Free Republic

Forget immaculate make-up or witty one-liners. The secret of seduction is as simple as standing next to your less attractive friend. Studies show that our judgments of people vary according to the company they keep. And if that company is less attractive, or dare we say it, ugly, the first person seems all the more appealing.

"Grid girls" are as much a part of international motorsports as high-octane fuel, ear plugs, and fiery crashes. Before each race, grid girls take up positions behind the starting line, holding up the national flag of the team and the vehicle's number. They also, it seems, spend a good deal of time just hanging out and looking hot. Long may they wave.

Evolution has led to women, but not men, getting progressively beautiful, according to scientists. Researchers found that attractive women have more children than their less attractive counterparts and that a higher proportion of those children are female. Once those daughters become adult they tend to be good looking themselves and so the pattern is repeated as women over the generations become steadily more aesthetically pleasing. As attractive couples are less likely to have boy than a girl, men, in contrast, remain as aesthetically unappealing as their caveman ancestors, the scientists claim. The findings have emerged from a series of studies...

The list includes the first lady, of course. Not Bo. But five White House staffers and one cabinet secretary. Rahm? Yes.

Every year, PEOPLE Magazine gives recognition to good looking celebrities, and the results are finally in. After surviving a very public battle with breast cancer, actress Christina Applegate has been named one of the World's Most Beautiful People. The most beautiful celebrities dish about being honored by PEOPLE in its latest issue. After a very public battle with breast cancer and undergoing a double mastectomy, Applegate felt less than perfect. But the support from her boyfriend, Martyn Lenoble made her feel beautiful -- inside and out. "I'm very grateful to Martyn for coming along at a time that he did...

This video is arranged with a short instrumental medley of hymns, “Softly and Tenderly” and “Lord, I’m Coming Home”, with a flowery hummingbird scene.

This video is arranged with kittens, cats, dogs, family pets and the song is, He Is Lord, sung by children.

Anna Nicole Smith's daughter Dannielynn makes bizarre appearance on Larry King show By Daily Mail Reporter 03rd February 2009 American television's capacity to break strange new ground was proven once more when the judge who ruled on custody of the late Anna Nicole Smith’s body met her daughter. It was a case of three Larrys when Judge Larry Seidlin was introduced to Dannielynn when she and her father Larry Birkhead paid him a surprise visit on the American TV show Larry King Live. Surprise guest: Two-year-old Dannielynn Smith appeared on Larry King Live to meet the judge who famously decided...

This video of some family pets and various roses is accompanied with the Dottie Rambo song; It’s Me Again Lord and is sung by various artist unknown in Bluegrass style.

Palin in Salem Virginia

This video is arranged with flowers and butterfly animation. The Bluegrass song, that is sung “One Rose Will Do”, is by the Lewis Family. This video arrangement has a little humor over all and is a Revski classic. :)

The video has pictures of earth’s universe and its grandeur. The pictures and images are of space Nebulas and show the magnificent awesomeness of our solar system.

This is a shortened version of the song, Good Religion. The video has pictures of earth’s universe and its grandeur. The pictures and images are of space Nebulas and show the magnificent awesomeness of our solar system.

You will be blessed to see this video of an Australian parrot called Riley. Real parrot not animated and holds a good conversation with its owners.

Through the business of each and every day, it seems to be hard to find time to pray. This beautiful inspirational soft sounding hymn, “Sweet Hour of Prayer”, will inspire you in it’s 3 minutes and 58 seconds to pray without distractions. May you find this song a true blessing! Revski

You know what I am sincerely tired of? A woman's physical appearance entering a political debate at any time, at any place, for any reason at all...as if it has any bearing on the discussion or is any kind of appropriate for what is being discussed. It started awhile ago, when I noticed that men in the Politics and Current Events forum would compliment my looks when I was trying to get a serious point across. Then I noticed this happening in my everyday life, along with men in my everyday life ignoring me to listen to something another man...

VINTON, Iowa -- It's one thing for Hillary Clinton's campaign to turn down interview requests for the candidate's daughter, Chelsea. But can't a 9-year old reporter catch a break? Sydney Rieckoff, a Cedar Rapids fourth grader and "kid reporter" for Scholastic News, has posed questions to seven Republican and Democratic presidential hopefuls as they've campaigned across Iowa this year. But when she approached the 27-year-old Chelsea after a campaign event Sunday, she got a different response. "Do you think your dad would be a good 'first man' in the White House?" Rieckoff asked, but Chelsea brushed her question aside. "I'm...

America has problems but all countries have them, so let this song, sung but Rev. Mide Purkey bless your heart. Revski

A team of international scientists has unveiled a mosaic map of Antarctica compiled from satellite images. The new map allows experts and laypersons alike to observe its majestic landscapes online and in stunning clarity. The Landsat Image Mosaic of Antarctica (LIMA) is composed of high-resolution images taken from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Landsat 7 satellite between 1999 and 2001. It offers accurate, true-color images of the polar region.

