Free Republic

As Americans fend off a late summer COVID-19 spike and prepare for a fresh vaccine rollout, Republicans are raising familiar fears that government-issued lockdowns and mask mandates are next. It's been a favorite topic among some of the GOP's top presidential contenders. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters that people are "lurching toward" COVID-19 restrictions and "there needs to be pushback." South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott posted online that the "radical Left" seeks to bring back school closures and mandates. And former President Donald Trump urged congressional Republicans to stop the Biden administration from bringing back COVID-19 "mandates, lockdowns or...

Gov. Ron DeSantis says he’d take a hard line against North Korea if necessary, including a preemptive military strike in the event evidence said they were gunning for the U.S. first. On Tuesday’s CBS Evening News, the Florida Governor said he would do so if “you knew that there was definitely someone was about to launch a missile at you.” “Of course, you take action to prevent and protect your people, but that would require a certain amount of evidentiary threshold,” DeSantis told Norah O’Donnell. “I don’t think you just go willy nilly.” DeSantis also said he would keep North...

Democrat Joe Biden leaves little doubt that if elected he would try to scale back President Donald Trump’s buildup in nuclear weapons spending. And although the former vice president has not fully detailed his nuclear priorities, he says he would make the U.S. less reliant on the world’s deadliest weapons. The two candidates’ views on nuclear weapons policy and strategy carry unusual significance in this election because the United States is at a turning point in deciding the future of its weapons arsenal and because of growing debate about the threat posed by Chinese and Russian nuclear advances. […] Biden...

That’s … a lotta unmasking. The fact that Samantha Power is at the heart of the “unmasking” investigation in the House barely qualifies as news at this point, as her name has been floating around in connection with it for months. In fact, Trey Gowdy quizzed John Brennan about a mysterious ambassador and her strange unmasking requests at a House hearing all the way back on May 23. By mid-July the Free Beacon’s sources had identified her as a “central figure” in the probe. Note this quote from that piece: “Unmasking is not a regular occurrence—absolutely not a weekly...

Gauntlet thrown The calculation has always - or at least for the past decade or so - been that any sort of strike against North Korea would be too risky because a) if they really do have operable nukes, they could easily reach Seoul or various targets in Japan; and b) Bowl Cut Jr. is either evil enough or crazy enough (or both) to do it. Ergo, no threat of force is credible or feasible. So went the thinking throughout the Bush and Obama administrations.

Episode 15 is a video interview by Mark Levin of NHS Task Force Executive Director Dr. Peter Pry about the growing EMP threat. Dr. Pry makes a powerful argument about how vulnerable the US and specifically the American people are to an EMP attack on our electrical infrastructure by North Korea or Iran. It would only take one bomb exploded thirty miles over the continental United States to potentially kill ninety million Americans. The bomb itself would not kill anybody. At any given moment half a million people are flying over the United States. With their electronics destroyed, most of...

Israel has the right to prevent its civilians from being murdered by Iranian weapons, especially weapons of mass destruction. Iran would have no legal standing to protest a surgical attack on its nuclear facilities that are designing weapons that could be used to achieve Iran's declared goal of wiping Israel off the map and killing millions of its citizens. The leaders of Iran have publicly declared that a nuclear exchange, killing millions of Jews and Muslims, would be acceptable to them because it would destroy Israel while only damaging Islam. A suicide nation cannot be deterred by the threat of...

The Marine Corps is moving to ban dogs with aggressive temperaments from Camp Pendleton and other bases under a policy developed after a 3-year-old boy at Camp Lejeune, N.C., was fatally bitten by a pit bull. The banned breeds are pit bulls, Rottweilers and wolf hybrids. Families moving into base housing are no longer allowed to bring those breeds. Families already in housing can keep their dogs until Sept. 30, 2012, but only if they receive a "good-dog" waiver.

More night time reading fun from Debka. "Unusual" Isrealli cabinet meeting Friday. Wonder if something is up?

A friend sent on an interesting poll by McLaughlin & Associates on a number of key foreign policy issues. It can be viewed in its entirety here. Several items on terrorism, Iran, and Israel stand out. First, while “terrorism” is identified as the greatest threat to the U.S. only 15% give that answer. The next highest (excluding “don’t know”) is 7% as “ourselves.” Sigh. (But perhaps 7% of those polled thinking we’re the biggest threat is indeed a threat.) On Iran, overwhelming percentages of respondents across both parties think “Iran supplying a nuclear umbrella for terrorists” is a very serious...

