Free Republic

Timelines are devastating to progressivism. Over the years, progressive historians have done a good job of insulating their ideology from the question of "when did this happen", by taking quotes out of context, using the power of omission, and other trickery, in order to retroactively cook the books and make some things seem older than they actually are. The theory of the living and breathing constitution falls under this umbrella. Yet if you examine the history of progressivism itself, you once again see all of their lies on full display. You needn't look any further than the platform of the...

Full Title: Constitutional Originalism or the "living Constitution": Gorsuch's nomination and a tale of two law profs Judge Neil Gorsuch's nomination has brought to the fore the seemingly dry argument about two competing theories of Constitutional interpretation, Originalism and the "living Constitution." Gorsuch himself is an "originalist" while the Democrat party arrayed against him puts its faith in a "living Constitution."Two recent essays both discuss Originalism and "the living Constitution": Prof. Glenn Reynolds' "Who the People?" in USA Today, and Prof. Mary Bilder's "The Constitution Doesn't Mean What You Think It Means" in the Boston Globe. Dry though the argument...

Life is like the plains of Africa. Whether you are the lion of the gazelle when the sun comes up you better be running. What are yours?

 Tips Are Owed, They're Not a Favor.  Not Tipping is "a Crime, the Blood of which Calls out of the Ground for Vengeance".  "Why Restaurants Are Eliminating Tipping", proclaims a news article headline. The claims include the ideas, that it promotes bad service, it's an obsolete concept, and is unnecessary because of the living wage movement.Restaurant owners are certainly entitled to their point of view, but they are probably poorly served by latching onto "living wage". But workers have a right to their own direct relationship with customers. Their independent legitimacy as professionals doesn't have to be dependent upon permission...

Pray for the Living and the Dead – A Meditation on the Seventh Spiritual Work of Mercy Msgr. Charles Pope • June 15, 2015 • What is the value of one prayer? I suspect it is far greater than any of us imagine. Prayer changes things, sometimes in obvious ways, more often in subtle and even paradoxical ways. But prayer is surely important, even when we don’t experience its immediate effects. Perhaps this is why Jesus taught us to pray always and never to lose heart (cf Luke 18:1). St. Paul echoed this with the simple exhortation “Pray without ceasing”...

Radical Islamists threaten violence, while BDS intimidates door-to-door. In August 2013, we noted that Jews in Europe past their expiration date, based on the superb article You Only Live Twice by Michel Gurfinkiel in Mosaic Magazine: There is no future left for Jewish communities in Europe.That’s the inescapable conclusion of You Only Live Twice by Michel Gurfinkiel in Mosaic Magazine.The lengthy article is a long trip down the death during World War II and then rebirth of Jewish communities in Europe, and how that rebirth is being snuffed out by renewed anti-Semitism from multiple directions, particularly leftist demonization of...

Progress: “Forward or onward movement towards a destination…. Development towards an improved or more advanced condition.” Progressive: “Happening or developing gradually or in stages.” [Compare with Darwinist evolution theory.] “(A person or idea) favouring social reform; Favouring change or innovation.” Progressivist: A person who is “modern, liberal, advanced, forward-looking, forward-thinking, go-ahead, enlightened, enterprising, innovative, up-and-coming, new, dynamic, avant-garde, modernistic, disruptive; radical, left-wing, reforming, reformist, revolutionary, revisionist” So much for definitions provided by the Oxford Dictionary of the English Language . It seems to me there is a whole lot of pure hope (and hype) associated with the idea of “human...

You will find this guy VERY good. Talking about topics that many Christians talk about...but in the privacy of their home. These are things that we ALL NEED to talk about.

While every state has at least some residents who are looking for greener pastures; as Gallup reports, nowhere is the desire to move more prevalent than in Illinois and Connecticut. In both of these states, about half of residents say that if given the chance to move to a different state, they would like to do so (against an average 33% of all Americans who would prefer to live in another state than their own). The 'greenest pasture' or least disliked, according to Gallup, is Hawaii and Montana (where only 23% would prefer to leave). The biggest factor driving...

