Free Republic

I have a story here. This is from the San Francisco Chronicle. (shuffling paper) I'm not sure how to pronounce the writer's name. It's G-a-r-o-f-o-l. Oh, it's f-o-l-i. Yeah. So it would be Joe Gar-ofoli? Joe Garof-oli? Joe Garofoli. The headline: "Bush Puts His Own Spin on 'Freedom;' Left's Mainstay Word Recasts Economic Terms." So what this story is going to tell us -- you just wait till you hear it -- is that Bush has stolen a liberal word, "Freedom." Now, if that's true, then you have to once again ask, "Why are they so mad? Why are they...

They celebrated and shivered in Washington. They marched and protested in Tucson. Locals greeted the inauguration of President Bush on Thursday with a mixture of patriotic enthusiasm and war-weary dread. For those who traveled to Washington to witness the nation's 55th inaugural, frigid weather tempered the momentousness of the historic event, but only slightly. "There's just so much excitement here," Kendall Jose, a 16-year-old member of the Tohono O'odham Nation, said from a cell phone as he stood in front of the National Archives on Pennsylvania Avenue, watching the inaugural parade. "It's quite a sight, but it sure is cold."...

Ladies and gentlemen, I want to read the Gettysburg Address to you. November 19th, 1863, Abraham Lincoln delivered this speech on the battlefield, and I want to read to you after I read it -- and it's very short and it's recognized now as one of the greatest presidential speeches in history; one of the greatest speeches in history, period -- and I want to read to you the reaction to the Gettysburg address from the Harrisburg Patriot and Union, the Chicago Times, the Springfield Republican, and the Harrisburg Patriot and Union again. But first, here's the Gettysburg Address. "Four...

Inaugural Viewers Flock to Fox By John Eggerton -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/21/2005 4:59:00 PM Fox News Channel won the coverage of George Bush raising his hand hands-down. According to Nielsen ratings figures supplied by Fox, FNC's coverage of the inaugural ceremonies (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.) on Thursday averaged 705,000 viewers in the key 25-54 news demo, over four times that of CNN, which averaged 168,000 during the same time. CNBC averaged 141,000. Fox's coverage was up 30% over the 2001 Bush inaugural, while CNN was down 63% and MSNBC down 68%. In total viewers, the numbers were FNC,...

OSLO, Norway — President Bush's "Hook 'em, 'horns" salute got lost in translation in Norway, where shocked people interpreted his hand gesture during his inauguration as a salute to Satan. That's what it means in the Nordic countries when you throw up the right hand with the index and pinky fingers raised, a gesture popular among heavy metal groups and their fans in the region.

I know that there's a lot of criticism of the president's speech. It began last night. It has carried on into this morning and today, and I know that some of the criticism is even coming from Republicans. I'm not going to address the criticisms of each individual specifically, but, rather, I want to try to take the apparent broad themes of the criticism -- especially from the left. The complaints from the left include that Bush did not mention any specifics about his plans to promote freedom in the world, and that we had some complaints -- even one...

OSLO, Norway (AP) - President Bush's ``Hook 'em, 'horns'' salute got lost in translation in Norway, where shocked people interpreted his hand gesture during his inauguration as a salute to Satan. That's what it means in the Nordics when you throw up the right hand with the index and pinky fingers raised, a gesture popular among heavy metal groups and their fans in the region. View Photo View Photo View Photo More Photos ``Shock greeting from Bush daughter,'' a headline in the Norwegian Internet newspaper Nettavisen said above a photograph of Bush's daughter Jenna, smiling and showing the sign....

BRITS MOCK BUSH INAUGURATION Thu Jan 20 2005 23:05:29 ET Editors of major London newspapers wasted no time mocking President Bush's inauguration address. Assorted splash headlines will greet readers on Friday morning: "BUSH: HAVE I GOT NUKES FOR YOU, George Bush pledged all-out global war on terrorists and tyrants," headlines the STAR. "POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE, The band played Hail to the Chief. A 21-gun salute sounded. Then, protected by a bullet-proof shield, President George Bush repeated his message to the enemies of democracy," screams the INDEPENDENT. MORE The TELEGRAPH slapped: "DEFIANT BUSH DOESN'T MENTION THE WAR, President George W Bush...

At about 10:40am EST, Rather wondered: "Having studied every American president in some detail, has there been any American president in a time of war who has asked for as little sacrifice as President Bush has done? Or is that a misreading of history?" Professor Joseph Ellis, a CBS News analyst, a historian and an author, most recently of a new biography of George Washington, confirmed: "No, I think you're right, Dan. I think what's unusual about President Bush is that he's perhaps the only President that took us to war at the same time as he cut our taxes....

