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BRUSSELS — Most French Jewish parents enroll their children in private schools because of anti-Semitism, a leader of France’s Jewish community said. Anti-Semitism “affects Jewish families very seriously and is the main reason there are so few Jewish children in public schools,” Roger Cukierman, president of the CRIF umbrella group of French Jewish communities, said Tuesday during a symposium on anti-Semitism at the European Parliament. “Most of them go to Jewish or Christian private schools.” Cukierman spoke at a symposium organized by the European Jewish Congress and B’nai B’rith International with European lawmakers on the findings of a recent survey...

<p>O’Reilly: Is he a socialist?</p> <p>Romney: You know, I prefer to use the term that he’s just over his head.</p> <p>O’Reilly: Yeah, but you got to look at his economic plan. An economic plan that’s top down, federal leadership, getting us out of the recession--- he spent trillions of dollars on that. And people say, Listen, the guy’s a socialist — it’s class warfare that’s what he’s gonna wage against you if you get the nomination: You’re a rich guy, you’re out of touch. Is he a socialist?</p>

“Without a doubt, people are stepping more gingerly. People are tiptoeing their way through this.”- Ted Rall, liberal editorial cartoonist. Last week’s firestorm over an editorial cartoon at the New York Post is still burning it’s way through the media and the blogosphere, and in the wake of Eric Holder’s declaration that Americans (read: white Americans) are cowards and James Clyburn’s claim that rejection of stimulus funds is motivated by racism, the reactions are naturally mixed and sometimes contentious. Reverend Al Sharpton, for example, is demanding investigations and protests. MSNBC is having shouting matches. Some cartoonists are simply preparing to...

Many great thinkers have written about power and fear, and more adroitly, about the power of fear. There's Michel Foucault, who asserts the power of surveillance (or, at least, the power of the threat of surveillance). Then there's Machiavelli's sobering advice to Lorenzo de' Medici, about using fear to maintain stability. Even Gandhi reflected on the power of fear, opining that the "power based on love is a thousand times more effective and permanent then the one derived from fear of punishment." No offense to the Mahatma, but he'd have made a terrible President of the United States

From the Harvard Law Record, via Ed Whelan, we learn that Elena Kagan considers Israeli supreme court justice Aharon Barak her "judicial hero." According to Kagan, Barak "is the judge who has best advanced democracy, human rights, the rule of law, and justice." However, it would appear that Kagan's judicial hero actually has very little regard for the rule of law and, indeed, is the antithesis of what a judge should be. That, at least, has been my understanding of Barak. It is also the view of Judge Richard Posner, and he makes a compelling case: [A]lthough he is familiar...

Politico's Josh Gerstein and Patrick Gavin have a long article describing the growing anger of the White House press corps towards the Obama White House. Many of the grievances are petty, though some are serious and substantive (involving lack of transparency and media manipulation), but the passage that I found most revealing is this one: Much of the criticism is off the record, both out of fear of retaliation and from worry about appearing whiny. But those views were voiced by a cross section of the television, newspaper and magazine journalists who cover the White House.

FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Rep. Betsy Markey is talking to voters in Fort Collins this weekend. But not about her health care vote — about distracted driving.

I’ve been driving Toyota Priuses since 2001. As a junior defense lawyer in the mid-90s, I litigated a number of bogus sudden acceleration cases that were brought against General Motors. So the recent kerfuffle over alleged mysterious electronic problems with the Prius and other Toyotas has certainly caught my attention beyond just throwing my floor mat in the trunk. I knew the public hysteria had reached unprecedented proportions when my father, a Ph.D. geologist skeptical of everything from George W. Bush to global warming (and that’s just the G’s), credulously emailed me repeatedly to demand I read a press release...

WASHINGTON - Army superiors were warned about the radicalization of Major Nidal Malik Hasan years before he allegedly massacred 13 soldiers at Fort Hood, Texas, but did not act in part because they valued the rare diversity of having a Muslim psychiatrist, military investigators wrote in previously undisclosed reports. An obvious “problem child’’ spouting extremist views, Hasan made numerous statements that were not protected by the First Amendment and were grounds for discharge by violating his military oath, investigators found. Examples of Hasan’s radical behavior have previously been disclosed in press accounts based on interviews with unnamed Army officials, including...

<p>Nick Robinson: "A question for you both, if I may. The prime minister has repeatedly blamed the United States of America for causing this crisis. France and Germany both blame Britain and America for causing this crisis. Who is right? And isn't the debate about that at the heart of the debate about what to do now?" Brown immediately swivels to leave Obama in pole position. There is a four-second delay before Obama starts speaking [THANKS FOR NOTHING, GORDY BABY. REMIND ME TO HANG YOU OUT TO DRY ONE DAY.] Barack Obama: "I, I, would say that, er ... pause [I HAVEN'T A CLUE] ... if you look at ... pause [WHO IS THIS NICK ROBINSON JERK?] ... the, the sources of this crisis ... pause [JUST KEEP GOING, BUDDY] ... the United States certainly has some accounting to do with respect to . . . pause [I'M IN WAY TOO DEEP HERE] ... a regulatory system that was inadequate to the massive changes that have taken place in the global financial system ... pause, close eyes [THIS IS GOING TO GO DOWN LIKE A CROCK OF SHIT BACK HOME. HELP]. I think what is also true is that ... pause [I WANT NICK ROBINSON TO DISAPPEAR] ... here in Great Britain ... pause [SHIT, GORDY'S THE HOST, DON'T LAND HIM IN IT] ... here in continental Europe ... pause [DAMN IT, BLAME EVERYONE.] ...</p>

Prague, March 5 (CTK) - Former U.S. vice-president Albert Gore allegedly feared a direct confrontation with Czech President Vaclav Klaus at a conference on global warming, and this is why Gore's presentation was rescheduled for another day, Lidove noviny (LN) writes Thursday, referring to Klaus's spokesman. Klaus will take part in the two-day international conference in Santa Barbara, the United States, on Friday, March 6 when he was to get involved in polemics with Gore, one of the main supporters of the global warming theory, which Klaus is sharply challenging. However, Gore, a Nobel Peace prize winner, will speak at...

