Free Republic

It’s beginning. California is awaiting the signature of Gov. Gavin Newsom on the newly passed bill AB 957. Already approved by the California Senate, it is a bill which requires judges to decide if parents choose not to affirm a change in their child’s sexual identity, they then will be subject to losing the custody of their own children. It is a bit of hell on earth, born in the minds of woke democrats who cannot seem to see the dark road on which they have now chosen to guide the once beautiful state of California.

A new pandemic prevention initiative by the World Health Organization will rely on “social listening surveillance systems” to identify “rumors and misinformation,” War Room can reveal.The initiative – Preparedness and Resilience for Emerging Threats (PRET) – seeks to “guide countries in pandemic planning” while “incorporat[ing] the latest tools and approaches for shared learning and collective action established during the COVID-19 pandemic.”Internal documents from the United Nations (UN) agency, however, reveal a variety of invasive tactics deployed to suppress the spread of alleged “misinformation.” The WHO is pushing for member states – including the U.S. – to adopt these suggestions when...

Many news stories stress that our ecosystems are under assault by Burmese pythons and Asian carp. This leads people to conclude that it is the less charismatic fauna such as reptiles and fish that are the most threatening of invasive species. Proposed amendments to the Lacey Act that the U.S. House passed Feb. 4 seem to perpetuate this narrative, with a proposed ban on all exotic animal species moving across state lines. (The 122-year-old Lacey Act bans trafficking in illegally taken fish, wildlife, and plants.) But one animal that the International Union for Conservation of Nature considers among the world’s...

A crocodile known locally as ‘Barrat’ emerges from the water of the lower Daintree River, Far North Queensland. Credit: Kevin Crook The wet season in tropical Australia begins with tension. Physical tension, caused by the friction of earth and clouds. Mental tension, caused by the heat, and the expectation of rain and relief. It is also an ecological tension, where every plant and animal is poised—genetically, physiologically—to grow, reap, sow and copulate within a few short months. We call it the build-up. The tension builds, and then it breaks. It was at the point of breaking when Val Plumwood,...

If you’ve ever wondered who would come out on top in a bird battle between a great blue heron and a red-tailed hawk (honestly, who hasn’t?), this short clip should put any doubts to rest. Mike Benard @BenardMF Bird battle today (watch to end): heron hunting gophers in field. Catches a gopher with a powerful strike. A hawk screams. Heron drops gopher, flies into air pooping and screaming. Hawk lands, steals gopher, flies away. #MerryChristmas #TeamBird Santa Cruz County, CA. 1,183 7:34 PM - Dec 21, 2019 Twitter Ads info and privacy 328 people are talking about this Mike Benard,...

Here’s an alarming but little-known figure—stray cats and pet cats allowed outdoors kill 3.6 million birds every day on average in the United States, for a total of at least 1.3 billion birds per year. That’s most likely a sizable chunk out of the U.S. land-bird population, which the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center estimates is around 10-20 billion....[snip] But some cat lovers are also bird lovers. Two of them, a birdwatcher named Nancy Brennan and a bird biologist named Susan Willson, have developed what they believe is a solution...

While trying to get some dinner, a cat got its just desserts after picking on the wrong squid. In this crazy video, it first appears that the mischievous kitty has the upper hand on its prey. With feline claws and definitely a size advantage, it dips into a pool with the cephalopod. But surprise for the cat because the squid just attaches itself right onto its hunter, turning the tables of the food pyramid. Unable to see because of a face full of tentacles, the regretful cat stumbles backward and all around. And while the cat is eventually able to...

Scientists from South Africa, Australia and France have discovered a world first association while scanning a 250 million year old fossilized burrow from the Karoo Basin of South Africa. The burrow revealed two unrelated vertebrate animals nestled together and fossilized after being trapped by a flash flood event. Facing harsh climatic conditions subsequent to the Permo-Triassic (P-T) mass extinction, the amphibian Broomistega and the mammal forerunner Thrinaxodon cohabited in a burrow. Scanning shows that the amphibian, which was suffering from broken ribs, crawled into a sleeping mammal's shelter for protection. This research suggests that short periods of dormancy, called aestivation,...

