Free Republic

Thank you for un-suspending my account. I will continue to use your site to encourage more conservative liberty-lovers to embrace liberty movements and liberty-leaning politicians.

Gold is the only real money. Fiat is fake and a form of control.

Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell confirmed to the Pentagon press corps that Defense Secretary Robert Gates called Florida pastor Terry Jones this afternoon to express his “grave concerns” about a planned Koran burning because it could place US military lives at risk. Morrell said Gates placed a call between 4 and 4:30 p.m. today and engaged the pastor in a “very brief conversation." "The Secretary expressed his grave concerns to the pastor that going forward with the Koran burning would put the lives of American servicemembers at risk, especially in Iraq and Afghanistan and he urged him not to proceed...

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — The runaway UFO-like balloon that the world thought was carrying a 6-year-old boy is back in the hands of the parents who pleaded guilty to the hoax.

It seems in vogue these days to apologize for wrong doings. I am not really sure why Tiger Woods apologized on worldwide television to golfers, his wife, his mother, to me, to you...to the entire world, for what appears a personal matter, but I tell you who needs to apologize publicly is Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. He needs to apologize for his snarky, condescending attitude toward Congressman Ron Paul when Paul , 1. asked Bernanke about allegations that the Federal Reserve was involved in funneling money to Saddam Hussein, when Hussein was a favorite of the U.S., and 2....

Richard Heene Serves Rest Of Sentence In Work-Release Program. FORT COLLINS, Colo. - Richard Heene, the man dubbed "Balloon Dad" after being convicted of masterminding a hoax that his young son was adrift in a runaway UFO-shaped balloon, was released from Larimer County jail Sunday after serving 28 days, authorities said. Heene began serving his 30-day sentence at the jail on Jan. 11 and was released two days early, Larimer County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Eloise Campanella told TheDenverChannel.com Monday. He will now serve 60 days of his sentence through a work-release program that will allow him to work during the...

Since President Obama’s inauguration, the man who previously occupied the vice presidential mansion has not tired of criticizing the current commander-in-chief’s foreign policy moves, but he appears to be coming under increasing fire from those who are considered to be his closer ideological allies. Dick Cheney has gone on record in the past few months saying the administration’s polices—especially the desire to scale down the U.S. involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq, and setting a public timetable to do so—are endangering America’s national security. However, in a recent appearance on CNN, Rep. Ron Paul (R – Texas), a prominent libertarian, said...

Here is a couple of short videos of Larry King's interview with "Balloon Boy's" father, Richard Heene, where he denies any hoax and says that he only plead guilty to "save" his family because of threats of deportation...(Videos)

Get a load of this complete tool: Ron Paul seems to think that the USA has its Troops as being occupiers. I suppose his "constitutionality" doesn't fit his "extremist" isolation techniques. I like some of Ron Pauls items of discussion but I most certainly do not support his unconstitutional PORK BARREL spending or his unconstitutional ISOLATION or his "let's not go to war so we can spend the money on health care" crap. Like the title so states, Ron Paul is a moron. I’ve written many times about this quack named Ron Paul and his links and adherence to that...

The parents who pulled the balloon boy hoax in hopes of landing a reality TV show were sentenced to jail Wednesday — 90 days for him, 20 days for her — and barred from profiting from their newfound celebrity status for the next four years. Choking back tears, Richard Heene apologized in court for the frenzy he caused when he claimed his 6-year-old son Falcon had floated away in a giant helium balloon shaped like a flying saucer. "I'm very, very sorry. And I want to apologize to all the rescue workers out there, and the people that got involved...

FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) -- The parents who carried out the balloon boy hoax were sentenced to jail Wednesday and given strict probation conditions that forbid them from earning any money from the spectacle for four years. Richard Heene was sentenced to 90 days in jail, including 60 days of work release that will let him pursue his job as a construction contractor while serving his time. His wife, Mayumi, was sentenced to 20 days in jail.....

**Update** Balloon Boy's mom gets 20 days in jail, 4 years probation, story from Foxnews.

It may not be a very merry Christmas for Balloon Boy parents Richard and Mayumi Heene this year - they've just been hit with a $42,000 bill. The bill is from local, state and federal agencies for the Heenes' October stunt when they claimed their six-year-old son had crawled into a hot air balloon in their back yard and been whisked away into the skies.

On January 20th, 2009, I hoped for change — now 9 months later, I am just hoping for a little spare change. I feel like I have been reliving my own version of Balloon Boy; as the country has been spellbound with rapt attention to a Jiffy-Pop hot-air balloon carrying off our hope-and-change President, we come to realize that while we have been anxiously watching shiny objects in the sky, our very own “Urkel Goes to Washington” is holed up in a smoke-filled back room playing three-card monty with Rahm and Axelrod while Geithner greases up the government printing presses....

