Free Republic

Right now as I write this there are significant elements of the Ukrainian forces located within 40km of the strategic Soviet city of Belgorod. This city is a critical transshipment and distribution hub for all manner of logistical support for the Soviet Army that is currently trying to steal more land from Ukraine. The foolish Soviets have left this city all but undefended as they've moved their forces to concentrate on preventing the encirclement and capture of 20,000+ orc forces at Izyum, Ukraine. The Ukrainians don't have to even seize the city. They may not even need to cross into...

I have a idea for a protest at the capital. For Arizona where open carry is legal you come armed. In other states where it is not you come with toy guns. You elect right there at the rally squad leaders and start teaching people how to march in formation. Even the kids get there own separate squad. (Imagine how THAT would freak out the left!) . The idea is to sing while marching in formation! Once in formation you start singing “Battle Hymn of the Republic”: Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;...

“Amazon just bought Whole Foods,” my friend texted me seconds after the announcement of the proposed acquisition. “It’s over. The world.” This unease is widespread, and has raised new calls for breaking up Jeff Bezos’s impending monopoly by force. Surely the company, which now generates 30% of all online and offline retail sales growth in the United States, and already controls 40% of internet cloud services, has reached too far. The 3% hike in Amazon’s share price since the announcement—which would alone more than pay for the acquisition—may attest less to the deal’s appropriateness than to investors’ growing fear that...

Kedah's new fatwa ruling anti-democratic Front APRIL 19 - The Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF) reads reports of Kedah's new fatwa ruling with alarm.According to The Star, the ruling enacted by the Kedah State Assembly on Tuesday will ensure that a fatwa decided by the mufti and fatwa committee "cannot be challenged, appealed, reviewed, denied or questioned in any civil court or syariah court."This ban against any challenge to all of Kedah's fatwas practically grants the mufti and fatwa committee absolute say in matters concerning religion - a clear breach of democracy.What took place on Tuesday, in other words, was nothing...

Guang Eng labels Umno Penang 'racist' over mosque land allegations By Anisah Shukry April 04, 2012 [The Malaysian Insider] KUALA LUMPUR, April 4 - Lim Guan Eng accused Umno Penang today of racism for choosing only to highlight the alleged disposal of land earmarked for mosques in the Bayan Mutiara project. The Penang chief minister said that if Umno's claims were true and that the land been reclassified in the 102.6-acre sale of Bayan Mutiara to Ivory Property Group Bhd (IPGB), then issue affects both Muslim and non-Muslims. "Why then is Umno not highlighting that non-Muslim land for religious worship...

Malaysia's melting pot on the boil http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/IC24Ae01.html By Baradan Kuppusamy KUALA LUMPUR - Asian melting pot Malaysia is gearing up to celebrate 50 years of independence from British rule, [1] but the racially diverse country still boils from the colonial power's ethnic-based divide-and-rule legacy. there is a growing clash between resurgent Islam led by Malays and the secular constitution favored by the minority ethnic Chinese and Indians. "The situation is worrisome," Abdullah told Malaysians during a televised address last December, appealing for racial understanding, tolerance and national unity. Foreign visitors who view on the surface a seeming peaceful and stable...

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia’s opposition Islamic party has accused a top judge of insulting Islam by ruling that a Muslim boy need not wear a turban — as the Prophet Muhammad did — to prove his faith. The case began when three Muslim boys sued the government because their state school expelled them for refusing to remove their turbans. The boys lost their case, and appealed — but a Federal Court dismissed the appeal. Judge Abdul Hamid Mohamed said in the ruling last week that it isn’t necessary for Muslims to do exactly as the Prophet Muhammad did....

Since September 2001 the struggle between militantly radical and progressive or democratic tendencies—between “ungentle” and “gentle” Islam—has become a matter of urgent importance not only among Muslims but to others beyond their faith community. Some observers suggest that the course taken by this contest in Malaysia may be of more than local significance: because Malaysia has demonstrated singular success among Muslim-majority nations in achieving economic growth and the various worldly attainments associated with it; and because, in opposition to the new militant Islamism, its rulers have promoted and identified themselves with modern, progressive, and liberal forms of Islam. Islam Hadhari...

Indonesia's Islamic Parties Weigh Electoral Chances By Patrick Goodenough CNSNews.com Pacific Rim Bureau Chief March 26, 2004 Pacific Rim Bureau (CNSNews.com) - Muslim political parties, including those pushing for the introduction of shari'a law, are hoping to prosper in Indonesia's general election next month, despite the recent poor showing for Islamists in elections in neighboring Malaysia. Analysts say Islam has become an increasingly significant political factor in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country, since former dictator Gen. Suharto was ousted in 1998, after 32 years in power. Even the two largest secular parties are eager to woo the Islamic...

Malaysia's 'Gentler' Leader Gets Strong Mandate, Trounces Islamists By Patrick Goodenough/ CNSNews.com Pacific Rim Bureau Chief March 22, 2004 Pacific Rim Bureau (CNSNews.com) - A resounding victory for Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in Malaysian elections has dealt a significant blow to the country's radical Islamic party. By drawing a line under the Mahathir Mohamad era, it also clears the way for a less prickly relationship between Kuala Lumpur and Washington. Unofficial results in Sunday's election gave the ruling coalition, dominated by Abdullah's United Malays National Organization (UMNO), a healthy majority in the federal parliament, and also ended opposition Parti...