Free Republic

Frightful thought: Reality that the MSM may be aiding, abetting those who hate Freedom itself. Especially for American citizens, it must be remembered that the MSM does not just spew out the news; now, it spews out views, or the omission of news Ecuador-This past Wednesday in Venezuela the head of the National Assembly, Vice President Juan Aguila, proclaimed himself to be the new president of his nation. This sparked a serious response from many governments of the world, most taking sides with the new president, or newly “elected” one, Nicolás Maduro. And, the unfortunate circumstance in this international incident...

Unless we fix it, our devolution into another failed socialist state—or worse--is virtually assured. Fifty years of carefully orchestrated ignorance and mediocrity is more than enough On Monday, the American Thinker published a column by Bruce Deitrick Price entitled “K-12: Six Steps to Reform Education Right Now.” In it he offered up transparently useful reforms regarding the mastering of reading, writing, math, geography, history and science, all of which would lead inexorably to the development of critical thinking skills. “Immediately, we will start having educated children again,” Price asserts. All well and good save for one inconvenient reality: the premise...

The left must destroy California in order to transform her into a socialist state Democrats just passed the largest gas tax increase in California history. The deal is so bad they needed $1 Billion in payola to buy enough votes to pass it. And shamefully, only 60 percent of the gas tax collected from SB 1, authored by Democrat Senator Jim Beall (D-San Jose), will actually be used for road maintenance and repairs. Environmentalists got plenty of taxpayer-funded payola as well including money for more public transit, and for walking and bicycling projects. SB 1 does nothing to relieve traffic...

Writing for the Acton Institute, Joe Carter explains that, "The U.S. began imposing sanctions against Cuba after Fidel Castro seized power in 1959, nationalized the economy, and stole more than $1 billion in American assets on the island. Diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba broke off in 1961 as tensions between the two nations increased after Cuba signed a trade agreement with the Soviet Union. Even though the Cold War ended, not much has changed in the relationship between Cuba and the U.S." Why is it that even though Cuba hasn't changed at all and is as repressive...

Combine class warfare, demonizing the rich, getting as many people onto the welfare rolls as possible, and pushing the economic system to collapse and you have a flawless formula for Cloward-Piven 2.0 -- and a vehicle that ensures Obama remains in power. Cloward-Piven is a much talked-about strategy proposed in the mid-1960's by two Columbia University sociology professors named Richard Andrew Cloward and Frances Fox Piven. The Cloward-Piven approach was sometimes referred to as the "crisis strategy," which they believed were a means to "end poverty." The premise of the Cloward-Piven collective/anti-capitalist gospel decried "individual mobility and achievement," celebrated organized...

Don’t be fooled. We’ve just been betrayed by Washington. A deal on the debt ceiling is near and Washington still hasn’t gotten serious about the fundamentals. It hasn’t gotten serious about default. It certainly hasn’t gotten serious about the future. When Harry Reid hails a “bipartisan compromise” you know we’re doomed. Republicans and Democrats have just negotiated away the future of our children behind closed doors. The big compromise on Capitol Hill features elaborate triggers, tranches, Hornswogglers, Snozzwangers, Super Duper Commissions that will make the Snozzberries taste like Snozeberries, and a whole bunch of other convoluted gibberish that will, no...

Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja would like weapons to disappear from private homes, reports Social Democratic newspaper Uutispäivä Demari. Tuomioja says there is no need to keep weapons at home, adding that weapons obtained for hobby purposes, like hunting and shooting, can be stored on the premises of monitored clubs. He notes that such hobbies do not require automatic weapons or repeating firearms. According to the minister, the gun law reform that came into force in June was a step in the right direction, but there is still a way to go.

I'm glad Andrew Sullivan has responded to my Sarah Palin piece. You'd hate to write as much about her as I did and not have it register on the Dish. That would be like if you were a large white whale and Ahab just ignored you. Andrew's response covers a lot of terrain, and I agree with his point that Alaska is essentially a socialist state, or more accurately, a ward of the federal government (for more on that, see this excellent Charles Homans piece in the Washington Monthly). In fact, its perverse tax structure is one reason why Alaska...

In Charles Krauthammer's May 30 must-read column, "Carbon Chastity," he rightly lambastes environmentalists as resurrected communists/socialists who have latched on to the environment and climate change as a means to advance their anti-people social agenda. The specific occasion for his justifiable outrage is a recent proposal by a British parliamentary committee to institute a personal carbon ration card for every citizen. The plan would place limits on food and energy consumption in the form of credits not to be exceeded — except through the potential for heavy-carbon users, often the wealthy, to purchase credits from lower-carbon users, often the less...

MAN KICKED OUT OF THE YMCA FOR EVANGELIZING Living Waters via www.RepentAmerica.com July 9, 2004 We, Living Waters, wanted to bring to your attention a recent incident that took place with one of our ministry partners, Larry Lee, who lives in Marietta, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta. As you read his account, we are confident that you will see the unacceptable and unfair manner in which he has been treated by the YMCA. More importantly we are confident that you will agree with us in concluding that Larry's civil and religious rights have been violated. This concerns us because it...

http://www.frontpagemag.com/Content/read.asp?ID=82 I am sorry I cannot post pictures so I am showing the URL. It is the personal story of one very gutsy teenager and his friends who wanted to post politically incorrect posters in his high school and the attemps to shut him up. Very well written and documented with photos, I am rather amazed at the courage it took to stand up for principal. I guarantee my fellow Freepers are going to love this story

July 15, 2004 -- WASHINGTON — Teachers were paid an average of $45,771 last year, a figure not keeping pace with educators' expenses, says a union survey. One union official called the situation "insulting." The typical teacher's salary went up 3.3 percent in 2002-03, the last year for which figures are available, according to a report by the American Federation of Teachers. The pay range varies significantly by state, accounting for differences in costs of living and the way salary packages are set up. California paid the highest average salary: $55,693. South Dakota had the lowest: $32,414. New York teachers...

PORTLAND, Ore. - The voters here have the chance to create the first universal health-care system in the nation - one where everybody would receive medical coverage for everything, from massage therapy and marriage counseling to brain surgery and long-term care. The sponsors of the November ballot initiative acknowledge their plan is audacious, but they contend that the health-care system is headed toward a meltdown brought about by rising numbers of uninsured individuals and spiraling costs.< SNIP > The measure could pass: The most recent polling, by the Portland Tribune, found that 36 percent approved of the plan, 39 percent...