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The American economy, God bless it, isn't listening to all those doom-and-gloom predictions that we are marching headlong into a recession before the end of the year.   The professional pessimists who persistently peddle their predictions on the network news and business shows have been warning us all year that the economy is headed toward the cliff. Many of them were at it again this week — hoping against hope their cataclysmic forecasts will come to pass.  The lead economic story in The Washington Post Sunday began this way: "The economy is slowing, the dollar is falling. Wall Street is laying...

WASHINGTON - For just the second time since the war began, the Army is sending large units back to Iraq without giving them at least a year at home, defense officials said Monday. The move signaled how stretched the U.S. fighting force has become. A combat brigade from New York and a Texas headquarters unit will return to Iraq this summer in order to maintain through August the military buildup President Bush announced earlier this year. Overall, the Pentagon announced, 7,000 troops will be going to Iraq in the coming months as part of the effort to keep 20 brigades...

THE BATTLE FOR BAGHDAD BAGHDAD Determined though scared, I walk my beat, On the deadly streets of Baghdad. Searching for any who plot our harm, Or by our death are joyous and glad. Standing in shadows caused by the moon, I’m reminded of my nights back home. I wonder if the woman I love Is growing tired of sleeping alone? I feel remorse for all who live here, For this place is a madman’s hell. And those who wish to keep it that way Must be killed or locked away in jail. My greatest fear is not my death, But...

It is an article of faith on the Left and among its fellow travelers that the Bush administration stole two elections, made war on Iraq for venal reasons, tortured hapless foreigners, and conducted illegal surveillance of innocent Americans. A corollary of this mindset is that the press, primarily the Washington Post and The New York Times, has a right, indeed a duty, to print whatever they want about the administration—even if the information compromises national security. Not true. The press is not exempt from laws that apply to everyone else. The press is not exempt from laws protecting our national...

<p>The Free Republic keyword feature serves a valuable purpose, it alerts posters to topics that they are interested in and supplements those topics which aren't already listed as available topics.</p> <p>1. Please do not add words like "and" and "the" to the keywords. And PLEASE do not add every word from your title to the keywords, that's just plain annoying.</p>

Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood, had a way with words. In 1922, she wrote a book chapter titled "The Cruelty of Charity." Charity toward the poor, especially toward poor immigrants, she opined, only "encourages the healthier and more normal sections of the world to shoulder the burden of unthinking and indiscriminate fecundity of others, which brings with it … a dead weight of human waste."

The United States of America vs. Bill Keller How hard is it to be executive editor of the New York Times today? The White House calls him a traitor. He gets roasted every day on talk shows and blogs. The newsroom is losing faith. The paper is shrinking. And the worst part is that fighting back means overcoming his own nature... ...For a meeting without historical precedent, the president of the United States had called the Times to the White House to personally try to prevent a state secret from appearing in print—an exposé of the National Security Agency’s efforts...

Opposition Democrats expressed outrage at a campaign by President George W. Bush's administration portraying critics of the Iraq war as defeatists reminiscent of those who tried to appease Nazis before World War II. Bush's top aides, including Vice President Dick Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, delivered strident speeches last week describing the conflict in Iraq as a crucial part of the "war on terror," invoking World War II and the Cold War. "Can we truly afford to believe somehow, some way, vicious extremists can be appeased?" Rumsfeld asked in his address. Democratic lawmakers said the White House was trying...

Pakistan bows to pressure and arrests Taliban fighters (Filed: 16/08/2006) Pakistan reacted to pressure from Britain and other Western powers yesterday by arresting dozens of Taliban fighters suspected of attacking British soldiers across the border in Afghanistan. At least 27 suspected Taliban warriors were arrested at the private al-Khair Hospital in Quetta where some were receiving medical treatment for wounds. Meanwhile in the port city of Karachi, police arrested a suspected Islamic militant accused of training religious students to become suicide bombers and deploying them against coalition troops in Afghanistan. There have been months of diplomatic wrangling over Pakistan's apparent...

Something that I've noticed alot recently is the use of the word "and" when speaking dates and numbers. Examples: 1. Two Thousand AND Six (2006) 2. One Hundred AND Ninety Five (195) 3. The address is Three Hundred AND Seven (307) ------ Street 4. The temperature in ------ is One Hundred AND Two (102) degrees. 5. The driver qualified at One Hundred AND Eighty Six (186) miles per hour. I've noticed news, weather and sportscasters all using the "and" word with numbers. When I went to school back in the 60's and 70's, my classmates and I were reprimanded when...

