 137 packages containing 3,272 pounds of marijuana. The previous day, border officers discovered 159 packages containing 581 pounds of methamphetamine in a tractor-trailer following a secondary inspection that...

The Weekly Gardening Thread is a weekly gathering of folks that love soil, seeds and plants of all kinds. From complete newbies that are looking to start that first potted plant, to gardeners with some acreage, to Master Gardener level and beyond, we would love to hear from you. If you have specific question about a plant/problem you are having, please remember to state the Growing Zone where you are located. This thread is non-political respite. No matter what, you won’t be flamed, and the only dumb question is the one that isn’t asked. It is impossible to hijack the...

A video from a reporter in Montana has gone viral after the reporter spots a herd of bison coming toward him while setting up for his shot. “Three, two, oh my god. I ain’t messing with you. Oh no. I’m not messing with you,” Deion Broxton says. Deion Broxton KTVM ✔ @DeionNBCMT There was a herd of bison walking right toward me at @YellowstoneNPS today! Embedded video 364K 1:25 PM - Mar 25, 2020 Broxton was doing a story at Yellowstone Park when he spotted the bison. He then packed up and got out of there. Then once he was...

Emotions ran high at the packed Resources and Development Committee meeting at Piñon Chapter last Wednesday over the issuance of the new 10 sheep unit grazing permits for residents of the Dzil Yijiin Navajo Partitioned Lands, per a resolution that was passed by the previous RDC. Black Mesa area livestock owners, who have testified several times in the past year, are tired of waiting for answers from officials, they say. “We hoped people would realize how devastating this is to us,” said livestock owner Dorothy Yazzie. “For over 40 years, we’ve been impacted by the Navajo-Hopi Land Settlement and they’re...

This is our ongoing prepper thread, re-invented to be more specific to prepping for, and of course during, pandemics. Where gave you found your preps have withstood this test? What would you like to have done differently? What are your current prepping plans?

Power was quickly restored, the squirrel was not. A squirrel interfering with electrical equipment temporarily knocked out power for 15 customers near the Governor’s Mansion, an Alaska Electric Light and Power spokesperson said. “It happens. They sometimes get where they shouldn’t be,” said Debbie Driscoll, AEL&P’s vice president of consumer affairs in a phone interview. “He basically caused a problem with the fuses.” AEL&P has closed its lobby, but is maintaining full operations as many other businesses close down to help slow the outbreak of COVID-19. AEL&P will maintain full service through the outbreak, Discoll said. “Our crews were on...

Supporter, Bike shops are open for business. Yesterday, Denver and Boulder issued orders asking all residents to stay at home unless performing essential activities. The orders include bike shops as an essential business that can stay open to provide support for Coloradans and visitors during the COVID-19 outbreak, and encourage bicycling as a form of outdoor activity. You can read Denver's full announcement here, and Boulder's here. Denver's announcement did not originally include bike shops as essential businesses, but was amended last night to do so. As two of Colorado's most populous cities, we are optimistic Denver and Boulder's stay-at-home...

COVID-19 response aims to ease demand on first respondersSan Juan County (Colorado) Sheriff Bruce Conrad has issued a “locals only” policy prohibiting backcountry recreation, including skiing and snowmobiling, on all lands within the county to minimize the chance that first-responders will be called to a backcountry rescue while simultaneously dealing with a COVID-19 pandemic. “We’re a small community. On a good day, San Juan County has limited search-and-rescue infrastructure and the same people who would be part of a search and rescue are the same EMS personnel who provide services to our community. We don’t want them to be overtaxed,”...

Outdoor winter play has long been blamed for colds and the flu. Our parents told us to " bundle up or you'll catch a cold," and their parents probably told them the same thing. But winter play gets a bad rap. Although going outside unprepared for the elements is unwise, viruses that are spread by other human beings and cause colds and the flu are [mainly] indoors. The indoor circulation of germs and bacteria is much more harmful to your child than playing outside... Breathe fresh air. It's no secret that most parents blame winter air as the cause for...

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Toyota Motor Corp on Monday said it would develop a heavy-duty fuel-cell truck with its subsidiary, Hino Motor Co, as it sees hydrogen technology as a zero-emissions alternative to battery power for large commercial vehicles. In a statement, Toyota said the truck, based on Hino’s Profia model, would be equipped with two fuel cell stacks developed for the next model of its Mirai fuel cell sedan. It would have a traveling range of 600 kilometers (373 miles). Toyota has long touted fuel cell vehicles as the ultimate “green car”, and sees the technology as more efficient...

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