Free Republic

French court overturns Concorde crash conviction By ASSOCIATED PRESS | November 29, 2012 | Updated: November 29, 2012 11:21am VERSAILLES, France - A French appeals court overturned manslaughter convictions against Houston's Continental Airlines and a mechanic for the July 2000 crash of an Air France Concorde that killed 113 people, ruling Thursday that their mistakes did not make them legally responsible for the deaths. The crash hastened the end for the already-faltering supersonic Concorde, synonymous with high-tech luxury but a commercial failure. The program, jointly operated by Air France and British Airways, was taken out of service in 2003....

~Favorite Country Love Songs ~ You're the Reason God Made Oklahoma (D. Frizell and S. West) There's a full moon over Tulsa, I hope that it's shining on you. The nights are getting cold, In Cherokee County. There's a Blue Norther passing through. I remember green eyes and a ranchers daughter. But remember is all that I do. Losing you left a pretty good cowboy, With nothing to hold on to. Sundown came and I drove to town, And drank a drink or two. You're the reason God made Oklahoma, You're the reason God made Oklahoma. And I'm sure...

(Full title: The Millionaire Man Exodus: What Obama Can Learn From The UK's "Tax The Rich" Plan) Regardless if the Fiscal Cliff is resolved tomorrow (impossible), on December 31 (unlikely), or in tandem with the debt ceiling hike some time in March 2013, after all the government fund buffers have been soaked dry as they were back in August 2011 (most likely), one thing is certain: America's wealthiest (billionaires and millionaires) are about to see their taxes soar - that's more or less a given. The question is what happens then. Will, the wealthiest - those who have access to...

So now John Boehner is angry that the White House leaked a one-sided version of his latest conversation with President Obama to the press: Speaker John A. Boehner of Ohio and Republican leaders are fuming after a late night phone call with President Barack Obama was leaked to the press, despite an agreement that it would not be, according to several GOP aides. As if this should come as a surprise! It sounds as though Boehner and his aides are starting to get a clue: Republicans believe the president is more interested in raking them over the coals publicly than...

Yesterday's post on new Cassini'S close-ups of Saturn's mysterious North Pole Hexagon were absolutely breathtaking in the view of the astounding spectacle that nature is capable of. Most of the images involving spectacles such as the Hexagon will usually be skewed to a certain color to dramatize the images to a heightened state of existence. But the images shown here today, on their merit, equally as dramatic but with a truer representation off their color persona that naturally tends to be more staid, neutral, certainly less dramatic as provided by the most recent batch of images provided below. Free Republic:November...

Reports from Washington indicate that John Boehner and Barack Obama are negotiating the nation’s fiscal future under the cover of darkness. Boehner apparently reports to his House Republican caucus from time to time, and Mitch McConnell might have some idea what is going on, but no Republican other than Boehner seems to be playing a significant role. Washington Republicans who are most knowledgeable about the budget are apparently being shut out of the process altogether. We have seen such secret negotiations before, and they have never ended happily. Indeed, it was precisely such a back-room deal that gave rise to...

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton blasted the United Nations General Assembly Thursday for voting to recognize Palestine as a nonmember state. "I want to say a few words about the unfortunate and counterproductive resolution at the United Nations General Assembly," Clinton said at an event hosted by Foreign Policy magazine in Washington D.C.

Mitch McConnell, the Senate Republican leader, says he “burst into laughter” Thursday when Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner outlined the administration proposal for averting the fiscal cliff. He wasn’t trying to embarrass Geithner, McConnell says, only responding candidly to his one-sided plan, explicit on tax increases, vague on spending cuts. Geithner’s visit to his office left McConnell discouraged about reaching a “balanced” deal on tax hikes and spending reductions designed to prevent a shock to the economy in January. “Nothing good is happening” in the negotiations, McConnell says, because of Obama’s insistence on tax rate hikes for the wealthy but unwillingness...

FOX News: A writer at Forbes Magazine has identified a phenomenon called the “death spiral states.” The category includes 11 states where private sector workers are outnumbered by people who are dependent on the government. That number would include state workers, and people who are receiving welfare or pension. For example, in California the ratio of “takers versus makers” is bigger than one. If you own a software company that employs 100 people, you’re supporting 139 other people in the state who are on the “takers” list.

Leased a 2012 NIssan Leaf actually. After the state rebate it was zero down and $171 total per month (for 39 months).I feel like a hypocrite taking the rebate but the money is already allocated. Why should liberals get all the money ? The car is comfortable and fun to drive. The range fits my commute. I'm really into technology. My question is this. I don't want people to think I'm an environmentalist wacko. What would be a good bumper sticker to make a statement without getting my car keyed by some lib?

