Free Republic

Hertz's partnership with Amazon is another step in the e-commerce giant's slow march into auto sales. The deal could be a boon for the rental car giant, which is trying to sell more of its cars directly to consumers. Some experts say the shift toward direct online sales, especially involving e-commerce giants like Amazon, could spell trouble for dealerships, possibly even large publicly traded companies such as AutoNation, Group1, Sonic Automotive, Penske, and Asbury. Wholesale auction companies such as Manheim and AVC are also liable to be watching the shift, as direct to consumer sales could threaten their inventories. Why...

China, Taiwan, and the Illusion of InvasionPosted: September 17, 2025As tensions between China and Taiwan continue to make headlines, it's worth stepping back to ask a more fundamental question: Is China actually capable of invading Taiwan? Or is the threat more bark than bite? After a detailed analysis of military capability, geography, politics, and historical precedent, the answer becomes clearer than what mainstream headlines may suggest.1. The Military Reality: Capability vs. IntentionWhile China has made significant investments in its military, a full-scale invasion of Taiwan would be among the most complex operations in modern history—possibly more difficult than the D-Day...

So, if war broke out today, who “wins”? A cautious judgment: China could win early episodes—sinking ships, mauling an airbase, or imposing a brief local exclusion near a contested feature—because interior lines and magazine depth pay dividends on day one. But carried beyond the first salvos, the balance bends toward an ugly allied denial. With coastal fires in Japan and the Philippines, coalition patrols normalized inside Manila’s EEZ, and Fujian not yet truly operational, Beijing’s odds of converting tactical gains into a durable political victory are low—unless allied kill chains break or magazines run dry.

The conflict itself would likely play out in several phases. The opening week would be defined by missile barrages aimed at Taiwan’s defenses and US forward bases, along with cyber and space attacks to blind command networks. Taiwan’s dispersal plans and mobile launchers would mitigate, but not eliminate, the damage. The next phase would be the battle for sea denial. Submarines, mines, and long-range anti-ship weapons would be hurled against convoys carrying PLA troops and supplies across the Strait. Geography favors the defenders, but China’s proximity and numerical advantage mean some ships would get through. The outcome of this battle...

On this Independence Day 2021, I reflect on the America I love so much and how it looks very different from the one I knew as a child in the 80s and 90s. How, once upon a time, we celebrated our nationalism and patriotism, and today, there is a very vocal minority that resents the USA. I believe if they knew the realities behind China, they may rethink their position. As an American of Chinese ancestry and a community organizer on the ground, I felt an important need to discuss this topic. Perhaps one of the most bizarre news stories...

China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has officially declared its ambition to match and then surpass the U.S. military by 2049, the 100th anniversary of the founding of the PRC. According to an article in the Communist Party’s official newspaper, achieving a “world-class military” requires the PLA to measure itself against the “world’s strongest military”—an apparent reference to the United States.

Taiwan has a “far more robust” claim to statehood than Palestine does, former British prime minister Boris Johnson said during a conference in Taipei, Taiwan, according to a Tuesday report by British outlet The Telegraph…. “Never in the wildest dreams of former Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, can he have believed – when he and his colleagues instigated the horror of October 7, 2023 – that only 22 months later the United Kingdom itself would be so craven and pathetic as to fall for Hamas propaganda and to turn against Israel,” Johnson wrote in his column in the UK outlet Daily...

https://t.me/beholdisraelchannel/60676 Taiwan’s Deputy Foreign Minister warns: “China is preparing to invade Taiwan.” Taiwan urges readiness as PLA activity intensifies near the Strait. (Source: Sky News)

WASHINGTON/TAIPEI, July 28 (Reuters) - Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te is set to delay a diplomatically sensitive trip his team had floated to the Trump administration for August that would have included stops in the United States, according to three people familiar with the matter. Such a trip was bound to infuriate Beijing at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump is trying to negotiate a deal on trade with China. China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, a claim Taiwan rejects, and regularly denounces any shows of support for Taipei from Washington. The trip, which could have included...

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass’ transition advisory team enlisted two Chinese intelligence-tied bankers who have fundraised for her and a nonprofit she helps lead, a Daily Caller News Foundation investigation discovered. Bass appointed Dominic Ng, CEO of East West Bank, and Simon Pang, co-founder of Royal Business Bank, to her mayoral transition advisory team in December 2022, according to the City of Los Angeles. In total, Ng, East West Bank and Pang have donated upwards of $1 million to Bass’ mayoral campaign and the Mayor’s Fund For Los Angeles, where Bass serves as an advisor to the board of directors,...

US politics polling on President Trump's popularity... Meanwhile polling regarding the Democratic Party gives it strongly negative... "finish the job" President Trump says that Israel... Facebook and Instagram forced to ban political advertising in the European Union... Iran holding a 'serious, frank and detailed' discussion with Britain, France and Germany... It's Saturday in Taiwan where recall elections are underway for 24 members... After two days of clashes Cambodia saying it wants an 'immediate ceasefire' with Thailand... A Reuters report says that entrepreneur Elon Musk shut down Starlink... ...federal judge in Illinois throwing out a US Justice Department lawsuit against that...

