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NEW YORK (AP) -- Office Depot Inc. said Tuesday it lost $1.54 billion in the fourth quarter as hefty charges and sharply lower sales in North America and abroad weighed on the office supply chain. The loss was much larger than analysts expected, and Office Depot shares tumbled 20 cents, or 13.8 percent, to a 52-week low of $1.25 in morning trading. "We are disappointed with the fourth quarter results," Chief Executive Steve Odland said on a conference call with analysts. "As these times have gotten tough for our customers they have significantly cut back their spending, including their spending...

Tony is going to be buried on Thursday. Bush will attend Tony Snow's funeral Thursday I am not sure that everyone on FR is aware of Tony Snow's membership and contribution to this wonderful forum. I am posting the link in the hopes that more people read his posts, and get a sense of what an incredible guy he was. http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/by:tonysnow/index?brevity=full;tab=comments His last post on Free Republic was May 29th, 2008. I know you are with God Tony. See ya.

What has happened to the Latests Posts page? I'm a big fan of it and I can't seem to get there any longer through this link: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/browse?ao=0 That link is being re-directed to Forum: News/Activism at http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/news-forum/.

You've posted a total of 44 threads and 10,306 replies. Quite frankly I am shocked at how high the number is. I have given over 10,000 posts full of wisdom and intelligence...lol.

SACRAMENTO– Orange County lawmaker Jose Solorio raised some eyebrows in December when he was named chairman of the Assembly Public Safety Committee. A rookie legislator, Solorio lacks the sort of background you might expect of the law enforcement chairman. He ran this fall on an education platform, touting his public policy degree from Harvard and encouraging Latinos to learn English. His slogan was "The Education Candidate." "The only qualification that I see is that he had a lot of money to spread around," said political watchdog Doug Heller of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights. Indeed, Solorio, D-Santa Ana,...

During the last California primary election I posted discussion threads for region relevant candidates and measures, called CA Freepers Voter Guides. http://www.freerepublic.com/~emat/ http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/search?m=all;o=time;s=Freepers%20Voter%20Guide These posts were well received by friends, family, and fellow Freepers, and they even received some modest media attention: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1653731/posts http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1653731/posts?page=26#26 However, I noticed last time the resulting discussions would have worked better in a style similar to the state message boards (e.g.: http://www.freerepublic.com/perl/profiles?location=53 ), because with election information it is important to see the most up-to-date comments first, and Freepers need to be able to delete or amend their statements as they receive new information. However,...

SACRAMENTO – When Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was swept into office by the recall election in 2003, he promised to end politics as usual, where “money goes in and favors go out.” But Schwarzenegger has carried on the political tradition of providing favors – in the form of coveted state appointments – to generous campaign donors. At least 13 of Schwarzenegger's appointees, their spouses and their companies have contributed more than $1.4 million to his campaigns, according to campaign disclosure forms and a review by the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights. Schwarzenegger has hired some donors for key positions in...

Mayor Ron Gonzales was indicted by a county grand jury Thursday on six counts, his office said, but the allegations were not immediately clear. Prosecutors have said they were investigating whether Gonzales committed any crime for secretly negotiating a trash hauling contract with Norcal Waste Systems that cost taxpayers an additional $11.25 million in labor costs. Neither authorities nor Gonzales could immediately be reached for comment, but the mayor's office said he and aide Joe Guerra posted bail Thursday morning. Guerra's lawyer, Alan Lagod, hadn't seen an indictment, but said his client and the mayor "self-surrendered at the sheriff's department...

Streets renamed after fallen soldiersBy CAROLYN THOMPSON, Associated Press Writer Wed Jun 14, 3:15 AM ET Taps is played during an unveiling ceremony for R. V. Derenda Lane in honor of Army Sgt. 1st Class Robert V. Derenda, in Cheektowaga, N.Y., Saturday May 20, 2006. Derenda was killed in Iraq last August. The names of the fallen soldiers of Iraq are becoming permanent fixtures on the landscapes the soldiers themselves will never return to. (AP Photo/David Duprey) BUFFALO, N.Y. - Loretta Derenda's home sits only a few steps from what used to be called Candlelight Lane, where her son Robert...

BARWANA, Iraq (Nov. 10, 2005) -- Being an infantryman and standing security posts go hand in hand when in Iraq. While some are in security positions and others are regulating traffic, these posts are an important part of keeping Marines safe here. Standing many hours on these posts keeping his fellow Marines with Company L, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, safe is Los Angeles native, Lance Cpl. Steve Nuno. The automatic rifleman spends hours everyday manning the entry control point and other security position at the base here. His job while spending time on these mostly uneventful posts is to...