It all started with my old Toyota MR-2 that we painted and gave to my son. Since then in 2001 we have had several cars that we have painted like flags. This is our latest incarnation and I think it is possibly the best! We now have 3 special shape balloons. The American Flag - America One, the Space Shuttle - Patriot & our newest balloon- The Lighthouse we affectionately call Flighthouse. A little background on the balloons. I blame Jim Robinson and Free Republic. Coming to this forum, I really wanted to do something. Something big... After 9/11, we...

For generations we have sung a song about America that we learned as grade school children. It is a beautiful expression of what our great country means to us, and in fact the whole free world. Since it has probably been quite some time since we have thought about this song in its entirety, it seemed fitting to take a look at all of the words to America the Beautiful in the context of today’s world. America the Beautiful Words by Katharine Lee Bates, Melody by Samuel Ward O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple...

Hello, I am planning to write a post on the Most Beautiful Blogs, and I was hoping Freepers could suggest some blogs they find beautiful. Since Beauty is very much in the eye of the beholder, the definition of what's beautiful is open-ended and reserved for your aesthetic pleasure. But lots of suggestions, please Freepers. Thanks very much. MG

Hot clouds again billowed down the slope of Mount Merapi Thursday morning over a distance of five kilometers in the direction of the upper reach of Gendol River, thus burning down northern part of Kaliadem forest area in the district of Sleman, Yogyakarta. The volcano erupted more than 10 times from 06:00 to 09:00 Thursday morning. Eruption of hot air had lasted for 25 minutes since 07:20 (0020 GMT). Such a long distance of hot clouds moving down from the mount's crater burning some forest areas in Kaliadem, but no casualty was reported in the disaster, official news agency Antara...

Just had to say this even though it's a little (or a lot) silly.Megan Kendall on FoxNews today is incredibly beautiful. Check her out.Yoi, she's fine!

In an article two days ago, "Muhammad Ali v. George W. Bush," I castigated President Bush bestowing a prestigious award on former boxer Muhammad Ali and for lavishly praising Ali's beautiful soul, his compassion, and his being a man of peace. I offered some evidence to the contrary and concluded by calling this incident "the nadir of his presidency."The column prompted a fair amount of comment, positive and negative. I'd like to note here two noteworthy responses. One is from Judea Pearl, father of the late Daniel Pearl, murdered by Islamists in Pakistan in 2002: When Danny was in captivity,...

My translation of the breaking news: 15 de septiembre de 2005 Jictzad Viña, Miss Sucre (province) is the new Miss Venezuela 2005, a young woman full of security, elegance, grace and beauty who happened to convert in her 22 years into one of the most beautiful women in Venezuela. At 7:00 p.m. the contest began, in the majestic cupola of the Poliedro of Caracas, to a new version of the contest more hopeful for the year in Venezuela and the world, the election of Miss Venezuela. They all were accompanied by a great technical and artistic display to reproduce a...

Hi ~ I wanted to let you know that my dear sister, Tammy, passed away unexpectedly on June 30th. She had gastric bypass surgery on June 27, came home from the hospital on June 29th and passed away in the early morning hours of June 30th. I'm not exactly sure of Tammy's username (something like "texaswarriorprincess") Tammy often talked about her involvement in this site and our family felt we should notify you of her death. We lost our Dad in October, 2004. I know Tammy shared the news w/ you of my Dad voting prior to his death. He...

I pick up today's WaPo out of the snow, and this was the front page image:Click for bigger. I don't think that anyone, anywhere, could ask for better imagery. Just look at the placement it got. Even more interesting, there is not a story about the Secretary of State on the front page. Applauding soldiers, the American flag, stylish in all black - those boots are made for walking, no doubt. I know the editorial board over at the Post loved General Powell, but he never got anything like this.

In the Feb. 15 edition of The American Thinker, Steven M. Warshawsky wrote a thought-provoking piece entitled “Beware the Condi bandwagon" that, essentially, warned the gathering numbers of “Rice for President” supporters that Sec. Rice cannot win the presidency in 2008, nor is she qualified to do so at this point in her career. A response from one of the passengers on this bandwagon seems apt. Mr. Warshawsky is right – not a lot of people start a career in elective politics by running for the White House. To do so is daring to be sure, but it is not...

Composing can be a lonely job. Hour after hour, the composer sits at a piano, trying to bring out the music in his head. But for Aaron Copland, composition was about the people. Working with people, learning from them, befriending them, organizing and mentoring them. His enthusiasm for combining music with humanity assured his place in music history almost as much as his compositions. "As organizer, teacher, propagandist, critic, lecturer and expositor, he has been by far the most voluble, articulate and respected American musician of his time," wrote Harold Schonberg in The New York Times in 1970. His ballets...