SYDNEY (July 12) - Forget cute, cuddly marsupials. A team of Australian paleontologists say they have found the fossilized remains of a fanged killer kangaroo and what they describe as a "demon duck of doom." A University of New South Wales team said the fearsome fossils were among 20 previously unknown species uncovered at a site in northwest Queensland state. Professor Michael Archer said on Wednesday the remains of a meat-eating kangaroo with wolf-like fangs were found as well as a galloping kangaroo with long forearms that could not hop like a modern kangaroo. "Because they didn't hop, these were...

LOS ANGELES - Jan Murray, one of the fabled generation of comics who rose from the Catskills to prime time TV, tickling fans of the 1950s game show "Treasure Hunt," has died. He was 89. Murray, who appeared in dozens of movies and TV shows, died Sunday at his home in Beverly Hills, son Howard Murray said in a telephone interview Monday. "Treasure Hunt" ran from 1956 to 1959 in both daytime and prime time versions, first on ABC and later on NBC. The contestant who won a quiz got to pick among treasure chests, which contained anything "from a...

CLASSIC VERSION: The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper thinks he's a fool, and laughs and dances and plays the summer away. Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed. The grasshopper has no food or shelter, so he dies out in the cold. MODERN VERSION: IF THIS ISN'T THE TRUTH!!!! The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper thinks he's a fool, and laughs and dances and...

Brock Chisolm, former Director of the (United Nations) World Health Organization, is quoted as saying, "To achieve world government, it is necessary to remove from the minds of men, their individualism, loyalty to family traditions, national patriotism and religious dogmas." [GWB quote of the day, 7/7/1999]. Remove from the minds of men? Doesn't that sound like mental conditioning? How does that square with the Alexander Downer/Tim Fischer version of globalism as freer markets? It doesn't, does it? Some years ago another hero of the globalist-Left, B.F.Skinner, in his book Beyond Freedom and Dignity, mounted a concerted attack on what he...

1 Every action done in company ought to be with some sign of respect to those that are present. 2 When in company, put not your hands to any part of the body not usually discovered. 3 Show nothing to your friend that may affright him. 4 In the presence of others, sing not to yourself with a humming voice, or drum with your fingers or feet. 5 If you cough, sneeze, sigh, or yawn, do it not loud but privately, and speak not in your yawning, but put your handkerchief or hand before your face and turn aside. 6...

In Dubai, everyone refers to their ruler, Emir Mohammed Bin Rashid al-Maktoum, as "MBR." Just to give you an idea of how he is into tourism not terrorism, here's a quick story. He has closed circuit television in his private office. And what are the cameras trained on? Immigration/passport control lines at the airport. If MBR sees the lines are getting too long, he picks up the phone and orders more personnel to reduce the lines. Again, his focus is tourism not terrorism. The US Navy docks its ships at Dubai more often than at any other non-US port in...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 18, 2006 – Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today highlighted the importance of promoting a more cooperative working relationship between American diplomats and the U.S. military in order to achieve global objectives. "Over the past 15 years, as violent state failure has become a greater global threat, our military has borne a disproportionate share of post-conflict responsibilities because we have not had the standing civilian capability to play our part fully," she said in a speech at Georgetown University here. "This was true in Somalia, in Haiti, in Bosnia, in Kosovo and it is still partially true in...

Today, President Bush Addressed Members Of The Veterans Of Foreign Wars On Progress On Our Strategy For Victory In Iraq. The President discussed the political, security, and economic elements of the strategy for victory in the central front of the War on Terror, what has been achieved, the challenges faced at the start of 2006, and what the American people can expect to see in the year ahead. The Political Component Of Victory In Iraq: In The Past 12 Months, Iraq Has Undergone A Political Transformation That Is Virtually Without Precedent. Iraqis have completed three successful nationwide elections, voted for...

Up late I was surfing the channels and came upon Penn & Teller's Showtime program "Bulls*#@!" as they say... I have never been a big fan of Penn nor Teller, but they had the Second Amendment and were discussing it. Well, you could have slapped me to 4th Street! Penn & Teller were for the Second Amendment! And they did one of the best jobs I've ever seen of pulling the teeth from that famous liberal chant: "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state" means only the state has the right to bear arms...

The film "Syriana" is based on the true story of a CIA operative sent to assassinate Saddam Hussein, and the agent's near murder by Palestinian terrorists from Hezbulah. But in the hands of actor/producer George Clooney, Americans are shown to be greedy and corrupt while suicide bombers are presented as freedom fighters.

