Free Republic

SAN YSIDRO, Calif. — Puppy smugglers continue flooding the market with animals from Mexico, many of which die or pose health hazards to unsuspecting buyers, according to a recent survey. Animal welfare agency inspectors found 517 puppies, many concealed in vehicles and destined for swap meets across Southern California, during the two-week survey earlier this month at the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa ports of entry. [snip] To get them across the border, smugglers often stuff the dogs in packing crates or hide them in spare-tire wheel wells. The puppies are heard whimpering inside trunks or underneath seats. When bringing...

TOKYO, May 18, Kyodo - The United States is concerned about possible leaks of U.S. information to Russia through Masaru Sato, a Russian affairs expert at the Foreign Ministry arrested Tuesday, diplomatic sources said Saturday. The U.S. government has strong concerns because Sato allegedly delivered top-secret official telegrams regularly to scandal-tainted lawmaker Muneo Suzuki even after he left a key government post, the sources said. Sato was in a position to see a broad range of information from Japanese diplomatic missions abroad since July 1998 when he assumed a post at the Intelligence and Analysis Bureau, taking charge of top-secret...

<p>NASA's behind-the-scenes technical wizardry in the movie Apollo 13 has surely inspired many with the thought, "If only they could apply that know-how to a closet freshener!"</p> <p>Well, thanks to a recently expanded NASA initiative called the Space Alliance Technology Outreach, a group of space engineers are doing just that and more.</p>