Free Republic

Apparently The New York Times has snowflakes for brains as it struggled to find the climate change link in the blistering cold that has gripped the Eastern Seaboard. Times reporter Eric Niiler ran a ridiculous February 7 piece of propaganda disguised as news that was laced with a complete lack of self-awareness: The headline? “What’s Up With This Big Freeze? Some Scientists See Climate Change Link.” Niiler floated the possibility that “A warming Arctic can stretch the polar vortex, a high-altitude air ribbon, one says. The ‘wobble’ can disrupt the jet stream, causing extreme cold in the East.” At least...

It would be a hell of irony if useless preparation for a nonexistent threat simply set us up for a knockout blow from a real one. It has been two weeks since western PA experienced a dump of two feet of snow, the product of the continent-wide storm that was supposed to ravage the nation and throw back civilization 500 years or more. That, needless to say, did not happen, at least outside of Missouri, where it would never be noticed. But there is that two feet of snow. Pennsylvania is in the melt belt, a region in which even...

Hello, all. I'm considering spending winters in Jacksonville Beach, FL; mainly because I'm tired of the NE winters, this one being particularly bad. Based on some research I've done, it seems that it may be possible to live within walking (or biking) distance of stores for basic food items, restaurants, etc. (which is what I'm able to do now, and would like to have). JAX airport appears to be about 40 minutes from the beach area, which is not too bad, and the flight down from the NE is only about 2.5 hours which is also nice.

"Protests and sabotage marked the opening of the Winter Olympics in Milan as Italian police used water cannons and tear gas to beat back demonstrators."

Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada announced on Thursday a sweeping plan to offer billions of dollars in incentives and tax breaks for auto industry investment designed to help turn Canada into a global leader in electric vehicles.The new policies, Mr. Carney said, were meant to transform Canada’s economy and make it less reliant on a single trade partner after President Trump’s economic assaults and threats on Canada’s sovereignty have frayed relations between the two nations.“We must take care of ourselves,’’ Mr. Carney told reporters at an auto parts factory in Ontario. “We cannot control what others do.’’Mr. Trump has...

President Trump cited a major winter storm forecast to impact about two-thirds of the United States as evidence to suggest that global warming does not exist, repeating a misleading claim that has been consistently debunked by climate experts. In a Truth Social post on Friday, he said, "Record Cold Wave expected to hit 40 States. Rarely seen anything like it before. Could the Environmental Insurrectionists please explain — WHATEVER HAPPENED TO GLOBAL WARMING???" Climate scientists say Mr. Trump's statement conflates short-term weather trends with long-term climate changes. The unusually cold air spilling into the United States is an example of...

With roughly two-thirds of the United States under some form of winter weather alert, energy experts are warning that a surge in heating demand could deplete America's natural gas reserves. Why It Matters The United States relies on natural gas as its primary residential heating fuel and as a major source of electric power, so an extreme cold blast can simultaneously push up demand and constrain supply, creating rapid drawdowns from storage that help balance the system. Analysts said the expected demand surge, combined with possible production declines from freeze-related disruptions, could produce one of the largest weekly declines in...

Some frightening scenes out of yesterday’s four-man bobsled race in St. Moritz. USA’s Kris Horn had to navigate the big sled on his own after three teammates failed to board. It all starts when Hunter Powell slips and goes from there.

Islamic SocialismFrom the CIA factbook: Following a 1969 military coup, Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI began to espouse his own political system, the Third Universal Theory. The system was a combination of socialism and Islam derived in part from tribal practices and was supposed to be implemented by the Libyan people themselves in a unique form of "direct democracy.[1] The "Green Book" - Arabism, Islam & socialism, with Islam the main line Author John L. Esposito: Under Qaddafi three interrelated ideas were woven into Libya's ideological identity: Pan-Arabism, socialism, and Islam. Qaddafi's appeals to Islam were influenced by his...

In Slovenia, the ancient Pust festival happens each year before Easter to mark the end of winter. Locals wear masks and costumes to chase away winter and celebrate the coming of spring. Images of the festival captured by photographer Ciril Jazbec offer a glimpse into a ritual that has great significance for the community. The Little-Known Ancient Festival to Chase Away Winter | 3:10 BBC Global | 717K subscribers | 95,245 views | March 5, 2025

Next week’s pre-winter arctic plunge might be a sign of things to come for the Eastern U.S., as several key weather patterns will converge to bring early bone-chilling cold and potentially more snowstorms to the region. According to the FOX Forecast Center, two weather patterns, La Niña and an easterly Quasi-Biennial Oscillation, will allow more rounds of arctic air that is typically trapped high above the North Pole to spill into the lower levels of the atmosphere and south into the Eastern U.S. This frigid air is known as the “Polar Vortex.” Air in the polar vortex sits in the...

A cold winter is likely in store for those in the northern U.S., with milder temperatures across the southern tier, according to NOAA’s National Weather Service winter outlook issued Thursday. The outlook indicates the arrival of a La Niña climate pattern will have a heavy hand in the winter weather patterns from December through February. After water temperatures in the central Pacific Ocean dropped to 0.5 degrees Celsius below average (-0.9 degrees Fahrenheit) NOAA's National Climate Prediction Center issued a La Niña Advisory in October. Who will have bone-chilling cold and snow? The Northern Tier and Upper Midwest are looking...

Billionaire fund manager Bill Ackman, a staunch President Trump ally, has warned the world is on the brink of a “self-induced economic nuclear winter” – as he begged the commander in chief to pause his sweeping tariffs. “The President has an opportunity on Monday to call a time out and have the time to execute on fixing an unfair tariff system. Alternatively, we are heading for a self-induced, economic nuclear winter, and we should start hunkering down,” Ackman wrote in a lengthy X post Sunday night. “May cooler heads prevail.” Ackman, who endorsed Trump’s run for President, issued the stark...

Brighton, N.Y. (WHAM) — Gov. Kathy Hochul said she has taken steps to address the ongoing road salt shortage in New York state, including suspending the hours of service requirements for all truck drivers to increase deliveries. Hochul was in the Rochester area Friday and answered questions 13WHAM had about the rock salt shortage that has caused concern across the state and locally. More than 150 trucks lined up and down Lakeside Drive in Ontario to purchase rock salt earlier in the week. Several municipalities are also dealing with shortages and delivery delays from American Rock Salt.

In today’s forecast, we’re tracking a huge winter storm this weekend, followed by what could be the coldest weather in years next week! This weekend’s storm will bring heavy snow from the Central Plains to the Northeast, while the South faces a severe weather outbreak, with the risk of damaging winds, large hail, and tornadoes. Meanwhile, flooding rain will impact parts of the Ohio Valley and Southeast, adding to the widespread impacts. But the real shock comes next week—an Arctic blast could bring the coldest temperatures in years, plunging much of the U.S. into a deep freeze with dangerously low...

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who flies around on private planes so as to tell larger numbers of people how they must live their lives in order to save the planet, wrote a column last year on the lack of winter weather in Washington, D.C. "In Virginia, the weather also has changed dramatically. Recently arrived residents in the northern suburbs, accustomed to today's anemic winters, might find it astonishing to learn that there were once ski runs on Ballantrae Hill in McLean, with a rope tow and local ski club. Snow is so scarce today that most Virginia children probably...

If you spent much of last month shivering in the United States, you were not alone. A preliminary look at temperature data shows that the U.S. is likely to have experienced its coldest January average mean temperature since at least 2011, with records going back to 1895. Climate Central's preliminary report for January showed that 166 out of 191 analyzed cities (87 percent) were cooler than normal. That included Alaska, where the warmest city, Fairbanks, was an astounding 14.6 degrees Fahrenheit above normal. They put the January departure from the historical average number for the nation at minus 2.9 F....

New Yorkers awoke Sunday to up to four inches of snow — with even more fallings in some parts of the tristate area. And even more could be on the way this coming week. Following a night of heavy snow, sleet and ice, New York City’s Central Park recorded 3.1 inches of snow by Sunday morning. That will likely stick around well into this coming week, as temperatures are set to remain chilly.

Joe Biden tried to bankroll the use of electric school buses at government schools across the country. But as the electric buses continue to have massive reliability issues, some schools regret taking the federal handouts and now want help from the Environmental Protection Agency to get themselves out of the program. ... There are at least six districts reporting massive problems with Lion Electric school buses they bought through the federal program. ... The two electric buses received by Yarmouth Schools have been with the district for a year and a half, but they have only been used a few...

Commercial flights bound for Europe have been taking off late from the States but arriving on time or early, thanks to a more powerful jet stream, strengthened by the arctic air mass that settled along the East Coast last week. A Virgin Atlantic flight that left from JFK International Airport this week an hour and 13 minutes after its scheduled take-off time nevertheless arrived at London’s Heathrow Airport right when it was supposed to land, reports the Washington Post. The planes didn’t break the sound barrier because it was the air moving them so quickly, not their engines. The report...