WASHINGTON (NNS) -- On what was only his second day in office, Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) Donald Winter, visited with wounded Sailors and Marines, and the hospital staff at National Naval Medical Center (NNMC) Bethesda. In his first message to the fleet after being sworn in Jan. 3, as the 74th SECNAV, Winter expressed how important it was to take care of the men and women of the fleet saying, “People are our most valuable asset. Nothing can play so decisive a role as well-trained, highly motivated Sailors and Marines who believe in their mission.” Winter reinforced those sentiments...

Dear Cyberfriends:    I thought this historical fact would be of interest if you were not aware of this.     One detail that is not mentioned, in DC, there can never be a building of greater height than the Washington Monument.  So read on.     With all the uproar about removing the Ten  Commandments, etc... this historical information is worth a moment or two of your time.    On the East face of the aluminum cap, atop the Washington Monument in Washington DC, are displayed two words: "Laus Deo."  No one can see these words.  In fact, most visitors to the monument are totally...

Hunting season brings concerns for gun safety in the hands of persons with Alzheimer's disease. While it may seem for some that hunting and handling guns has been a lifelong skill, the complex mental skills required by the safe handling of guns are usually lost early in the process of dementia. Studies into the behavior of those with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias indicate that threatening and unsafe behavior caused by impaired judgment has been found to occur in 30 to 50 percent of persons with AD. The presence of guns could contribute to serious consequences of life threatening injury...

The New York Times narcissistically regards itself as the patron saint of minorities. The paper shifts into attack mode whenever it sees the slightest and most ephemeral whiff of prejudice against blacks, women, or immigrants – especially Muslims. Private golf clubs, college sports teams, corporations, the Patriot Act, all have been tarred by the Times in their quest to abolish prejudice. Yet the New York Times seems to take the opposite approach when dealing with one particular minority: Jews. The Times’ method of dealing with anti-Semitism ranges across a very narrow and disheartening spectrum: indifference, whitewashing, defense and promotion of...

Third officer this year to face charges; Johnson accused of molesting girl, 15 A Columbus police officer was charged Saturday night with sexually abusing a teenage girl. Bruce Anthony Johnson, 41, of 1050 Farr Road, was charged with aggravated child molestation, aggravated sodomy, statutory rape, enticing a child for indecent purposes and two counts of furnishing alcohol to a minor. He is scheduled to appear in court this morning. Columbus Police Chief Ricky Boren said the investigation began Friday afternoon, and the allegations involved a 15-year-old girl. "We started the investigation Friday afternoon, and the investigation continued until Saturday evening...

Some of the most heartening tales coming out of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina are the tales of Americans standing up and taking responsibility for their own safety and survival rather than whining about “the government” not taking care of them. The Washington Post reports that in Popps Ferry Landing, a neighborhood near Biloxi, Mississippi, the local neighborhood watch is keeping an armed night watch to prevent looters from invading the neighborhood. Following the looting of the local Dollar Store, neighbors who very rarely spoke to each other, got together to protect their own. They’re not going out hunting down...

Finally, some people are taking necessary action. Let the word go out - if you are threatening the authorities, innocent victims or people trying to help with evacuation and rescue efforts, this is what will happen to you. Much has already been said about the dismal response of local, state and federal authorities in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, and the terrible suffering that tens of thousands of people are enduring as a result. I don't intend to add to that thread. Instead, what has struck me about this disaster is that it has demonstrated what Second Amendment defenders have...

Police and IDF officers have been training troops to expect curses and calls of "Nazi. Traitor" from anti-expulsion protestors. More than 15,000 in the Ofakim march sang songs and talked to them. More than 45,000 people were at the rally at Ofakim, the night after a similar number attended the rally at nearby Sderot, and thousands more were not able to arrive because the police closed off roads two miles away. Following speeches by leaders, rabbis and politicians, the crowd marched through the town to the main intersection and continued another mile until police and soldiers prohibited them from continuing....

In Canada, a Muslim association got Bill Baker to speak; in Britain, "prominent Jews in Britain are being targeted in a wave of anti-Semitic harassment by far-Right and Islamic fundamentalist organisations

Senate passes "Partners for Fish and Wildlife Act" By Gretchen Randall Date: June 29, 2005 Issue: The Partners for Fish and Wildlife Act (S. 260) passed the U.S. Senate Monday with unanimous approval. The Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program is the primary program within the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service delivering habitat improvement projects on private land through voluntary agreements with private landowners. The bill authorizes the program for the next five years (2006-2011) and provides $75 million each year for this habitat conservation program. Noting that approximately 60 percent of fish and wildlife in the United States are...