The United States effectively set a March deadline on Thursday for Iran to start cooperating in substance with a U.N. nuclear agency investigation, saying it would otherwise urge reporting the issue to the U.N. Security Council. The comments by U.S. diplomat Robert Wood to the 35-nation governing board of the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency signalled Washington's growing frustration at the lack of results in the IAEA's inquiry into possible military dimensions to Tehran's nuclear programme. Iran denies the charge. "If by March Iran has not begun substantive cooperation with the IAEA, the United States ... would urge the board...

This should trend: a mother has christened her baby girl Hashtag Jameson. However, instead of taking to Twitter, which spawned the now ubiquitous preface, the mother posted the announcement on Facebook, compounding her apparent #fail, the Daily Mail reported. Hashtags are used to highlight keywords on microblogging site Twitter. While it is not clear whether the screenshot is a joke, the possibility that a child has been named hashtag still exists. While some have considered that the little girl will grow up to be the living embodiment of the degradation of the English language, others have simply despaired for the...

In a 1986 book by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice, the future diplomat argued for the aggressive inclusion of a black history curriculum in American schools, claiming that its omission had “crippling effects” by “providing a child with no more than … a white interpretation of reality.” The 86-page book, “A History Deferred,” served as a guide for secondary and elementary school teachers wanting to teach “Black Studies,” and was published by the Black Student Fund, an advocacy group where Rice had an internship. “Susan’s interest in the study of Black history evolved from her desire to...

When Barack Obama was re-elected on November 6, the vast majority of professors across the country cheered and continued to force their liberal ideology on their students. In fact, 96 percent of Ivy League professors who donated to a campaign this election cycle, donated to President Obama. Ivy League educators overwhelmingly supported President Obama with their campaign donations in the presidential election, reinforcing the suspicions of critics who say their bias also shows up in the classroom. Some 96 percent of faculty and staffers at the eight universities who donated wrote their checks to Obama, and at Brown University, just...

I never liked Romney...but he did a fine job (he had huge crowds at his rallies and Obama had empty seats). Obama stole the election with Chicago machine style voter fraud. Even he was shocked that he won. We need to get real and get a plan to take our country back. Let's take responsibility...let's take action. FR is the meeting house for us to get formed and move to civil disobedience. If the Egyptians can riot (and get bloodied) in Tahrir Square...why are Americans afraid to march on Main St? Our leaders have lived inside the Beltway too long....

The U.S. birth rate plunged last year to a record low, with the decline being led by immigrant women hit hard by the recession, according to a study released Thursday by the Pew Research Center. The overall birth rate declined by 8 percent between 2007 and 2010, with a decrease of 6 percent among U.S.-born women and 14 percent among foreign-born women. The decline for Mexican immigrant women was more extreme, at 23 percent. The overall birth rate is now at its lowest since 1920, the earliest year with reliable records.

PRAYER TO THEIMMACULATE CONCEPTION O God,  who by the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, did prepare a worthy dwelling place for Your Son, we beseech You that, as by the foreseen death of this, Your Son, You did preserve Her from all stain, so too You would permit us, purified through Her intercession,  to come unto You. Through the same Lord Jesus Christ,  Your Son, who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen. First, recite the Prayer to the Immaculate Conception. Then, recite the appropriate prayer of each of the nine days. Day 1 Day...

Rights: The Senate is considering a treaty which says "disability is an evolving concept" and which would infringe on U.S. sovereignty and the right to raise our children as American families see fit. Those who thought that the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) adequately guaranteed the rights of the handicapped to have access to all facets of American life were apparently wrong. The U.S. Senate is considering ratifying the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), which President Obama signed in 2009 and which goes well beyond mandating wheel-chair ramps for public buildings. CRPD doesn't even bother to...

FULL TITLE: Gay men and their moms sue Jewish conversion therapy center that promised to turn them straight - and failed A group of gay men and their moms are suing a Jewish therapy center in New Jersey that claims to turn homosexuals straight. The lawsuit charges that the center, Jews Offering New Alternatives for Healing (JONAH), is guilty of consumer fraud for failing to quell the homosexual urges of its clients, as it had promised. Arthur Goldberg, JONAH's co-director, and Alan Downing, a 'life coach' who counsels therapy sessions, were also named in the suit. Goldberg did not return...

The U.S. birth rate plunged last year to a record low, with the decline being led by immigrant women hit hard by the recession, according to a study released Thursday by the Pew Research Center. The overall birth rate declined by 8 percent between 2007 and 2010, with a decrease of 6 percent among U.S.-born women and 14 percent among foreign-born women. The decline for Mexican immigrant women was more extreme, at 23 percent. The overall birth rate is now at its lowest since 1920, the earliest year with reliable records. The decline could have far-reaching implications for U.S. economic...