North Korea military threatens countermeasures against South By : Date : 03 April 2008 1452 hrs (SST) URL : http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/339059/1/.html SEOUL : North Korea's military on Thursday threatened unspecified countermeasures after South Korea refused to apologise for remarks by its top general, a news report said, as cross-border tensions escalated. "We will take military countermeasures," the North's chief delegate to inter-Korean military talks, Lieutenant General Kim Yong-Chol, was quoted as saying by Yonhap news agency in a notice sent to the South. There was no official response to the comments. Media reports said the North's powerful military might close the...

Seoul remains calm despite threats from N. Korea SEOUL, March 31 (Yonhap) -- South Korea remained silent Monday to North Korea's provocative threats to turn everything in the country into ashes while officials at the Defense Ministry said they simply see no need to respond to what they called "unfortunate" rhetoric. The Defense Ministry was earlier expected to issue a statement, but ministry officials said they were still weighing their options. "It truly is unfortunate for North Korea to make such threats, but the government sees no need to be alarmed and make an immediate response," a ministry official said,...

North’s nukes on attack radar New military chief says plans exist for possible ‘pre-emptive strike’ March 27, 2008 The South Korean military is prepared to launch a pre-emptive attack on North Korea’s nuclear installations if they become a military threat, Gen. Kim Tae-young, the newly designated chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in a hearing yesterday. It was the first time the military has confirmed contingency plans for a pre-emptive attack on Pyongyang’s nuclear facilities and comes as Seoul’s new conservative government is being closely watched for signs of how it will approach North Korea. Speaking at his...

A majority of likely voters - 52 percent - would support a U.S. military strike to prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon, and 53 percent believe it is likely that the U.S. will be involved in a military strike against Iran before the next presidential election, a new Zogby America telephone poll shows. The survey results come at a time of increasing U.S. scrutiny of Iran. According to reports from the Associated Press, earlier this month Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice accused Iran of "lying" about the aim of its nuclear program and Vice President Dick Cheney has raised...

A new intelligence report reveals that Iran may be closer to producing a nuclear weapon than previously thought, and could have enough bomb-grade material for a single bomb in less than three years, CBS News disclosed. Officially, U.S. intelligence authorities say Iran faces technical difficulties and will not be able to become a nuclear power until 2015. But weapons expert David Albright, president of the Institute for Science and International Security, said the U.S. is not giving Iranian scientists enough credit. "I think Iran can get enough highly enriched uranium for a nuclear weapon sooner than that,” he told CBS....

Ansaman has been keeping a lil' strip on Kim Jong Il's latest fun shennanigans.... http://www.ansaman.com/kim/kimcomix.html

/begin my translation [Exclusive]  AEI, Influential to Bush Admin., Proposes 'Ending Alliance with S. Korea'  American Enterprise Institute... If N. Korea refuses to return to 6-party talk, it recommends a preemptive strike.It is confirmed that S. Korean government is anti-American...argues for the withdrawal of American troops The cover of July-August Issue of 'The American Enterprise.' With the picture of horrific nuclear explosion, it features as the Current Issue Highlights, 'Nip It Now: Avoiding a nightmare in N. Korea.' American Enterprise Institute(AEI), instrumental for creating the Bush administration, which maintains enormous influence over administration policies, urged the new policy as an alternative to 6-party talk, to resolve N....

North Korea nuclear test would be 'provocative': White House 59 minutes ago WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States warned that any nuclear weapons test by North Korea would be considered a provocative act, as reports suggested the Stalinist state could stage an underground nuclear experiment. ADVERTISEMENT The New York Times said in a report Friday that US officials familiar with satellite and intelligence data believed North Korea was building a reviewing stand and filling in a tunnel, signs of a potential underground nuclear test. "I don't want to get into discussing intelligence matters, but what I would say is that...

THE BIBLICAL STORY OF Samson and Delilah is familiar (Judges 16:4-30). Delilah deceives her husband, Samson. She betrays him to her people, the Philistines, who are the enemies of the Israelites. The Philistines put out Samson's eyes and rob him of the source of his strength by cutting his hair. Samson repents of his sin, his hair grows back, and he regains his strength. Not letting on that his strength has returned, Samson in turn deceives his captors. When the opportunity arises, he uses his renewed strength to bring down the two middle pillars of a great temple when the...

Prime Minister John Howard arrives in Laos today ahead of an historic meeting with Asian leaders aimed at kick-starting free trade talks with the region, but amid a growing row over a security pact. Vientiane is hosting the 10-nation Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) leaders' summit and Mr Howard's visit marks the first time an Australian leader has been invited. Mr Howard hopes ASEAN will agree to a permanent yearly meeting between Australia and ASEAN, while the leaders will also agree to begin talks on a free trade pact with the region, locking Australia and New Zealand into a...