Free Republic

The island of Manhattan boasts so many soaring towers, that it’s hardly news when a new one shoots up—even if its spire pierces the clouds. That said, now and then, there’s an exception in the form of an ambitious architectural masterpiece, like the west side’s new 90-story Affirmation Tower, a five-tiered, terrazzo-clad skyscraper that, upon closer inspection, appears to be upside down. Developed by Don Peebles, the chief operating officer at the Peebles Corporation, and designed by AD100 architect Sir David Adjaye, Affirmation Tower is as symbolic as it is enormous (1,663 feet tall and two million square feet.) Not...

Washington (CNN) – President Barack Obama turns his attention to campaign politics Monday night, as he headlines two events for the Democratic National Committee and his re-election campaign. According to the White House schedule, the president first attends a gathering of approximately 140 guests at a private residence in the nation's capital. A DNC official says proceeds from the $15,000 per family gathering ...

Minneapolis school officials have ordered an inquiry into claims that Superintendent Thandiwe Peebles misused her office by assigning school employees to do personal chores and her college work. School Board Chairman Joseph Erickson said he asked outside attorney Dennis O'Brien to check the allegations in two detailed letters sent anonymously to school board members last month. "We feel like it's important and worth investigating," he said. The Star Tribune also received copies of the letters. Employees and former employees interviewed by the newspaper corroborated some of the details, plus similar allegations. They described an office in which employees working for...