Free Republic

Britain could reach its highest levels of UV radiation due to a lack of planes, coupled with clear blue skies and sweltering temperatures — a potent combination that increases the risk of skin cancer. Ultraviolet rays, which can also cause sunburn and cataracts, are expected to reach level 9 across parts of Devon and Cornwall on what is set to be the hottest day of the year in the UK so far. The mercury hit a sweltering 90.5°F (32.5°C) on Wednesday, while temperatures today could climb even further in the Midlands and Wales. West London is forecast to see temperatures...

Airplane vapour trails may blot out our view of the stars in as little as 30 or 40 years, astronomers say, making ground-based telescopes -- which still do the bulk of our astronomy even in the Hubble age -- nearly useless. As cheap air travel expands, the sky gets criss-crossed with little ice crystals that can hang up there for a couple of days as thin clouds, dimming the view. This warning comes as Canada and other countries are currently designing a new generation of "Extremely Large Telescopes" with mirrors 30 metres or more across, and a view sharper than...

The purpose of FreeRepublic.com's multiple message boards is to limit the topics for each board to particular topics. Posting the same message on all the boards defeats the purpose of multiple-boards for special topics. It is very annoying to see the same message on every bulletin board. PLEASE! DO THE READERS A FAVOR. STOP CROSS-POSTING YOUR MESSAGES!

Gore’s TV War: He Lobs Salvo At Fox News by Josh Benson Among the many problems facing the Democratic Party, according to former Vice President Al Gore, is the state of the American media. "The media is kind of weird these days on politics, and there are some major institutional voices that are, truthfully speaking, part and parcel of the Republican Party," said Mr. Gore in an interview with The Observer. "Fox News Network, The Washington Times, Rush Limbaugh—there’s a bunch of them, and some of them are financed by wealthy ultra-conservative billionaires who make political deals with Republican administrations...

The long awaited album from the rock band Rush who has sold in excess of 40 million albums worldwide is about to release one of their strongest efforts to date. I have had the opportunity to own this album for the last 2 weeks and it will be released to the public on May 14th. I am posting some lyrics to a few of the new songs on the album as Neil Peart (who lost his daughter and wife in 1997 in the span of 10 months),touches on the morning of 9-11,our fears, our rage, our hopes, and what was...

Rush's 'Vapor Trails' Due In May Canadian power trio Rush has set a May 14 release date for its upcoming Anthem/Atlantic album, "Vapor Trails." As previously reported, the set was recorded in Toronto, with band members Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart serving as producers and longtime collaborator Paul Northfield engineering. A North American tour in support of "Vapor Trails" is expected to begin in June. The new album, the follow-up to 1996's "Test for Echo," features 13 tracks. Opener "One Little Victory" is described by the label as "propulsive," while "Sweet Miracle" is said to be "emotive," and...