In less than three months recently (from August 30 to November 19), the Federal Reserve System increased bank reserves in U.S. banks to more than $650 billion from under $50 billion. To remark that this was both a large and an unprecedented action would be an understatement. Since banks are permitted to lend a multiple of such reserves, it is possible that some day the U.S. money supply will begin to skyrocket amidst a new lending boom. Mr. Bernanke may now longingly dream of that day when he can become the stern central banker who must "take away the punch...

Every election it is the same thing. If you are a celebrity you either feel the need to try to convince us simple folk how we should vote in the upcoming election or you are coerced by the media to say something ….well…idiotic. That is exactly what happened to Matt Damon the other day. He tried to convince us simple folk how to vote and at the same time made an idiotic statement. He would make the other celebtards proud. During the interview he stated he knew nothing of Sarah Palin but began to list here prior work experience albeit...

Life doesn't always imitate "Saturday Night Live." Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the hockey mom GOP phenom, is coming to New York next week to carry John McCain's flag at a pro-Israel, anti-Iran rally. But she won't be sharing the stage with Sen. Hillary Clinton, who backed away from the event after learning Palin was coming. "Her attendance was news to us," Clinton spokesman Philippe Reines said last night. "Clearly there was some miscommunication because this was never billed to us as a partisan political event. Sen. Clinton will therefore not be attending this event." Malcolm Hoenlein, executive director of the...

WASHINGTON — Those in charge of the nation’s missile defense system have often said the interceptors based at Fort Greely could be used in a pinch. Today, amid reports that North Korea is about to launch a missile capable of reaching the United States, officials wouldn’t say whether that pinch has arrived. “There are many options available, and we are simply not going to tip our hand as to what the possible response would be,” White House spokesman Tony Snow told reporters on a flight to Vienna with President Bush earlier today. Snow’s comments were made to pool reporters traveling...

THESE ARE THE SENATORS WHO VOTED TO GIVE SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFITS TO ILLEGAL ALIENS REGARDLESS OF POLITICAL PARTY, THESE POLITICIANS NEED TO BE DEFEATED IN 2006, 2008 OR 2010, WHENEVER THEY NEXT COME UP FOR OFFICE. SEND THIS TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW; THE ENTIRE POPULATION OF THE UNITED STATES NEEDS TO KNOW THIS INFORMATION -- THAT IS, UNLESS THEY DO NOT MIND SHARING THEIR SOCIAL SECURITY WITH FOREIGN WORKERS WHO NEVER PAID INTO IT AND AMERICAN CITIZENS ARE BEING LEFT OUT. Grouped by Home State Alabama: Alaska: Stevens (R-AK), Yea Arizona: McCain (R-AZ), Yea Arkansas: Lincoln (D-AR), Yea Pryor (D-AR),...

I am curious why none of the media covers the most important aspect of the Malvo shootings. If you look at Newspapers on the dates when the shootings are underway you discover something I find quite interesting. The shootings begin to dominate the news the day before the debate on the Iraq war starts and they catch them the day after the declaration of war??? If you ask most people "do you remember the debate about starting the second Iraq war", they will all answer "yes of course". But if you followup with the question "name one point in the...

I recently received a reply to a post that stated: "This should be beneath a "freeper". Sad." So I asked.. what is it that makes a FReeper? My reply (and I will admit was tasteless) was also questioning. It stirred controversy and was removed? Why Moderators? Can you not tell me? Did it not meet with your "FReeper" mentality? According to all posted guidelines it should be listed but no, you chose to delete it. Yes.. I'm the first one IBTZ, I'm sure you'll nick me for speaking up..

British troops in Iraq are afraid to open fire, secret MoD report confirms By Sean Rayment. Defence Correspondent (Filed: 30/04/2006) British troops in Iraq "lack the confidence to open fire" because of a "fear of prosecution", says a confidential Ministry of Defence (MoD) report seen by The Sunday Telegraph. It confirms that soldiers believe that if they shoot dead insurgents they will become embroiled in a "protracted investigation" and if prosecuted will receive "no support from the chain of command". British troops show restraint when attacked in Basra The study into soldiers' confidence is understood to have been ordered by...

NASA’s quest to send astronauts back to the Moon and then to Mars has been undermined by NASA’s strange reluctance to provide justifications for its ambitious Vision for Space Exploration, even in the face of the ritual questions about competing earthbound priorities. The space agency’s stand is particularly strange because the lunar explorations of the Apollo astronauts have provided a solid reason to resume exploration of the Moon, namely Apollo’s great bounty of scientific information. Thanks to the lunar samples and other data from Apollo, most scientists agree today on the early history of the Earth and the Moon. They...