Free Republic

The US moratorium on gain-of-function experiments has been rescinded, but scientists are split over the benefits—and risks—of such studies. Talha Burki reports. On Dec 19, 2017, the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that they would resume funding gain-of-function experiments involving influenza, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus. A moratorium had been in place since October, 2014. At the time, the NIH had stated that the moratorium “will be effective until a robust and broad deliberative process is completed that results in the adoption of a new US Government gain-of-function research policy”. This process...

Fox News’ Steve Hilton shared an investigation that breaks down the origins of the coronavirus, and not only links it back to U.S. commissioned research, but also to Dr. Anthony Fauci.The host of the “The Next Revolution” told his viewers that the evidence uncovered “points to the most likely cause of the pandemic and it’s worse than anything that we have heard so far.”Highlighting a study 10 years ago in the Netherlands involving ferrets, which have respiratory systems that operate similar to humans, Hilton said researchers “were trying to see if the virus that starts out without the ability to...

A 24-hour traffic enforcement event by Edmonton police resulted in 2,442 violations, including a distracted driving ticket for a motorist wearing a live ferret around their neck while cruising along Whyte Avenue.

Pat Wright loves ferrets — a forbidden love in California, where owning the animals has been illegal since 1933. The state's complex ecosystem and ferrets' outlaw reputation as chicken killers make the weasel-like creature verboten here and in Hawaii. Like many ferret owners whose malfeasance gets reported to the Department of Fish and Wildlife, Wright says he's paid a high price for his pets. He's served 17 days in a maximum security prison, performed 300 hours of community service, and shouldered civil lawsuits, all because he refuses to quit his decades-long crusade to grant ferrets the same legal standing as...

Eric Holder Jr., the nation's first black U.S. attorney general, is preparing to announce his resignation Thursday after a tumultuous tenure marked by civil rights advances, national security threats, reforms to the criminal justice system and five and a half years of fights with Republicans in Congress. Two sources familiar with the decision tell NPR that Holder, 63, intends to leave the Justice Department as soon as his successor is confirmed, a process that could run through 2014 and even into next year. A former U.S. government official says Holder has been increasingly "adamant" about his desire to leave soon...

PHOENIX, - A law officially forbidding ferrets from being brought into the Arizona restaurants has taken effect. Friday, the 90th day since this year's legislative session was adjourned, marked the day 256 new laws took effect in the state, including the ferret ban, which stems from efforts to narrow the number of species considered "service animals," Capital Media Services reported Monday. Laws previously allowed several types of animals to be claimed as "service animals" and brought into restaurants and other facilities by people with disabilities, but the new law restricts the designation to dogs and miniature horses. Miniature horses were...

A Chicago lawyer is the key player behind the secret talks between the US and Iran. Yedioth Ahronoth reported Monday. A close friend of Michelle Obama, Valerie Jarrett is assisting the US government communicate behind the scenes with the representatives of Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei. Jarret, who was born in the Iranian city of Shiraz, is a senior advisor to US President Barack Obama. Last month, The New York Times reported that the US government is engaged in secret talks with Iran aimed at establishing a direct line of communication once the US presidential elections are over. The National...

SACRAMENTO, - California's ferret owners are tired of being criminals. They live in the only U.S. state besides Hawaii that bans residents from keeping ferrets as pets, forcing an untold number of Californians to keep their beloved weasels hidden from the public.

LONDON,- Animal welfare groups in Britain say they are outraged by a school fundraising contest that involves placing ferrets down the trousers of competitors. The charity "ferret legging" event is the idea of retired school headmaster Frank Bartlett, 67, who argued the competition would not harm the ferrets since they were docile, "would probably go to sleep," and would be placed down baggy trousers, The Telegraph newspaper reported Saturday. But animal welfare groups say the endurance contest, in which the winning competitor is the last one to release the ferret from his trousers, would cause the animals unnecessary stress and...

This is the way this article appears on the website Red Ferret Journal: The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (or secret copyright treaty as it’s being called) is as perniciously nasty a piece of proposed legislation as you’re likely to find anywhere on the planet. Ostensibly being created to defend the rights of copyright owners, this is yet another instance of stupid government serving the narrow agendas of greed of the massive entertainment corporations. This is not good law. Unless we all want the dead soul less hand of government stamping out our freedom to communicate, every single Internet user on the...

... Police say the man was taken into custody, and when the woman returned later that morning to pick up her belongings, she saw that her ferret's throat had been cut ear to ear. Dr. Rosanna Scali said the ferret's throat had been sliced by a knife. The veterinarian also found defensive wounds on the animal from trying to fight off its attacker. The ferret underwent surgery and has been returned to its owner.

When the news broke that Fred Thompson would be taking over Bill O'Reilly's radio spot, FredHeads cheered. It was reported that Rudy Giuliani was in negotiations for the gig as well. Rudy may give the SoCons fits, but on fiscal conservatism, taxes, and national security, he is one of the best. He also doesn't take any crap from anyone, especially liberals. And Rudy is no stranger to radio, having hosted a weekly call-in show back in the 1990's. Had he beaten out Thompson for the job, we may have been treated to some great, snarky stuff like this. More ....

Looks slow, so I thought I'd post a mini-gallery of some of my recent 'Stop The ACLU Ferret' cartoons which I draw for the Sunday Funnies at Stop The ACLU.Enjoy!

Rudy Giuliani, an ardent gun-control advocate as mayor, will address the NRA Friday.

No love lost on ferrets, poll finds SURVEY NIPS PLANS TO MAKE THEM LEGAL PETS Almost everyone in California knows what a ferret is. And most think the creatures should remain illegal, according to a new poll that has ferret lovers frowning - and some at each other's necks - across the state. As it turns out, same-sex marriage (43percent) rates higher in California than legalizing those pointy-nosed polecat descendants. "Only 38 percent favor legalization. That's kind of absurd," said Pat Wright, who founded Ferrets Anonymous in 1993 and directed a fundraising campaign to pay for the $6,000 Field Research...

Back to Press Releases MEDIA CONTACT: Jonathan Sherwood (585) 273-4726 October 6, 2004 Under the Surface, the Brain Seethes With Undiscovered Activity There’s an old myth that we only use 10 percent of our brains, but researchers at the University of Rochester have found in reality that roughly 80 percent of our cognitive power may be cranking away on tasks completely unknown to us. Curiously, this clandestine activity does not exist in the youngest brains, leading scientists to believe that the mysterious goings-on that absorb the majority of our minds are dedicated to subconsciously reprocessing our initial thoughts and experiences....

www.registerguard.com | © The Register-Guard, Eugene, Oregon April 29, 2003 Tree-sitting activist finds another perch Activist Mike McCarthy is up a tree again, this time in front of the Shelton-McMurphey-Johnson House near downtown Eugene. A week ago Monday, he took up residence in a sweetgum tree slated for removal by the nonprofit organization that runs the historic home and museum, which is near Skinner Butte at Third Avenue and Willamette Street. The city gave the group permission to cut down five trees in order to return the home and its landscaping to its late 1800s to early 1900s condition,...

Ready to defend bike paths If the Segway electric scooter, two-cycle engine-powered skateboards and other machines ridden by able-bodied people are allowed access to the bike path system, it is a step onto the slippery slope of destruction. The paths should be for human-powered travel only, unless one cannot use one's legs normally. I have watched foolish hot-rodders weave hazardously through a heavy weekend load of bike riders and strollers. They naturally assume they are the preferred users of the paths, much in the same foolish way that those in automobiles regularly harass and bully bicycles on regular city streets....