I began reading the entirety of the first section of the New York Times at nine years old, and continued that practice, more or less, for decades. I regarded The Times with a sort of reverence, as have many in this country and the wider world, and now see that its influence, because of its history and standing in the culture, is much wider than one might think for a newspaper, even a so-called “paper of record” that “sets the news table” for the United States. For example I have heard, way too many times, that a friend or colleague...

Harvard scientists have developed a new bioprinting method that can create intricately patterned 3-D tissue constructs with multiple types of cells and tiny blood vessels. The work is a major step toward creating human tissue constructs realistic enough to test drug safety and effectiveness, researchers said. The method will also help bring closer the building of fully functional replacements for injured or diseased tissue that can be designed from CAT scan data using computer-aided design (CAD), printed in 3D at the push of a button. "This is the foundational step toward creating 3D living tissue," said Jennifer Lewis, senior author...

[Yahoo Homes editor's pick, 2013: Every December, we look back at our most popular stories of the year. We've had some terrific ones recently, like the amazing artist who hand-carves soaring, swirling caves where none existed before; and the architect who, hit by foreclosure, built a tiny house for $11,000; and the architect who put the world's "biggest public toilet" in a glass cube in the middle of a clearing. But our most popular story of the year was this one, published way back on Jan. 24, 2013.] For many people, the idea of living under a rock might seem...

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — University of California President Janet Napolitano said Wednesday she is devoting $5 million to provide special counseling and financial aid for students living in the U.S. illegally, a move aimed at disarming critics who worried she would be hostile to the small but vocal student population. The former Homeland Security Secretary announced the initiative in her first public address since she became head of the 10-campus university system a month ago — an evening appearance in San Francisco organized by the Commonwealth Club. She also pledged $10 million for recruiting and training graduate students and post-doctoral...

The living tissue inside an animal has been regressed back into an embryonic state for the first time, Spanish researchers say. They believe it could lead to new ways of repairing the body, for example after a heart attack. However, the study published in the journal Nature, showed the technique led to tumours forming in mice. Stem cell experts said it was a "cool" study, but would need to be much more controlled before leading to therapies.

I am asking for personal philosophies regarding when life begins. I believe a strong case can be made scientifically that life begins at conception. However, I've had conversations with the culture of death and they insist that a fertilized egg isn't alive; that a child growing in the womb is a parasite on the mother's body (which, a thought just occurred to me - parasites are living beings as well!); that it's not alive until it's viable (which means my four year old isn't alive!); that because it's attached to its mother's body, mother can decide whether she wants to...

This National Election was one battle that was lost by those who seek to Conserve what Good is left of America. At best, this loss will help us in the future to avoid the obvious mistakes made in the past. There will be other battles in the future, and our goal will be to win more of those battles than we tie or lose. The purpose of our future battles is to win the WAR, just as Breitbart had warned us. On the positive side we need to list what the problems are. On the negative side we need to...

Big US banks submit "living wills" to regulatorsBy ALEX VEIGA, AP Business Writer – 1 hour ago Nine of the largest U.S. banks have submitted plans offering roadmaps for how the government could break up and sell off their assets if they are in danger of failing. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. released summaries of the "living wills" on Tuesday for Bank of America, Barclays, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and UBS. The plans were required under the 2010 financial overhaul, which gave regulators the power to seize and dismantle banks that threaten the...

Is constitutionalism akin to blind faith? Some statists certainly think so, as they have called the position “constitution-worship.” In light of this, what should we call those who lack that “faith”? Given that they don’t believe in the Constitution, and that the document is the supreme law of the land, can it be said that they don’t believe in law? Are these people, who are often atheists, also “alegalists”? Whatever you call them, they’re more visible and brazen than ever. Writing in Time magazine recently, Richard Stengel insisted that our Constitution “must accommodate each new generation and circumstance.” Georgetown professor...

RUSH: Here's the point, folks. In my humble opinion, class warfare is actually warfare against the middle class -- and I think this is largely misunderstand. The Democrats and the left have characterized class warfare this way. They've told their charges, "Stick with us, pal, and we're gonna get even with those rich people. Ha-ha! We're gonna make 'em people and we're gonna redistribute their wealth and you're gonna have more. Everybody's gonna be fine. We're gonna punish them big time," and, of course, I've always asked: