Free Republic

Relics of the past should be preserved, for the sake of history, art, and future generations. But the current frenzy to demand removal of (and in some cases actually violently destroy) Confederate monuments, and even American monuments threatens to erase large swaths of American history -- noble and deplorable alike. The arts are certainly not immune to the hysteria. In response to a theater in Tennessee cancelling a showing of Gone With the Wind, because of its “insensitivity,” New York Magazine’s Vulture published a piece calling the film, “a cinematic monument to the Confederacy.” However, Angelica Jade Bastien, the essayist,...

**snip** The relations of power in the world are constantly changing. Good managers know this and are always looking for a wave to catch and ebbs to avoid. Timing in statecraft is very important, but it is something the president seems to lack. What has kept Obama from catastrophe is the unexpected success of everything he discounts, from the tactical skill of the US military to the resilience of all sectors he considers back numbers. He proceeds instead from a kind of fixed idea. President Obama’s policies have from the beginning been dogged by a curious kind of obsolescence, as...

<p>WASHINGTON - Last week, as the chorus of retired generals calling for Donald Rumsfeld's resignation grew larger and louder, Marine Gen. Peter Pace stood beside the defense secretary and did what some experts say is his military duty.</p> <p>"As far as Pete Pace is concerned, this country is exceptionally well-served by the man standing on my left," Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters at the Pentagon.</p>

WASHINGTON -Scientists studying new data are confident Mars once had water, leading to new speculation about life on the Red Planet. After studying thousands of images from Mars, scientists are convinced that liquid water once flowed on the surface of the Red Planet, increasing the odds that life may have existed there in the distant past. As a result, space travelers should act as if there once were -- and perhaps still are -- living creatures on Mars that must be protected from destruction or contamination, according to Jeffrey Kargel, a senior planetary scientist at the U.S. Geological Survey in...

[snip]But last month, the senator acknowledged his own struggle to comprehend the enormity of the terrorist attacks. Mr. Kerry was attending a Democratic leadership meeting in the Capitol office of Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota when two jetliners slammed into the World Trade Center in New York.     "We watched the second plane come into the building," Mr. Kerry said on "Larry King Live."     "And we shortly thereafter sat down at the table and then we just realized nobody could think, and then boom, right behind us, we saw the cloud of explosion at the Pentagon.     "And then...

Catholic League president William Donohue commented today on the remarks made about President George W. Bush that are featured on the website of Catholics for Kerry 04: “The home page of Catholics for Kerry 04 prominently lists comments by Wayne Madsden, who says, ‘George W. Bush’s blood lust, his repeated commitment to Christian beliefs and his constant references to ‘evil doers,’ in the eyes of many devout Catholic leaders, bear all the hallmarks of the one warned about in the Book of Revelations—the anti-Christ.’ He also charges that Bush ‘couples his political fanaticism with a neo-Christian blood cult.’ “This is...

Multnomah County, whose seat of Government is in Portland, Ore., has recently sharply relaxed ID requirements for new registrants. Identification is now only required if you are mailing your registration. The only ID required if you are mailing your registration is one showing you are a resident of Multnomah County, Ore. No social security number, passport or any other proof of your citizenship in the United States is needed. Examples of sufficient ID are: a copy of your current, valid photo identification (such as a driver's license), or a copy of a paycheck stub, utility bill, bank statement or other...

\ctmag\features\weblog\weblog-crumb.txt --> Christianity Today, Week of June 28 Weblog: Bush Wants Church Support, Opponents Cry FoulPlus: Taliban kills Christian in Afghanistan, court rejects judge's ruling in lesbian custody case, and more articles from online sources around the world.Compiled by Rob Moll | posted 07/02/2004 12: p.m. Campaign organizers for President Bush have sent a document to churches, asking for supporters to complete specific "duties" on behalf of the campaign. It isn't the campaign's first appeal to churchgoers, but this time, even evangelicals are questioning the tactics. According to The Washington Post, supporters' duties include: By July 31, for example, volunteers...

Ombudsman Carlos J. Lopez Nieves lashed out at the commonwealth and San Juan police forces Thurday for allegedly detaining undocumented aliens here and then handing them over to federal authorities for deportation. "This is undue intervention of the Puerto Rico Police Department in immigration issues," Lopez Nieves said, adding that the local police don't have the jurisdiction to detain foreigners for immigration violations. He also said that the San Juan police were also detaining foreigners, an action he said local police "here or in any state of the union" lack the authority to undertake. Police Superintendent Miguel Pereira denied the...

ATTORNEY General John Ashcroft's announced desire for camps for U.S. citizens he deems to be "enemy combatants" has moved him from merely being a political embarrassment to being a constitutional menace. Ashcroft's plan, disclosed earlier this month but little publicized, would allow him to order the indefinite incarceration of U.S. citizens and summarily strip them of their constitutional rights and access to the courts by declaring them enemy combatants. The proposed camp plan should trigger immediate congressional hearings and reconsideration of Ashcroft's fitness for this important office. Whereas al-Qaida is a threat to the lives of our citizens, Ashcroft has...