Free Republic

Australians have handed in nearly 26,000 firearms in the nation's first gun amnesty since its landmark response to a mass shooting in 1996. The amnesty began on 1 July to help counter a growing terrorism threat and an influx of arms in the country. It is illegal to own an unregistered firearm in Australia. Those caught outside the amnesty period face fines of up to A$280,000 (£172,000, $225,000) and up to 14 years in jail. The current programme, running until 30 September, means Australians can surrender unregistered firearms and related items without fear of prosecution. Justice Minister Michael Keenan said...

Per Jennifer Griffin from Fox News reporting at the Pentagon US naval vessels have fired their first salvo of Tomahawk missiles at Libyian air defense assets. No story up yet on the website

The post-mortems are accumulating, but I think the obvious has to be stated: John McCain and his colleagues in the Gang of 14 cost the GOP its Senate majority while the conduct of a handful of corrupt House members gave that body's leadership the Democrats. The first two paragraphs of my book Painting the Map Red --published in March of this year, read: If you are a conservative Republican, as I am, you have a right to be worried. An overconfident and complacent Republican Party could be facing electoral disaster. Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean, and a host of others could...

Back to the good ol' days? Both sides of the northern border appear to have reverted almost entirely back to routine pre-war realities – including the presence of Hizbullah supporters waving the organization's flags right in front Metula residents.

What do you do to relax, chill-out un-wind and de-stress besides chatting with other freepers? Helpful tips thread...

Drivers in the drink after beer truck flips TORONTO (Reuters) - A truck hauling 2,000 cases of beer flipped over and unleashed a sea of suds onto Canada's busiest highway on Wednesday, in a scene that could have been lifted from the Canadian cliche handbook. The early morning accident brought rush hour traffic to a standstill on highway 401 in north Toronto, as rescuers worked to free a woman trapped in the small car that collided with the tractor trailer. "Believe it or not with this crushed car, the young lady driving it is going to be okay," Ontario Provincial...

Get out of the UN, start over Paul Weyrich December 6, 2004 I knew Jack Danforth when he was in the United States Senate, he served eighteen years. First elected in 1976, his final race in 1988 was as nasty as they come. Indeed, he considered running for a fourth term in 1994, and I discussed steps we might take to inoculate him against the nasty charges liberals in his State of Missouri tend to make against center-right Senate candidates. He finally decided that he just couldn't stomach another campaign. He retired and former Governor John Ashcroft was elected to...