The Colorado parents accused of pulling a spectacular hoax by reporting their son was aboard a runaway balloon pleaded guilty Friday to charges that could bring some jail time and probation. Richard Heene pleaded guilty to knowingly and falsely influencing Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden, a felony, in the episode that sent law enforcement scrambling to rescue 6-year-old Falcon until he was found safe at the family home. Mayumi Heene pleaded guilty to knowingly filing a false report with emergency services, a misdemeanor. Richard Heene told judge Stephen Schapanski he understood that he could have to pay restitution for the...

The parents of the "Balloon Boy" are about to land - perhaps behind bars. Richard Heene and his wife, Mayumi, reached a deal with authorities to enter guilty pleas over their October hoax that transfixed the country, their lawyer said Thursday. Heene, 48, will plead guilty to a felony - attempting to influence a public servant - while his 45-year-old wife will plead to a misdemeanor charge, attorney David Lane said. Although Lane initially said the deal would spare the couple from jail time, the lawyer later said he expected prosecutors to request some time behind bars - 90 days...

FORT COLLINS, Colo. - The Colorado parents who reported their 6-year-old son floated away in a helium balloon in what authorities say was a hoax to drum up publicity for a TV show will both plead guilty to charges in the case, the attorney for the boy's father said Thursday.

AP story says Hasan used a "5.7-caliber semiautomatic pistol". I guess Hasan is a Manly-Man. Talk about a hand cannon!

Wafting ever upwards on gaseous clouds of hope, only to have his numbers crash . . . On the day America went Balloon Boy crazy, I chanced to be on the radio, appearing live coast to coast on The Hugh Hewitt Show. And, as the Balloon Boy was the hot breaking news, Hugh asked me about it. “I don’t know what to say,” I said, “except it’s one of those peculiar and potentially tragic and instantly horrifying combination of circumstances.” If I sound a bit vague, well, that’s the idea. I’d gotten the gist of what was happening a couple of minutes before...

The father of Colorado's so-called Balloon Boy may not have gotten his reality TV scheme off the ground, but Richard Heene is at least getting his own action figure. Connecticut-based toymaker Herobuilders.com is adding Heene to a quirky collection that includes the Sarah Palin Super Hero and the Obama Joker doll. There's also a Bernie Madoff Action Figure with a fistfull of hundred-dollar bills and a Dick Cheney doll hoisting a shotgun. Heene's mini-me wears an "I'm with Stupid" t-shirt with the arrow pointing upwards. It sells for 34.95. Heene and his wife, Mayumi, called 911 earlier this month to...

DENVER (Reuters) – The mother of a Colorado boy thought to be aboard a homemade helium balloon has admitted to investigators the whole thing was a hoax, according to a court document made public on Friday. ... "The motive for the fabricated story was to make the Heene family more marketable for future media interest," the affidavit states. The document also says the Heenes, who had starred in the reality television show "Wife Swap," had devised the hoax about two weeks before and had instructed their three children to lie to authorities and the media.

SASKATOON, Saskatchewan, Oct. 22 (UPI) -- A Canadian company says its new "balloon-boy" costumes are practically flying off the shelves in the days leading to Halloween. Plantraco Microflight, based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, is selling the costumes online for $19.99 each, says the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. It didn't take much of a flight of fancy to dream up the idea after watching the helium-filled, flying-saucer look-alike take off from the yard of a house in Fort Collins, Colo., said Bud Kays, Plantraco Microflight's managing director. "It's a scale model of the balloon-boy's balloon," said Kays, speaking of 6-year-old Falcon Heene, who,...

We couldn't resist making this easy to wear Politically Incorrect Balloon Boy Halloween Costume. We hope you have fun with it! Now you too can enjoy all the media attention you want with Plantraco's Balloon Boy Hoax kit. A great flying saucer that is going to put a big smile on your face. Colorado flying saucers and hot air balloon hoaxes are famous these days, get on the bandwagon for trick-or-treat halloween fun and loads of laughs for everyone!

UP, UP ON THE SCREEN (IN MY HELIUM BALLOON) Tune: "Up, Up and Away (In My Beautiful Balloon)" Original Would you like to hide in my helium balloon Would you ride untied in my helium balloon We'll be famous like the stars on TV, you and I For we can lie, we can lie Up, up on the screen In my helium, my helium balloon It's just a little game in my helium balloon It's fortune and it's fame in my helium balloon We can sign a deal and keep it real--no, we're not shy For we can lie, we...

(Richard Heene, father of Balloon Boy Falcon, is sitting in his backyard with his head in his hands. Falcon walks up to him and Heene looks up sadly.) BALLOON DAD: Why Falcon? Why did you tell Wolf Blitzer on live TV that I told you to hide in the attic for the show? BALLOON BOY: Because that is what you did tell me, Dad. BALLOON DAD: But that was the real reality we must never talk about. What counts is TV reality. And now I can never return to TV reality shows like "Wife Swap." My credibility was blown...

The Federal Aviation Administration has opened its own investigation into the 50-mile flight of the helium balloon that briefly delayed flights at Denver International Airport after a couple reported that their 6-year-old son may have been on board, an official said Tuesday. FAA spokesman Mike Fergus said the agency investigates civil allegations rather than criminal ones. He declined to provide details on the nature of the FAA probe or its possible outcome. Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden has said investigators believe amateur storm chasers Richard and Mayumi Heene called 911 Thursday saying they thought their son, Falcon, was aboard the...

FORT COLLINS, Colorado — The story that a little boy had floated away in a giant helium balloon was a hoax concocted to land a reality television show, authorities said, and the boy's parents will likely face felony charges. The stunt two weeks in the planning was a marketing ploy by Richard and Mayumi Heene, who met in acting school in Hollywood and have appeared on the ABC reality show "Wife Swap," Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden said Sunday. The Heenes have reportedly been working on a reality TV deal in Los Angeles. Investigators are examining the possibility of other...

The parents met in acting class in California?

Does stories like this realize what the late Andy Warhol said years ago, that everyday people will have their "15 minutes" of fame? Uh Oh … well can’t say I am surprised. The evidence we pointed out here seemed pretty overwhelming. But if it was a hoax, I can asssure you … this guy won’t go down without a fight. I promise.

I know, I know, you're asking, "What about the Pitt wedding DUFU?" Well, before we get to the gasbag that got hitched, first we need to deal with a gasbag that got UN-hitched! I refer, of course, to the Balloon Boy saga, and the DUmmies' reaction to the story. But before we hear from the DUmmies, let's join the Heene Family Singers in singing one of their favorite Ballooney Tunes: UP, UP ON THE SCREEN (IN MY HELIUM BALLOON) Tune: "Up, Up and Away (In My Beautiful Balloon)" Original Would you like to hide in my helium balloon Would...

(CNN) -- Three days after the world watched a giant balloon fly through the air and a tearful family express fears that their 6-year-old boy could be inside, authorities announced what millions already suspected: The whole thing was staged. It was carried out by a couple who met "in acting school in Hollywood" and "put on a very good show for us," Sheriff Jim Alderden of Larimer County said Sunday. Authorities know there was "a conspiracy" between Richard and Mayumi Heene, he said. "It has been determined that this is a hoax," the sheriff said, adding police "believe we have...

Colo. sheriff calls balloon saga a hoax He says ordeal was staged to generate publicity for a reality TV show FORT COLLINS. Colo. - A sheriff said he was pursuing criminal charges in Colorado's "balloon boy" saga, which he described Sunday as a hoax to generate publicity for a reality TV show. Deputies searched the home of the boy's parents Saturday night, carrying away several boxes and a computer. The boy's parents, Richard and Mayumi Heene, met with Larimer County investigators for much of Saturday afternoon amid lingering questions about whether he perpetrated a publicity stunt when his 6-year-old son...

FORT COLLINS, Colo. – A sheriff says a Colorado couple's report that their 6-year-old son was in a balloon that was hurtling away from their home was a publicity stunt. Sheriff Jim Alderden says Richard and Mayumi Heene "put on a very good show for us, and we bought it." The sheriff says no charges have been filed yet, and the parents aren't under arrest. But he says he expects to recommend charges of conspiracy and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

<p>The infamously boy-less balloon caused even more trouble than we thought on Thursday -- because its landing also wreaked havoc on a valuable wheat crop desperately needed by a local family.</p> <p>TMZ spoke with Doug and Joanna Abbott who told us their 300-acre wheat crop was destroyed mostly by emergency vehicles racing across their field to chase the balloon -- which also caused its fair share of damage.</p>

The Larimer County Sheriff says criminal charges are likely expected to be filed against Richard Heene. Heene is the Fort Collins man who reported his 6-year-old son missing in a helium-filled balloon on Thursday. The sheriff did not give specific charges, but said they would likely be a class 3 misdemeanor, which could be false reporting. The sheriff's office is working on getting a search warrant to search the Heene home and is planning a news conference Sunday at 11 a.m. Richard Heene and his wife Mayumi were interviewed by investigators Saturday.