The 400 terrorists set to be released from Israeli prisons include 170 terrorists who attempted to murder Jews via shootings, bomb attacks and firebombings. The release of 400 prisoners is the second installment of an Israeli commitment of three months ago to release 900 such terrorists. The first 500 were freed in late February. Among the criteria for both releases is that the terrorists must have served at least two-thirds of their sentences. Of the 400 prisoners to be released: * 76 carried out shooting attacks, and served an average jail time of 63 months. * 53 planted or threw...

When I was a child (growing up in Southern California)...there lived an old lady down the street...just like in every neighborhood in the country. Just like in every neighborhood....her house was a little ratty looking. Overgrown with weeds...grass...bushes...and in need of a painting. Just like in every neighborhood.....us kids were convinced that it was because she was a witch (or something like it)......none of us wise enough (or smart enough) to realize it was because she was a little old lady...and lived alone...that the house looked like that. One day ,as kids (especially dumb ones) will do, we called her...

A Video of Lou Dobbs interviewing, Peter Gadiel (PRESIDENT, 9/11 FAMILIES FOR A SECURE AMERICA) DOBBS: "We talked, of course, as we have a number of times, with the consulate of Mexico. They said that the card you have they simply wanted to let you know that it was invalid and they have a far more secure one now. GADIEL: "Right. Well, I took care of that problem. Hal Netkin (ph), a friend of mine out in California, got me -- got me a new one. And while I was in the process, he also got you one." DOBBS: "Oh,...

Politicians of the Texas State House took the time this week to pass HB 1476 which will put an end to "sexually suggestive" performances by middle and high school students. The bill, all 219 words of it, didn't bother to define what a sexually suggestive performance may be. Here are the main portions of the bill: Sec. 33.088. SEXUALLY SUGGESTIVE PERFORMANCES PROHIBITED. (a) A school dance team, drill team, cheerleading team, or similar performance group may not perform in a sexually suggestive manner at an athletic or other extracurricular event or competition sponsored or approved by a school district or...

(Paraphrasing): Senator Chuck Hagel was heard to be wavering on whether he would support Bolton under questioning by George Step-En-Fetch-Enopolous at 11:55 a.m. (EST) He would not comment on whether he would vote to send Bolton's nomination to the floor and said he would reserve judgment until he had heard all of the evidence. Worst yet were his comments on his (apparent) [non]support for the Constitutional Option with regards to ending filibusters on Presdident Bush's judicial nominations.

Bill Hallin continues to be a straight shooter -- even at the age of 97. When he can get a ride from his Roseburg apartment out to the Roseburg Rod and Gun Club in Winchester, he shoots his Thompson Center Encore 6 mm benchrest pistol. At 100 yards, his three-shot grouping is usually one-quarter inch. When he shoots five times, he admits there might be one shot out to one-half inch. "I still shoot well enough," Hallin said with a smile. "Other people think I'm a good shot." Fred Dayton, a past president of the Rod and Gun Club who...

Time has run out to stop conceal carry permits from coming to Saint Louis City and Saint Louis County. The excuse that there is no funding to cover the costs is no longer valid. Tuesday, Missouri senators gave final approval to a bill that passed in the house in March. Now a spokesman for Governor Matt Blunt says it's not a matter of if he will sign this new bill, but when. It will becomes law immediately. The conceal-carry law has resulted in a barrage of opinions from gun owners and those against guns getting in more hands. Despite his...

MK Aryeh Eldad (National Union) today told tens of thousands supporters of Jewish life in Gaza to prepare for a "civil rebellion" to block the proposed evacuation of Jews from 21 Gaza communities. Organizers of the massive rally said 80,000 people came, while police, who usually minimize crowd estimates at right wing protests, said 50,000 people arrived. Earlier this week thousands of others visited Gush Katif, in southern Gaza, and thousands more stayed away because of fears of a rerun of last year's mammoth Independence Day traffic jam that choked roads leading to Gush Katif, turning them into the nation's...

SOUTH BEND — A former aide at Greene Intermediate Center is in jail after her arrest Tuesday on nine felony charges related to inappropriate sexual activities with special education students she supervised. Schmeca White, 27, of the 800 block of Huey Street, was taken into custody at her home shortly before noon Tuesday. Chief Deputy Prosecutor Ken Cotter said White is accused of performing various sexual acts or causing students to perform sex acts in a classroom during their lunch period. The reported incidents occurred during November and December while the teacher with whom White worked was away from the...

Official IDF sources predict that the withdrawal from Gaza will lead to Palestinian terrorism and violence worse than the previous intifadas, writes Yediot Acharonot's senior military correspondent. IDF sources predict that immediately after the disengagement, the ceasefire is expected to end with terrorist attacks in and from Judea and Samaria. Among the threats are mortar and Kassam rockets on Israel's new toll-way Highway 6, as well as other areas in the coastal plain and the Afula area. The "regular" ambush attacks on roads, as well as attacks on army bases and towns in Judea and Samaria, are also expected. The...

