Free Republic

Higher education is meant to be the path to success, but that conventional wisdom may not be entirely true. According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, between 2007 and 2010, the percentage of people with a graduate degree who were on food stamps or were receiving another kind of federal aid more than doubled, reaching 360,000. In 2007, 9,776 people with PhD’s were receiving some kind of aid. In 2010, that number had more than tripled to 33,655. For people with master’s degrees, the number spiked from 101,683 to 293,029. Austin Nichols of the Urban Institute crunched those numbers for...

For reporters covering President Obama, there’s only one party in town that matters: The White House Holiday Party. It’s a rare opportunity to walk around parts of the White House and meet the president and first lady. In the past, the highlight of the event has been the chance to get your picture taken with the president in the receiving line.

Hospitals Begin Giving Kids FluMist Nasal Spray For H1N1 The first doses of H1N1 flu vaccine were given to children today, a day after health care workers began getting doses in what is likely to be the largest flu vaccination campaign in U.S. history. Dr. Richard Besser explains which states have doses of the H1N1 vaccine. These early doses of swine flu vaccine -- all so far given as the nasal spray FluMist -- are being administered at hospitals in Chicago, Georgia and Nebraska, among other places. Doctors, nurses and other health professionals were targeted first so they could safely...

12/29/2008 - WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- Officials from the Department of Veterans Affairs have identified nearly 11,000 surviving spouses of deceased veterans who will receive a lump-sum payment before the new year to correct an error in their VA benefits. Also documented were more than 73,000 who previously had been paid. VA officials are still tracking down eligible survivors. "I am pleased that our task force working to correct this problem has been able to identify this first group this week," said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake. "We understand the difference these funds can make for these surviving...

by Fr. William Saunders Other Articles by Fr. William Saunders Answering "Amen" 02/17/06 I am an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion. In distributing Communion, I am surprised by the different answers to “The Body of Christ” I receive. Most people say, “Amen,” but some say, “I believe.” Does it matter? The simple answer is, “Yes, it does matter.” According to the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (2000), the following rubric was again prescribed concerning the reception of holy Communion: “The priest raises the Eucharistic bread slightly and shows it to each one, saying, ‘The Body of Christ.’ The communicants reply,...

A young man was getting ready to graduate from college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer's showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted. As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautiful wrapped...

FRESNO, Calif. (AP) - California's vast San Joaquin Valley has long been compared to the nation's Appalachian region for its levels of poverty, unemployment and lack of public funding for roads, schools and health care. In fact, according to preliminary data from a congressional report released Tuesday, the valley suffered from a higher poverty rate in 2000 than the Appalachian region - 20.5 percent compared to 13.6 percent - yet received 21 percent less federal money per capita. It's a contradiction valley congressional members say needs to be reconciled. "We, I think, have always felt for many years that the...

MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS JOHN PAUL II FOR LENT 2003 Dear Brothers and Sisters!1. Lent is a season of intense prayer, fasting and concern for those in need. It offers all Christians an opportunity to prepare for Easter by serious discernment about their lives, with particular attention to the word of God which enlightens the daily journey of all who believe.This year, as a guide for our Lenten meditation, I would offer a phrase taken from the Acts of the Apostles: "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35). What we have here is not simply...