Free Republic

The abrupt disappearance of a live feed showing Taiwan’s digital minister occurred because the White House panicked over a map showing Taiwan in a different color than China, Reuters claimed on Monday. Audrey Tang, formally a “minister without portfolio” in the Taiwanese government, was speaking during President Joe Biden’s “Summit for Democracy,” a series of video addresses from some of the world’s states. Biden included the island nation of Taiwan despite the fact that the American government does not recognize Taiwan’s sovereignty as doing so would immediately sever all diplomatic ties with communist China. Taiwan is a free, democratic sovereign...

Russia’s ambassador to Israel said in an interview Monday his country cannot force Iranian forces to withdraw from Syria, despite Israeli calls for Iran to withdraw from the country. Speaking with Channel 10 news, Anatoly Viktorov said the Iranians are “playing a very, very important role in our common and joint efforts to eliminate terrorists in Syria. Viktorov said Russia can talk to its “Iranian friends” about a full withdrawal from Syria, as Israel demands, but “we cannot force them.” “The Iranian presence in Syria… is fully legitimate according to the UN principles and the UN charter,” he added. He...

Sen. John McCain reflected on his 2008 run with Sarah Palin: "The only thing I will ever resent about my presidential campaign is her treatment by the media. It was disgraceful."

Tony Blair has finally said sorry for the Iraq War – and admitted he could be partly to blame for the rise of Islamic State. The extraordinary confession by the former Prime Minister comes after 12 years in which he refused to apologise for the conflict. Blair makes his dramatic ‘mea culpa’ during a TV interview about the ‘hell’ caused by his and George Bush’s decision to oust Saddam Hussein. (snip)

President Obama's signature healthcare law has to be on the table for cuts as Congress tried to negotiate a deal to avoid the "fiscal cliff," House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) wrote in an op-ed. "We can’t afford it, and we can’t afford to leave it intact," Boehner wrote in the Cincinnati Enquirer. "That’s why I’ve been clear that the law has to stay on the table as both parties discuss ways to solve our nation’s massive debt challenge." Republicans have already made clear that they hope to go after the law's insurance subsidies in upcoming debt talks. The subsidies represent...

The massacre in Arizona should make every forward-thinking person in America angry. And this anger should give thoughtful people the backbone to tell the NRA that the Wild West show that they sponsor is over. The NRA and its disciples believe that they deserve to own guns at all costs. The costs are very high; people are literally killing us, their fellow Americans, because of their gun obsession. The massacres that happen on a fairly regular basis in our schools, work places, and now at a public gathering of an elected official are almost all committed by a person who...

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Months of "inhumane" solitary confinement are taking a toll on the US Army private suspected of passing secret government files to WikiLeaks, one of his supporters said after paying him a visit. "It has become obvious to me that (Bradley) Manning's physical and mental well-being are deteriorating," David House wrote on the blog Firedoglake, recounting a visit to the military brig where the accused soldier is being held. "It's become increasingly clear that the severe, inhumane conditions of his detention are wearing on Manning," he wrote. Held at a military brig in Virginia at the Quantico...

A day after holding up a square of Astroturf to denounce the orchestrated attacks on Democratic town hall meetings on health care, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's office said he would be talking with his Nevada constituents this month over the phone lines. Reid’s office is scheduling a telephone town hall meeting for August, opting to avoid the shouting matches and microphone speeches that have erupted at events across the country. The senator expects to reach thousands of Nevadans, including those in the state’s rural expanse. “It’s a forum that obviously lets us reach more people, but also provides...

Dear Mr. Robinson: I've given the matter quite a bit of thought and have decided it is time to ZOT you. I was tempted when I noticed posters were allowed to insult anyone who disagreed with them; even more tempted when I saw new posters banned for asking questions, or expressing an opinion outside the mainstream - (though I must confess anyone adopting the screen name "Christ was killed by conservatives" was not going to last very long ! I'm sure he was referring to the Sanhedrin, but still...) When I saw your post today about getting "millions of people"...

You can’t make up this kind of stuff. John Edwards is trying to get to the left of Dennis Kucinich (who wants to replace the Department of Defense with a “Department of Peace”) by proposing that we “fight” a nonexistent war on imaginary terrorists by creating a peace corps. 10,000 strong! There will be no stopping them. Senator Edwards is outlining a new national security strategy that hinges on the creation of a 10,000-person civilian peace corps to stem the tide of terrorism in weak and unstable countries. Prediction: the Nutroots are gonna love it. UPDATE at 6/8/07 10:26:50 am:...

Now, how would one disarm the American population? First of all, federal or state laws would need to make it a crime punishable by a $1,000 fine and one year in prison per weapon to possess a firearm...... The disarmament process would begin after the initial three-month amnesty...... Special squads of police would be formed and trained to carry out the work. Then, on a random basis to permit no advance warning, city blocks and stretches of suburban and rural areas would be cordoned off and searches carried out in every business, dwelling, and empty building. All firearms would be...

LEXINGTON, Kentucky (AP) -- A soldier who fled to Canada two years ago after serving in Iraq said he would return home to face consequences from the U.S. Army.

(While filming "Bosnian Holiday",a film about the hunt for Karadzic), actor Richard Gere becomes ill from the smell of cevapi Sarajevo - Actor Richard Gere, who is a Buddhist and a vegeterian, became ill from the smell of cevapi [trans. note: small grilled sausages, a traditional dish] in the Sarajevo quarter of Bascarsija. The hospitable restaurant operators were forced to close their shops during filmining in Bascarsija because of Gere, even though they made an effort and brought him the very best cevapi to be had, writes the Sarajevo press. The famous Hollywood star is in Sarajevo filming "Holiday in...

A judge in San Antonio has denied the request of a former Fort Sam Houston soldier to force the Army to release her as a conscientious objector. U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia ruled Friday that Pfc. Katherine Jashinski, 23, did not prove she has a firm, fixed and sincere objection to participating in war. The judge previously refused to block orders that shipped her to Fort Benning, Ga. There, Jashinski has refused to participate in weapons training in preparation for deployment to Afghanistan. She has been charged with "missing movement" and faces a court-martial, said J.E. McNeil, executive director of...

<p>Shep Smith was on his 3PM EST segment and talking with Wayne Simmons about paying for news in Iraq. Somehow the talk changed to Murtha and when Simmons said Murtha had bad-mouthed (or words to that effect) our troops, Shep went ballistic.</p>

Thirty-six hours after ex-president Bill Clinton bashed and trashed his son on everything from his handling of the Hurricane Katrina crisis to the Iraq war, former president George H.W. Bush says he still likes Clinton. Appearing during commercial breaks on ABC's "Monday Night Football," the president's father was asked how he and Clinton managed to get along. "I like him," Bush 41 said, despite the verbal thrashing Clinton administered to his son on ABC's "This Week" the day before. Given two more opportunities to comment on his relationship with Clinton, Bush Sr. declined to say a single negative word about...

From Wesley Clark's securingamerica.com - July 8, 2005 Returning soon.

Leaving? Stop the Drama Lyrics by doug from upland/performed by uncleshag To the tune of J.Denver's Leavin' on a Jet Plane Well, you've had enough...the pouting won't stop You feel just like your head will pop You write your opus ungramatically You give reasons why you are out of here Too bad your thinking's not very clear You're hoping that some others will agree We'll bend over, drop our pants...we don't care to hear your rants Here's thousands of butt cheeks....do you see? If you're leaving, stop the drama Just go and cry to your sweet mama You'll get...

I'm sick and tired of all the whining and flailing about! I just can't take it anymore! You wanted it, fine - here's MY opus:

US Democratic Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, who had hoped to replace George W. Bush as president yesterday, instead sat in the cold and clapped as the Republican began a second four-year term. Iowa Democratic Senator Tom Harkin patted Senator Kerry on the back shortly before the inauguration Senator Kerry had hoped would be his. As Mr Bush delivered his inaugural address, Senator Kerry, about 10m away on the steps of the US Capitol, joined other lawmakers and the crowd in repeated applause. Senator Kerry looked relaxed, at times wistful. He frequently smiled, able to hide any disappointment over what...