Psst, wanna buy some innovation?An estimated $1 billion worth of smuggled high-end Nvidia AI processors have reportedly found their way onto the Chinese black market, despite the US government's strict restrictions on exports of the tech. The eyebrow-raising figure, which Nvidia has neither confirmed nor refuted, was revealed by the Financial Times, which claims to have based its reporting on a combination of interviews and analyses of company filings and sales contracts. If accurate, the report sheds light on the limitations of the US trade policy's ability to control the movement of much sought-after AI technology around the world. The...

The PRC has escalated its use of covert, coercive, and extraterritorial tactics against Taiwan and its supporters, threatening the island’s democracy, creating skepticism and distrust in U.S.-Taiwan relations, and using intimidation, lawfare, and propaganda operations to shape global narratives on Taiwan’s status. This hearing will spotlight the Chinese Communist Party’s expanding campaign of political warfare and repression targeting Taiwan and the Taiwanese diaspora globally. Through expert testimony, the Commission will explore policy options to counter these malign activities, reinforce U.S. support for Taiwan’s democracy, and advance legislative initiatives like the Stand with Taiwan Act and the Transnational Repression Policy Act....

MASERU, Lesotho —Crowds of women, bundled up in wooly hats and mittens against the sharp winter chill, wait every morning at the gates of a garment factory in Lesotho's capital, hoping that a few among them will be called in to work a shift. But no-one comes out and the factory gates – which bear the name of the Taiwanese company that runs it in red Chinese lettering – remain firmly shut. It's one of the few factories in what used to be called "the Denim Capital of Africa" that's still operating after U.S. President Donald Trump announced in April...

Several parents sued Character.ai last year, alleging its chatbots abused their children. One Florida mother wants to hold the company liable for her 14-year-old son’s suicide. Megan Garcia argued in October 2024 court filings that the company wrongly marketed the app as safe for children—while harboring characters that led her son into hypersexualized role-play, encouraged him to spend all his time chatting with them, and talked with him about suicide. A Character.ai bot asked the teen to “come home” to her seconds before his death.STRANGE HUMAN-LIKE RELATIONSHIPS are just one of many ethical concerns posed by generative AI. The technology...

(Reuters) -The Pentagon is urging Japan and Australia to clarify what role they would play if the U.S. and China went to war over Taiwan, the Financial Times reported on Saturday.Elbridge Colby, the U.S. under-secretary of defense for policy, has been pushing the matter during recent talks with defense officials of both countries, the report said, citing people familiar with the discussions.According to the newspaper, the reported request caught both Tokyo and Canberra off guard, as the U.S. itself does not offer a blank cheque guarantee to defend Taiwan. Colby said in an X post that the Department of Defense...

Assassinated at HomeHaiti’s President Jovenel Moise was shot and killed last night at around 1 a.m. local time. First Lady Martine Moise was also wounded in the attack on their home in Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince. Unidentified gunmen burst into their home, stating they were members of the United States Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), and opened fire.The DEA website gave Haiti a Level 4 DO NOT TRAVEL restriction on June 16 due to dangers, including kidnappings, crime, COVID, and civil unrest.Moise’s presidency has been marred by accusations of corruption and waves of protests, often violent. Moise was expected to step down...

One of the great weaknesses of American foreign policy has been our predictability. Our opponents have been able to pinpoint what we would and would not do. While one President Trump’s greatest strengths has been his unpredictability. And on the Iran strikes, he not only kept everyone guessing until the last minute, but used sophisticated means to draw everyone off. Tucker Carlson’s pal Dan Caldwell was booted from the Pentagon over allegations of leaking. So were a number of others. When the strikes were actually launched, there were zero leaks despite claims by some in the media that they were...

The Pentagon's inspector general admitting that some arms sent to Ukraine are ending up in the wrong hands... A Russian researcher says Poland may send troops into Ukraine... Russian President Vladimir Putin warning Poland about any military action against Belarus... In Guatemala the offices of an opposition political party raided today... North Korea conducting multiple cruise missile launches into the Yellow Sea... Here in the US the Federal Bureau of Investigation improperly used the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) against a US senator, a state senator and... In Canada a retired Mountie is charged with obtaining information and doing other...

Britain has enraged China by sailing one of its warships through the Taiwan Strait. HMS Spey, a Royal Navy patrol vessel, sailed through the waterway – which flows between China and Taiwan, and over which Beijing claims sovereignty – on Wednesday. Taiwan hailed the patrol, the first by a British naval vessel since 2021, as the UK defending freedom of navigation of the Strait in the face of increased Chinese aggression in the region. A Navy spokesman said the long-planned deployment “took place in full compliance with international law”. But China’s People’s Liberation Army accused the Navy of trying to...