Free Republic

Yes, the headlines are bleak. Yes, scientists are sounding the alarm. Yes, a growing pile of studies warn that the world is “on the brink of irreversible climate disaster,” as a recent “state of the climate” report put it. It’s easy to feel like the planet is on fire — because, well, sometimes it literally is. But even amid the floods, droughts and devastating forecasts, it’s not all doom: Innovators are reimagining how we power our lives, nature is pulling off surprising comebacks, cities are cleaning their air and nations are opening their wallets. This Earth Day, take a break...

In what many citizens concerned with the survival of Austria as a European nation-state are calling a demographic tipping point, Muslims have now become the largest religious group in Vienna’s compulsory schools, comprising a striking 41.2% of all students across primary, secondary, and vocational education levels. The stark demographic shift has sparked outrage among conservatives and nationally-minded citizens in Austria, with the Freedom Party (FPÖ) warning that the capital is being culturally transformed beyond recognition. “This is no longer immigration. This is displacement,” said Maximilian Weinzierl, national council member and leader of the FPÖ’s youth wing. “41.2% of Muslim students—that’s...

What will be the true legacy of Pope Francis? Michael Savage discusses the controversial topic of Pope Francis's legacy, expressing both admiration for Catholicism and criticism of the current Pope. Labeling him "Lenin's Pope" for prioritizing political agendas like socialism over his spiritual leadership. Savage contrasts Francis with past popes, arguing that his background in a South American socialist environment has skewed his economic perspectives. He critiques the Pope's involvement in U.S.-Cuba relations and his promotion of climate change initiatives. He references historical examples of past Popes who acted more like political leaders than spiritual figures. Savage urges Catholics to...

Credit: Polk County Sheriff’s Office ******************************************************************** Someone find the world’s smallest violin. An illegal alien and an alleged Tren de Aragua gangster broke down like a baby being arrested in connection with a violent liquor store robbery spree across central Florida, authorities said. Ramon Jesus Carpintero-Luna, 26, was caught alongside four other suspects tied to a series of armed heists that targeted more than 30 liquor stores, netting an estimated $30,000 in stolen goods. Many of the thefts involved threats of violence and a specific focus on high-end liquor, including bottles of premium scotch, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s...

Friday on FNC’s “Jesse Watters Primetime,” former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said he saw Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) emerging as a leader in the Democratic Party. He predicted a civil war with Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) lining up against former President Joe Biden, former Vice President Kamala Harris, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY). “[T]he DNC is supposed to unite the party, but what we’re watching live is a civil war inside the Democratic Party, and they’re fighting for new leadership,” he said. “And this...

Rep. Kevin Kiley is under fire again as constituents from his conservative-leaning district are becoming increasingly fed up. Kiley was under the microscope Tuesday at the most recent rally held by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders in Folsom. The Sacramento County event was the 10th stop on Sanders’ Fighting Oligarchy tour, which he’s been co-headling with Ocasio-Cortez in cities across the West. Tuesday’s event, despite taking place within Kiley’s heavily red district, drew about 30,000 supporters and had a 3-mile line extending beyond the entrance. “I heard that they were, that someone started flying a plane with a...

Some of the country’s most beloved national parks – including many across the West – could see substantial jumps in the number of extremely hot days in coming decades, according to a new report. The nonprofit Climate Central analyzed data from the National Park Service and found that by 2050, the 25 most visited parks are likely to have five times as many extremely hot days – compared to recent decades. Climate Central defines extreme heat as a high temperature above the 99th percentile for the roughly three decade period between 1979 and 2012. For example, Utah’s Zion National Park...

(Reuters) -A U.S. judge blocked President Donald Trump's administration on Tuesday from freezing billions of dollars in grants Congress authorized under climate investment and infrastructure laws of his Democratic predecessor, former President Joe Biden. U.S. District Judge Mary McElroy in Providence, Rhode Island, issued an injunction at the behest of environmental groups who argued the Trump administration was unlawfully freezing already-awarded funding for projects to combat climate change, reduce pollution and modernize U.S. infrastructure. The group that led the lawsuit, Democracy Forward, said in a statement that Trump's action was an abuse of executive power. The funding had been authorized...

New York City has a mayoral election later this year, and the two leading candidates right now are former governor Andrew Cuomo and a state assemblyman named Zohran Mamdani. The latter has gained traction in the polls by promising to build city-run grocery stores that “will operate without profit motive” in order to combat “the outrageous price of groceries.” Leave it to the residents of Gotham to pin their hopes on either the guy who turned nursing homes into COVID death traps or a proud communist who is blithely unaware of the Soviet Union’s history with breadlines. In response to...

