Free Republic

A thought inspired by this morning’s skirmish. Everyone understands why Cruz is laying off Trump. Cruz wants his voters and he’s afraid that if he attacks, those voters will turn on him viciously. It’s painful to watch a guy who built his career as a fearless warrior against RINOs fawning over the biggest RINO in the race out of naked self-interest, but you can’t fault his strategy. Trump doesn’t just have a base, he has a cult of personality. Attack him and they’re apt to treat you as an outright enemy. You tread lightly around a man like that...

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 262 NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 330 PM CDT FRI MAY 31 2013 THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A * TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA * EFFECTIVE THIS FRIDAY AFTERNOON FROM 330 PM UNTIL MIDNIGHT CDT. ...THIS IS A PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION... * PRIMARY THREATS INCLUDE... SEVERAL INTENSE TORNADOES LIKELY NUMEROUS VERY LARGE HAIL EVENTS TO 4 INCHES IN DIAMETER LIKELY NUMEROUS DAMAGING WIND GUSTS LIKELY WITH SEVERAL SIGNIFICANT GUSTS TO 80 MPH POSSIBLE THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS APPROXIMATELY ALONG AND 65 STATUTE MILES...

I’ve heard of high schools and colleges cancelling graduation speakers because they were too controversial, too liberal or too religious, but this is the first time I’ve heard of one being cancelled for being too conservative. Ronan High School in Ronan, Montana, had arranged for famed and award winning film producer Gerald Molen, a Montana native to speak at their graduation ceremony. Molen is best known for his Oscar winning film, Schindler’s List. He also produced Twister, Rain Man, Days of Thunder, Hook, Minority Report, Jurassic Park and The Lost World: Jurassic Park. Before becoming a film producer, Molen served...

The tornado stole his hamburger and he doesn't know where it's at. http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=72504

CASTALIAN SPRINGS, Tenn., Feb. 6 -- The searchers had already gone over the field once. It seemed unlikely that anything else would turn up. It was dark and rainy, and amid the awesome wreckage left by the tornado that had just passed here they had already found three dead. Some of the bodies had been flung hundreds of feet from their homes, landing in tangles of branches and across the roadway. Then they stumbled upon Kyson. The 11-month-old, dressed in a T-shirt and diaper, was lying as silently as any piece of debris in a field of tall grass about...

A 1999 tornado killed Samantha and Deon Darnell's infant son and Deon's mother. The Darnells are pictured here with children born since the tragedy: Abigail, 4; Gabriel, 5; and Michael, 2. (Photo by Bryan Terry)OKLAHOMA CITY -- The tornado was born to the southwest, a monster on the plains. A mile wide, the furious funnel of red dirt erased homes from foundations, tossed tractor-trailers, peeled pavement from earth and killed 36 people. For thousands stuck in its path, the most urgent question -- to run or to hide -- arrived in an instant. A new analysis suggests fleeing, usually not...

Straight talk can often inspire public confidence and cool off the debate over emotional issues. But when the issue is illegal immigration, and the straight talk is a pithy directive, it can have the opposite effect. Case in point: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's remarks to newspaper publishers about how he would tackle the vexing issue of illegal immigration. "It's a federal issue," Schwarzenegger said. "And the only thing that I can say and add to this is really, close the borders. Close the borders in California and all across Mexico and in the United States." Close the borders. Thanks for the...

LOS ANGELES - A slow-rolling series of storms that battered the West this week brought snowfall and high wind Thursday to parts of California, where weather-weary residents have already endured lashing rain, heavy snowfall and a destructive tornado. Since the wild weather began slogging ashore Monday, five deaths in California and two in Colorado have been blamed on storms. Two canoers were missing in Arizona. By Thursday morning, up to a foot of snow had fallen on Colorado mountains. An avalanche warning was issued for the San Juan mountains in southwestern Colorado, and the north-central section was under a winter...

Wichita Falls tornado taught hard lessons that help save lives WICHITA FALLS (AP) — Walking through tornado-ravaged neighborhoods after a deadly storm 25 years ago, architect Charles F. Harper saw something strange: small closets or bathrooms that seemed to be rising from piles of debris. In many cases, the center room of a house or business — even a bank vault — was the only thing standing after a tornado up to a mile-and-a-half wide churned through town, hitting 5,000 houses and several apartments. Some 20,000 people — nearly one-fourth of the city's population — were homeless, while 42 were...

A former US intelligence official who served under the Bush administration in the build-up to the Iraq war accused the White House yesterday of lying about the threat posed by Saddam Hussein. The claims came as the Bush administration was fighting to shore up its credibility among a series of anonymous government leaks over its distortion of US intelligence to manufacture a case against Saddam. This was the first time an administration official has put his name to specific claims. The whistleblower, Gregory Thielmann, served as a director in the state department's bureau of intelligence until his retirement in September,...

BULLETINAt least 17 are reported dead, 60 injured and 150 missing in Morgan County after a tornado touched down Sunday night, according to Cecil Whatley, Tennessee Emergency Management Agency Director of Natural Hazards.Emergency personnel are setting up command and evacuation centers in the Mossy Grove and Joyner communities as well as Wartburg and Petros.

Alabama twister kills at least 10; 50 injured By JAY REEVES The Associated Press 11/11/02 5:18 AM CARBON HILL, Ala. (AP) -- A nighttime swarm of tornadoes and powerful thunderstorms belted Alabama, killing at least 10 people and injuring at least 50 others. Officials feared the casualty toll would rise as daybreak revealed the extent of the devastation. Walker County Deputy Coroner Bob Green said seven people were killed near Carbon Hill, where giant hardwood trees crashed down on small houses and mobile homes. "I reckon about a third of the town is gone," said Terry Murray, part of a...

Tornado Hits Manti MANTI, Utah (AP) _ A tornado tore through this central Utah town Sunday afternoon, destroying houses, uprooting trees and bringing down power lines. The tornado destroyed six houses and damaged two dozen others, said Sanpete County sheriff's Lt. Rick Howe, who estimated damage at $1 million. "No one got hurt," said Peter Case, an emergency management technician. "A lot of people were in church." Residents reported seeing the funnel cloud touch down at 1:50 p.m. City Manager Bill Nicholson declared a state of emergency and he and Gary Vetterly, a state emergency officials, said it appeared to...