Mitt Romney now holds a narrow advantage over Barack Obama in the race for the White House -- 46 percent to 45 percent, if the election were held today, according to a Fox News national poll of likely voters released Wednesday. That’s a six-point turnaround and a three-point “debate bounce” for Romney. Before the first presidential debate in Denver last Wednesday, Romney had 43 percent to Obama’s 48 percent (September 24-26, 2012). Romney’s edge comes mainly from independents, white voters and men. Just over half of men (51 percent) back Romney now, the highest level of support he’s received among...

Author John Sandford takes questions from his fans on Facebook, discussing the books, the characters, and writing... (more at link) Part 1Part 2Part 3Part 4

It wasn't quite raining cats and dogs in Los Banos, but Elaine Bouschard and her grandson, Taylor Callaway, say it was a miracle when they saw this tiny dog fall from the sky. Callaway explained, “All of a sudden I saw this little puppy laying there, he was almost dead.” “Right here is where Taylor started yelling that he saw the puppy. I looked up and the hawk was just flying right here, circling around and at that point, we all just went to the puppy,” added Bouschard. Digital Daily – subscribe to our daily newsletter They did what many...

Most people might have a rough day once in a while, but it will never be as bad as the one suffered by this little mouse. He ended up becoming dish of the day for a playful cat, which showed off its ball skills by batting it into the air with such force it did a mid-air somersault. This once-in-a-life-time picture was captured by Californian pet owner Angelo DeSantis when he arrived at his home in Grass Valley, Nevada.

Hear the sound of a Merlin Falcon when it sings. This falcon also has killed chickens and has been called a chicken hawk but is really a falcon. This falcon is a very majestic and beautiful bird of prey.

Hear the sound of a Merlin Falcon when it sings. This falcon also has killed chickens and has been called a chicken hawk but is really a falcon.

A jackrabbit found throughout much of the West has disappeared from the Yellowstone area, although the reason why remains a mystery, a new study concludes. Whatever the cause, the study suggests the white-tailed jackrabbit's disappearance has wrought major changes to Yellowstone's food chain. Coyotes and wolves, which could have depended on the rabbit as a significant food source, apparently turned their attention instead to larger prey including young elk, pronghorn antelope -- even domestic livestock. However, because the rabbit's decline went relatively unnoticed until now, quantifying that shift is virtually impossible, said the study's lead author, Joel Berger with the...

What Should Society Do With Its “Tookie Monsters” ? The “ Tookie Williams Saga “ has finally ended. After decades of appeals and delays , and more appeals and more delays; after vast agitation by a wide variety of people : ranging from sincere opponents of the death penalty, to shameless self-advocates looking for more media “face time”, Tookie Williams – the convicted murderer of four people finally got the justice a jury of his peers had decreed. There are many who say the death penalty is “barbaric” ; or that it serves no useful purpose. I tend to agree...

I have not read Dracula ever again. I was ashamed of myself. Here I was, a 2nd lieutenant of Marines, fresh out of OCS, going to fight those Japanese SOB's, and just think, I let a book of fiction scare me like that.

Germany is stepping up its battle against 'Nazi' racoons after they ruined much of this year's wine harvest. The racoons were released into the German countryside in 1934 under the orders of Hermann Goering. Goering thought they would "enrich" the local wildlife - but they have spread throughout Central Europe, from the Low Countries to the Urals, according to conservationists. The nocturnal mammals have become a health hazard in many cities, where they rummage through garbage bins and invade homeowners' attics and cellars. Now, they are becoming a threat to agriculture as well, according to farmers. "Racoons wiped out almost...

WASHINGTON (AP) - The first deep sea red-light district - glowing appendages on a newly discovered jellyfish relative - appear to flash their come-hither message to lure prey. Jellyfish and other types of sea creatures are known to produce light, but this is the first deep ocean invertebrate known to use red fluorescent light, said Steven H. D. Haddock of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in Moss Landing, Calif. Three of the animals were found by scientists using a remote controlled research vehicle at depths of between 5,200 feet and 7,500 feet off the coast of California. The discovery...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4472521.stm Trap-building ants torture prey   With cunning and patience, the ants cut hairs from the stem of the plant they inhabit, and use the tiny fibres to build a spongy platform. The elaborate trap snares its prey, which is then stretched like a victim on a mediaeval rack before being hacked to pieces. The ants divide labour according to age, with the oldest individuals being trap builders   A fierce species of Amazonian ant has been seen building elaborate traps on which hapless prey are stretched like medieval torture victims, before being slowly hacked to pieces.With cunning and patience,...