FOR A COUNTRY known for long winters and high taxes, Finland appears remarkably chipper. On March 20th it came top of the World Happiness Report, an annual UN-backed study, notching its eighth consecutive win ahead of 146 other countries. Not far behind it were Denmark, Iceland and Sweden. What makes the Nordics so happy? The World Happiness Report is more a study of life satisfaction than smiles and laughter. It is based on a survey by Gallup, a pollster, where participants are asked to rate their lives out of ten. Finns are not known to gloat (or, for that matter,...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Trump administration plans to scrap a contract for a federal climate assessment used to direct government action on climate change, two sources familiar with the matter said. The administration will cut the contract with global advisory ICF for work on the National Climate Assessment, a comprehensive report published every five years on how climate change affects the United States. CF provides most of the staff for the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP), an agency created by Congress in 1990 to coordinate research and investment on climate change, and which has overseen the last five national climate...

Venezuela’s Tarek El-Aissami The Americas Report | Oct 03, 2008  By Nicole Ferrand [...] Mr. El - Aissami is a Venezuelan national of Syrian descent who, before becoming Minster of Interior and Justice, occupied the position of Deputy Interior Minister for Public Security. His father, Carlos Aissami, is the head of the Venezuelan branch of the Iraqi Baath political party. Before the invasion of Iraq, he held a press conference in which he described himself as a Taliban and called Osama Bin Laden, "the great Mujahedeen, Sheik Osama bin Laden." Tarek's great-uncle Shibli el-Aissami was a prominent ideologist and...

Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves are actively considering nationalising British Steel in an escalation of plans first revealed in the Guardian last year. The prime minister said all options were on the table to secure the future of the Scunthorpe plant, which is owned by the Chinese firm Jingye and employs about 3,500 people. The possibility of nationalisation was first revealed in December but discussions have taken on fresh urgency with US tariffs and talks about a financial support package to move to less polluting technology having faltered. The government has now been forced to consider more drastic options, ranging...

The climate crisis is not a distant threat; it's happening right now and affecting what matters most to us. Hurricanes intensified by a warming planet and drought-fueled wildfires are destroying our communities. Rising seas and flooding are swallowing our homes. And record-breaking heat waves are reshaping our way of life. The good news is we know how to turn the tide and avoid the worst possible outcomes. However, understanding what needs to be done can be confusing due to a constant stream of climate updates, scientific findings, and critical decisions that are shaping our future. That's why the ABC News...

President Donald Trump has built another wall, and he thinks everyone else is going to pay for it. But his decision to impose sweeping tariffs of at least 10% on almost every product that enters the US is essentially a wall designed to keep work and jobs within it, rather than immigrants out. The height of this wall needs to be put in historical context. It takes the US back a century in terms of protectionism. It catapults the US way above the G7 and G20 nations into levels of customs revenue, associated with Senegal, Mongolia and Kyrgyzstan. What occurred...

Mass layoffs and a sweeping restructuring at the Department of Health and Human Services could disrupt programs that deliver support for Holocaust survivors and kosher meals to homebound seniors and people with disabilities. ..... Snip..... Jewish social services agencies throughout the country deliver kosher offerings to peoples’ homes as part of the Meal on Wheels program. Holocaust survivors also receive other assistance from the ACL through a special program administered by the Jewish Federations of North America. An estimated 40,000 Holocaust survivors live in the United States today JFNA, which has been fielding calls and emails about the federal cuts...

Scientists primarily publish their work in academic journals, where writing is expected to be technical, objective and dispassionate -- making it unlikely to appeal to, or be easily understood by non-experts. The researchers -- from the University of Exeter -- argue for science "translated into stories," with benefits both for science and wider society. They suggest ways that scientists can tell powerful, passionate stories without compromising the objectivity of science. "As environmental scientists ourselves, we feel frustration, a sense of loss, fear and sometimes helplessness at the lack of action to protect the planet," said Professor Karen Anderson, from the...

President Donald Trump is using the power of the federal government to intimidate or neuter potential sources of opposition to him: The legal establishment, academia and prominent cultural institutions, the media, the judiciary, the Democratic Party, Congress and independent government oversight. The unprecedented breadth of the actions Trump and his allies inside the government have taken against his perceived political and ideological opponents in his first two months back in office is stunning – both in the president’s willingness to test the limits of his powers and the extent to which his foes have struggled to respond or even bent...

Ex-“Squad” Reps. Cori Bush and Jamaal Bowman claimed that Democrats had originally wanted to pass $10 trillion in spending as part of former President Joe Biden’s doomed Build Back Better (BBB) Act. “We were at 10 [trillion] and then it went down to 6 and down to 3 and down to 1.7, I believe,” Bush said on the “Bowman and Bush” podcast on March 14. The two were reflecting on the collapse of Biden’s ambitious Build Back Better Act, which called for hundreds of billions of dollars of investments in “social infrastructure” programs such as universal child care, an expansion...

In the ultimate act of seeking to 'Trump-proof' the NATO alliance, even well into the future, Europe's largest military powers are now drawing up plans to keep the alliance strong in case of a US exit from leadership over the next five to ten years. Informal discussions have involved the United Kingdom, France, Germany and the Nordic countries, who are envisioning a managed transfer of power and leadership reshaping the NATO bloc. Financial Times writes that "The discussions are an attempt to avoid the chaos of a unilateral US withdrawal from Nato, a fear sparked by President Donald Trump’s repeated...