The Larimer County Sheriff's Office is drawing up search warrants and preparing charges against Richard Heene and the "balloon boy" family. Officials made the announcement after Heene and his wife met with officials at the Larimer County Sheriff's headquarters for several hours Saturday. Heene left his home in a red minivan and drove to the sheriff's office in mid-afternoon. A couple of hours later, two other people, including a man wearing a shirt identifying him as a Larimer County sheriff's office victim advocate, arrived at the home, and the boy's mother, Mayumi Heene, left with a man and a woman...

Wow. Ready to have your mind blown? A former research assistant who slaved for Richard Heene is revealing the deceptive, tragic master plan that Heene concocted to manufacture a media thunderstorm. This...is completely insane. Here's a bullet-point summary:

For several hours Thursday afternoon, Americans were riveted to their television sets, having been told that a 6-year-old boy might be inside an accidentally-launched homemade balloon as it soared out of control across the skies of Colorado. Today, “news” of another runaway balloon spotted in the skies above Washington, D.C., is attracting much less concern. This cartoon, from my friend David Donar at Political Graffiti, tells the story.

A TLC official tells TMZ the Heene family approached the network "months ago" with a reality show idea, but the network passed. TMZ has learned the Heene family has been pitching a reality show about the wacky family, as one TV source put it, "all over town." We're told Richard Heene pitched a series to Reality Real, as well as RDF Productions. RDF produces "Wife Swap," on which the family appeared back in March. We're also told the Heene's have made the rounds at the networks, including TLC. Of course, TLC produced "Jon & Kate Plus 8." So is balloon...

As the homemade balloon took to the air, Richard Heene blasts wife about tethering. • While world worried, 'balloon boy' was safe in attic http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=7e7_1255709203

A sheriff’s office that helped chase down a saucer-shaped balloon that officials feared was carrying a six-year-old boy over Colorado is now considering billing the child’s family hundreds of thousands of dollars to pay for a rescue effort that turned out to be needless, Canwest News Service reports: A spokeswoman for the Weld County Sheriff’s Office said all of the county’s on-duty resources were expended in the balloon chase Thursday, which ended when the sliver, UFO-likecontraption floated to the ground without a child aboard. It was later discovered the child was hiding in the attic of his family’s garage. Deputy...

When a UFO shaped helium balloon took off from Colorado, possibly harboring a 6-year-old boy, the broadcast and cable news organizations were transfixed. But when it turned out to be a possible "publicity stunt" the networks continued to give it enormous amounts of coverage. That's exactly the opposite of the way the networks covered made-up quotes attributed to conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh that had portrayed him as racist. ...more (w/video)...

The father of the 6-year-old Colorado boy who was thought to have been speeding through the sky for hours in a high-soaring homemade helium balloon is a self-described "storm chaser" who now finds himself at the center of another kind of squall.~~snip~~A Foxnews.com search of public records revealed that [Richard] Heene, 48, and his wife, Mayumi, owe thousands of dollars in connection to a company called My-You-Me Productions. Prior to moving to Colorado, Heene and his wife were aspiring actors in Los Angeles who met at an acting school, a source told Foxnews.com. The state of California filed a $5,812...

Colorado authorities met Friday morning to discuss whether they should investigate suspicions a family that claimed their six-year-old boy was trapped in an experimental, saucer-shaped ballon set up the international spectacle. Colorado authorities chased the balloon for three hours, across several counties believing the boy was trapped inside, while television cameras followed the silver balloon's every dip and dive. When the balloon finally landed in a farmer's field about 80 kilometres southeast of the boy's home in Fort Collins, Colo., they found no child inside and speculation immediately began that he may have fallen out during the flight. But Falcon...

Here is newly released home video by the family of "Balloon Boy" Falcon Heene of the liftoff of the balloon from the backyard yesterday. You see the father, Richard Heene, doing a countdown, and then the balloon takes off with the father appearing agitated. The father was close to the balloon as it took off. . . . (VIDEO)

I just heard Falcon threw up on the Today show. This is the balloon kid. The whole family should be deported in my view.

Congratulatory messages poured into the White House this morning from global heads-of-state celebrating President Barack Obama’s dramatic rescue of a 6-year-old Colorado boy, whose apparent flight in an experimental balloon yesterday captivated viewers around the world. While the White House declined to comment on how the president could have flown to Colorado, retrieved the boy from the balloon, and returned him safely to the attic of his family home, press secretary Robert Gibbs said President Obama was “surprised and deeply humbled” by the international attention. He said the president views this latest round of global tribute as “a call to...

Speculation is mounting that the story of six-year-old American boy Falcon Heene who was feared to have floated away on a home-made weather balloon was a hoax organised by his family to gain publicity.

I realize this may be posted as a comment, in the original thread but may be even bigger than the original breaking news. http://thedailyjabber.com/?p=3675

He just said to his parents on Wolf Blitzer “You guys said we did it for a show.” Wolf didn’t seem to notice. Video at the link.