Free Republic

HOUSTON SPACE CENTER, Texas - Two spacewalking astronauts armed with caulking guns, putty knives and foam brushes practiced fixing deliberately damaged shuttle heat shields Saturday, a job they hope they won't have to do for real. Although Discovery suffered some scrapes and chips during liftoff, none of the damage appears to warrant orbital repairs, space agency officials said. As the two astronauts completed the mission's first spacewalk, NASA was on the verge of extending Discovery's visit at the international space station. With future shuttle flights grounded because of Discovery's fuel-tank foam loss during liftoff, the space agency would like to...

When I was a boy, my parents used to enjoy a comedian named Ronnie Graham. One of his jokes was, "The other day a cat came up to me and said, 'How do I get to Carnegie Hall?' and I said 'Practice, man, practice.' This other cat came up to me and said, 'Meow.' He was a real cat." We talk a lot in our movement about spiritual practices. I am a Religious Science Practitioner; the root word of Practitioner is practice. But why do we practice? Ernest Holmes said that a central concept of our movement is "Perfect God,...

LOU DOBBS TONIGHT QUICKVOTE Should doctors who graduate from foreign medical schools be licensed to practice in the United States?

Unconscious Competence: What is it? How can we train for it? Martin D. Topper, Ph.D., Jack M. Feldman, Ph.D. What Is Unconscious Competence? The term "Unconscious Competence," is used by members of the American Tactical Shooting Association and others in the training community to describe a rapid, seamless and successful response to a situation involving deadly force or the potential for deadly force. It is a term many believe they inherently understand, but which is, in reality, very hard to define. For example, what does the word "unconscious" imply? Obviously, it doesn't mean unconsciousness as in a boxer who's...

    by Fr. Andrew Sullivan M.J. Other Articles by Fr. Andrew Sullivan M.J. Reviving the Practice of Reverence 12/30/04 Here we are at the end of the year. It is a good time for reflection and assessing what we need to do to end the year with a better understanding of how we can love God more. Let’s consider the need for reverence in our lives. There is a need for great reverence in our relationships with Jesus Christ. Lord have mercy that there is so little reverence these days. It has become like scarce water in a desert. It...

Welcome Newcomers! This Sandbox is devoted to giving you a place to practice basic HTML, and to get some coaching. So, first things first: Go to michigander's [ HTML Bootcamp (Cyber patriot training)] and learn there how to change font color, font size, font face, and the like. THERE'S A WEALTH OF INFORMATION THERE NOT COVERED HERE (so as to avoid duplication). Learn there also how to post a link and an image, then come back here to practice. If you're having problems, folks will drop by occasionally to give you pointers and help you troubleshoot. Boring posts are...

Debate practice...  "He's [Kerry] a sweater," chortles a G.O.P. official, "and women don't like sweaters."   This is an email-able, copyright-ready cartoon you can use in emails, on blogs, in flyers, on posters... anything that's noncommercial.

In this IBD posted this graphic:

Welcome Newcomers! This Sandbox is devoted to giving you a place to practice basic HTML without getting flamed when you make a mistake, and to get some coaching. So, first things first: Go to michigander's [ HTML Bootcamp (Cyber patriot training)] and learn there how to change font color, font size, font face, and the like. THERE'S A WEALTH OF INFORMATION THERE NOT COVERED HERE (so as to avoid duplication). Learn there also how to post a link and an image, then come back here to practice. If you're having problems, folks will drop by occasionally to give you...

A row has broken out in Australia's Queensland state following reports that police there used photographs of real-life people, including Aborigines, during target practice. The police minister in the northeastern state, Tony McGrady, has ordered an inquiry after the Channel Seven television report. The broadcaster said Queensland's counter-terrorism squad used 28 pictures or mug shots, including those of two Aborigines, in training exercises. Civil rights activists reacted with outrage but police maintained they had done nothing wrong. "It's absolutely disgraceful in that it reinforces prejudices," said Cameron Murphy, secretary of the Australian Council for Civil Liberties. "We've got a serious...

Welcome Newcomers! This Sandbox is devoted to giving you a place to practice basic HTML, and to get some coaching. So, first things first: Go to michigander's [ HTML Bootcamp (Cyber patriot training)] and learn there how to change font color, font size, font face, and the like. THERE'S A WEALTH OF INFORMATION THERE NOT COVERED HERE (so as to avoid duplication). Learn there also how to post a link and an image, then come back here to practice. If you're having problems, folks will drop by occasionally to give you pointers and help you troubleshoot. Boring posts are...

The cases presented in the True Stella Awards are typically selected to illustrate various aspects of the runaway problems in our civil legal system. The aim, over the long run, is to clearly show that there is no one aspect of the problem that needs change to "fix" the entire system;the problems are indeed systemic. It's definitely not just bad lawyers,or too many of them (though that's part of it). It's not just that the medical profession isn't weeding out bad doctors (though that's part ofit). It's not just that insurance companies encourage frivolous claimsand suits by making "nuisance" payments...

The term "HAM" is a nickname for those who participate in the hobby called amateur radio. The origin of that term is not known to us. The term "amateur" these days means "one who is not professional." Doen't know much about the subject.That was not the original meaning....(snip) Every year in June, HAMs generate disaster....(snip)Click HERE for entire article.