Troops wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan were treated here last night to a once-in-a-lifetime experience: an inaugural ball in their honor, with a big lineup of celebrities, entertainers and defense brass thanking them for their sacrifices. The guests of honor at the first Heroes Red, White and Blue Inaugural Ball were about 150 patients from Walter Reed Army Medical Center here and the National Naval Medical Center in nearby Bethesda, Md., and their guests. Most came in dress uniforms they hadn't worn since before their deployments to Southwest Asia, some wore borrowed or rented tuxedos, but all came ready to...

Reports from across Iran are stating about the massive welcoming of President George W. Bush's inaugural speech and his promise of helping to bring down the last outposts of tyranny. Millions of Iranians have been reported as having stayed home, on Thursday night which is their usual W.end and outgoing night, in order to see or hear the Presidential speech and the comments made by the Los Angeles based Iranian satellite TV and radio networks, such as, NITV or KRSI. The speech and its package of hope have been, since late yesterday night and this morning, the main topics of...

Ok Ok .. I don't normally do vanity threads But it's now after 3PM Eastern time and still no pictures and reports about the Party last night Where Are They???.... tap tap tapping foot :0)

In case anybody wanted to know, the Bible was open to Isaiah 40:31 when President Bush was sworn in. But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (KJV)

Emphasis on freedom still takes unilateral road alienating foreign press. By Jim Bencivenga | csmonitor.com Presidential inauguration speeches, especially in time of war, spark intense personal and political passions. The press is not immune to this tendency. But the press has an outlet in editorials, commentaries, and individual columns. Prior to Pres. George Bush's speech, the world was keen to see whether the American president intended to go ahead with a unilateral or multilateral road in foreign policy. So when Mr. Bush made it clear on Thursday that he was not about to "turn back from his doctrine of taking...

60% of Americans felt the festivities were appropriate. 32% disagreed. 62% rated Bush's speech as excellent or good. Only 11% said poor or terrible. 67% saw Bush's inauguration as a cause for celebration. 30% said it was not a cause for celebration. Half were happy or thrilled about Bush's inauguration. A quarter didn't care. Only 22% were either unhappy or depressed.

Even as plans to celebrate President George W. Bush's inauguration were taking final shape, the capital on Tuesday appeared more like a city under siege.

Dozens of groups converging on Washington for protests. Dozens of groups, from environmentalists to feminists to antiwar activists, are uniting for what they're calling "J20," or "The Counter-Inaugural." Not all the demonstrations planned for Thursday will protest the president. The D.C. Chapter of Free Republic has secured permits to offer what it is calling safe-haven zones near Pennsylvania Avenue, "to differentiate [it] from the anti-American, leftist protesters who will be scattered along the parade route."

Washington D.C.'s Dupont Circle neighborhood was a place for deep, profound questions about world affairs and the nature of democracy Monday evening. Questions like, does anything rhyme with "Halliburton"? The event, called the "D.C. Guerrilla Poetry Insurgency," was one of several "counter-inaugural" protests taking place throughout the week in the nation's capital. It was also neatly illustrative of why it's George W. Bush, not John Kerry, who's getting sworn in this week. Bush won in large part because conservative grassroots activists tend to be unified, focused, and determined. Liberals, by contrast, are often disorganized and prone to expending a lot...

A Capitol HatefestBy Ben JohnsonFrontPageMagazine.com | January 20, 2005 Although President George W. Bush received more votes than any other presidential candidate in history, not everyone will be celebrating his second inauguration in the nation’s capital today. Pro-terrorist socialists and violent extremists pledge “direct action” – including initiating physical confrontations with police officers – that could divert critical attention from a terrorist attack. Among those who will take part in today’s protests is a group known as Anarchist Resistance, but is more commonly called “the Black Bloc” for the black ski masks its members wear. Its history of violent rioting...

An inaugural civics lesson. EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the text of President George W. Bush’s second inaugural address, as released by the White House. Vice President Cheney, Mr. Chief Justice, President Carter, President Bush, President Clinton, reverend clergy, distinguished guests, fellow citizens: On this day, prescribed by law and marked by ceremony, we celebrate the durable wisdom of our Constitution, and recall the deep commitments that unite our country. I am grateful for the honor of this hour, mindful of the consequential times in which we live, and determined to fulfill the oath that I have sworn and you have...