TORONTO - A U.S. security official said Wednesday it will use wireless technology at five border posts with Canada and Mexico to track foreigners driving in and out of the United States. Bob Mocny of the Department of Homeland Security said wireless chips for vehicles would become mandatory at designated border crossings in Canada and Mexico as of Aug. 4. Border authorities will provide a chip that drivers will put on the dashboard of vehicles. Antennas have been installed at the border crossings at Thousand Islands Bridge in Alexandria Bay, N.Y., and Blaine, Wash. crossings for the Pacific Highway and...

Dreams as big as Texashttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1367601/posts How to Build a Lunar Base:Part 1: The Launch Issuehttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1364382/posts Democrat Voter Intimidationhttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1373668/posts Griffin leaves door open for shuttle flight to Hubblehttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1382376/posts Close encounters on rise as UFOs seize imagination of Chinesehttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1396576/posts Scientists say they have located the parts of the brain that comprehend sarcasm - honestly.http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1408647/posts Scientists to make 'Stuart Little' mouse with the brain of a humanhttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1356862/posts Sex Offender caught at Denny's with little girl, was a bloggerhttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1435841/posts War Inside CBS News (Drudge Siren Alert)http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1344068/posts "THE RULE OF LAW" VS MORALITYhttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1373310/posts $1 billion price tag of saving rare toadhttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1364065/posts 'Extreme' judicial activismhttp://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1340496/posts...

MOSUL, Iraq -- Jennifer Guay went to war to be a grunt. And the 170-pound former bartender from Leeds, Maine, with cropped red hair and a penchant for the bench press, has come pretty close. It was mid-February and Guay, 26, an Army specialist who was the first woman to be assigned as an infantry combat medic, was spending 10 hours a day on missions with the 82nd Airborne Division, dodging rockets and grenades in the crowded streets of Mosul. "Break-break-break: U.S. soldier down!" a hard-edged voice came over the radio. A gun battle had just broken out. In less...

Ukrainian presidential candidate, who won the elections, Viktor Yushchenko has promised to nominate a new Prime Minister in a couple of days. This time is necessary to make a decision on other Cabinet members and before the middle of February Yushchenko is to decide on regional governors.Under the Ukrainian laws, the president nominates the prime minister and the Supreme Rada should vote on the candidate. A number of politicians are expected to be nominated, former Deputy Prime Minister Yuliya Timoshenko, former Prime Minister Anatoly Kinakh, head of the budget committee of the parliament Pyotr Poroshenko, socialist leader Alexander Moroz and...

Can you take all of the state update posts by DFU and put them in a neat little column all there own?

Since most FReepers are personally responsible, hard-working, well-prepared, self-sufficient individuals, I thought it would be nice for us to get to brag about the fruits of our labor--whether it be traditional county-fair fare (canning, crochet, quilting, crops, cheeses) or FReeper-oriented fare (political slogans, FReep posters, FReep ideas, breaking news, opus posts, FR handles, FR profiles, posts-of-the-day, etc.) I'm not sure who the judges will be, but you all are welcome to post your entries here.

Just wondering. If he ever has the time. I wonder if it would be against against any campaign rule for a candidate to solicit votes on a message board/blog? Would Free Republic allow it?

Carnival of the Capitalists Welcome to the first edition of the Carnival of the Capitalists. Modeled after the Carnival of the Vanities, this weekly roundup is intended to be a "Best Of the Blogosphere" for posts covering business, economics, stocks, accounting, taxes, business law, and related topics. More info can be found in my first post on the subject. There are some excellent posts here from some very intelligent people. I hope this eventually gets recognized by the major business news sources because, while bloggers may not always write as well as the pros, I think we can provide a...

1827 posts to go until we reach 1,000,000 posts when will it happen? I'm on pins and needels waiting!

October 02, 2003 How to Help Editor's Note: We've had a number of questions about how to send care packages to our troops and have added some links to our link section about that. Sally Vaci sent her care packages through Operation Military Pride. Operation Gratitude is another organization where you can help send care packages, either by donating money (tax deductible), getting items for the wish list, or writing letters. This holiday season, they plan on sending 2000 care packages to our troops throughout the world. In another vein, Chief Wiggles over in Iraq is doing a toy...