As the IDF eases restrictions and removes checkpoints throughout Judea, Samaria and Gaza - Arab civilians continue to be caught smuggling weapons in increasingly creative ways.

Some thoughts on the life and death of Terry Schiavo

When it comes to the law of unintended consequences, the McCain-Feingold campaign-finance "reform" is rapidly becoming a legal phenomenon. The latest example comes courtesy of the Federal Election Commission, where officials are being asked to extend the law to the very people it is supposed to empower: individual citizens. snip The problem facing the FEC is that McCain-Feingold broadly restricts coordination with, and contributions to, political candidates. So what is the agency to do with all those people who use their Web sites to praise a candidate? Computers and Web access cost money, which could be construed as a financial...

CHICAGO, March 9 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Anti-Terrorism and Aviation Protection Act," (H.B. 1098), passed out of the Illinois House of Representatives Human Services Committee today, a homeland security bill to prevent a terrorist from using a .50 caliber sniper rifle to shoot down a civilian airliner during landing or takeoff. Rep. Elaine Nekritz (D-57th) and Rep. Beth Coulson (R-17th), the two main sponsors, have launched a bi-partisan effort to keep the most deadly and powerful sniper rifles on the market out of the hands of terrorists to protect Illinois aviation and vulnerable industrial targets. .50 caliber sniper rifles were designed...

Dr. Conrad Worrill, Chair National Black United Front The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan Book cover - "Should America Pay? Slavery and the Raging Debate on Reparations" Atlanta, GA (BlackNews.com) - The Atlanta Chapter of the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America (N'COBRA) will host a gathering of the foremost activists, advocates and authorities on the demand for reparations in America. Beginning Thursday, March 17th with "Reparations 101: Reparations - A Healing Process", sponsored by the NDABA Movement in conjunction with Clark Atlanta University Student Organizations, and culminating Saturday evening, March 19th with a keynote address "Reparations: Our...

Subject: Fw: "Dark and Stormy Night Contest" winners For you lovers of good writing, listed below are the 10 winners of this year's Bulwer-Lytton Contest, aka the "Dark and Stormy Night Contest" run by the English Department of San Jose State University, wherein one writes only the first line of a bad novel: 10. "As a scientist, Throckmorton knew that if he were ever to break wind in the echo chamber, he would never hear the end of it." 9. "Just beyond the Narrows, the river widens." 8. "With a curvaceous figure that Venus would have envied, a tanned, unblemished...

SANTA FE— It appears that the former Mesa Vista High School teacher arrested last week for having sex with a student married the pregnant 16-year-old on New Year's Day. Frank V. Ortiz, 28, exchanged vows with the teenage girl at The Chapel of Dreams in Las Vegas, Nev., according to marriage records. The Jan. 1 marriage certificate on file at the Clark County, Nev., recorder's office also lists a woman with the same name as the girl's mother as a witness to the wedding. The police have said the girl's mother and grandparents did not appear to have a problem...

The most recent doom-and-gloom forecast by Matthew Parris of the London Times would be hilarious if it were not so hackneyed. After all, Americans long ago have learned to grin any time a British intellectual talks about the upstart’s foreordained imperial collapse. And as in the case of our own intelligentsia’s gloominess, it is not hard to distinguish the usual prophets’ pessimistic prognostications from their thinly-disguised hopes for American decline and fall.

RICHMOND, Jan. 17 -- The metal detector just inside the doors of Virginia's General Assembly Building let out a shriek Monday as Stafford resident Bruce Jackson strode through. That was not at all surprising, since Jackson was wearing a loaded .45-caliber handgun under his blazer. On the other side of the gate, a uniformed Capitol Police officer examined his driver's license, then his concealed handgun permit, had a quick word and waved him along. The routine took only a few moments, but for Jackson and other members of the Virginia Citizens Defense League, it required one step too many.

OSTON, Jan. 15 - In Boston, a witness to a shooting by a member of a street gang recently found copies of his grand jury testimony taped to all the doors in the housing project where he lives. In Baltimore, Rickey Prince, a 17-year-old who witnessed a gang murder and agreed to testify against the killer, was shot in the back of the head a few days after a prosecutor read Mr. Prince's name aloud in a packed courtroom. And in each city, CD's and DVD's titled "Stop Snitching" have surfaced, naming some people street gangs suspect of being witnesses...