Laura Ingraham: The last time we checked in with Ted Kennedy he was questioning Alberto Gonzoles about water torture. Ted Kennedy is the last person who should be questioning anyone about 'water torture' OUCH!! That one had to hurt!!!!

This is probably one of the nicest cards I have ever seen on the internet, wanted to share with everyone. Hope this works out and it comes through.

Photo : AFP LONDON (AFP) - US pop star Madonna made a rare foray into politics, calling for her home country to withdraw its troops from Iraq during an interview with British radio."I just don't want American troops to be in Iraq, period," she said on BBC Radio."My feelings are 'can we just all get out?'," said the 46-year-old star, who lives mainly in London with British film director husband Guy Ritchie, who said she believes the US-led war will not help in the fight against terrorism.

Egypt has issued an order barring pop star Madonna from entering the country because she visited Israel. Members of Egypt's parliament have demanded Madonna, who has not requested entry into Egypt or announced any plans to visit the country, be barred from entering Egyptian soil. The parliament directed Egyptian embassies abroad to deny any visa requests from Madonna. The demand comes after Madonna, aka Esther, visited the Jewish state last week making daily headline news with midnight trips to a Jewish cemetery, a quick drive by past the Wailing Wall, and even the arrest of her security detail. The Material...

Sing, Muse, of your meteoric ascent from a seething pit of pure, all-American white trash. Sing, also, of five-figure fees for one evening's striptease, and of six-figure film contracts for the company you built. Sing of rape and addiction and suicide, of thieves and junkies and lies, of vodka, Vicodin, and crystal meth. But most of all, sing of Sex. The muse invoked here is, of course, porn goddess Jenna Jameson (formerly Massoli), the star of countless adult films, magazines, and strip clubs -- and CEO of ClubJenna Inc., her film production and online licensing company. "How To Make Love...

Link post: please access the thread in the "Chat" section to view the image and related links, and for any discussion. (You can also go directly to the article with the image at the NASA Earth Observatory link above.) WOW! Rainbow Bridge from IKONOS

Pop superstar Madonna's Re-Invention tour has been slammed by American critics - for overloading the show with "naive" political statements. The "American Life" singer, 45, kicked off the US leg of her tour in California on Monday but failed to impress critics with her attempts to "wipe the slate clean" by ditching her trademark raunchy routines. The Los Angeles Times sniped, "This promised to be Madonna's tour de force, a reappraisal that put her work in new and revealing contexts. But time and again she fell short of the challenge." Many critics were unimpressed by the images of the Iraq...

Actress Gwyneth Paltrow is ruling out the prospect of returning to America to raise her child - because she deems her homeland too dangerous. The Oscar winning beauty - who is pregnant with her husband Chris Martin 's baby - has been living in London since settling down with the Coldplay star, and she has no intention of bringing up their child in a threatening environment. She says, "I worry about brining up a child in America. At the moment there's a weird, over-patriotic atmosphere over there, like, 'We're number one and the rest of the world doesn't matter.' And...

Former vice president Al Gore (news - web sites) may be supporting Howard Dean (news - web sites), but retired army general Wesley Clark (news - web sites) has support in his quest for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination from ... Madonna (news - web sites). The Material Girl on Tuesday publicly threw her support behind the retired four-star general, one of nine Democrats seeking to replace George W. Bush in the November 2004 election. "I endorse him because I think he's a great guy," the pop superstar said on CNN Tuesday. "I think he's a natural born leader." Madonna...

Last Updated: Wednesday, 24 September, 2003, 11:09 GMT 12:09 UKMadonna book sells 8,000 copies This was Madonna's first attempt at children's fiction Madonna's children's book The English Roses has sold just over 8,000 copies in its first week in the UK. The book, launched amid a blaze of publicity, made it to number 17 in the national book chart, according to data company Nielsen Bookscan. It was the second bestselling children's book of the week, behind JK Rowling's fifth Harry Potter book. This week the top-selling book in the UK, David Beckham's autobiography My Side, sold 103,508 copies. Madonna's book,...

<p>The middle-aged serial slurper came to Midtown yesterday clad in an early Halloween costume - dowdy tweed suit and bushy hair - to role-play the part of an actual mom.</p> <p>We've seen this gal tied up, beaten down, with cones protruding from her bosom, and naked so frequently, it is to yawn. But Madonna's new, prissy act, unveiled on Fifth Avenue, was downright weird.</p>

Poor Madonna (news - web sites). In her new career as a writer of children's books, lightning has not struck twice. Her first effort, The English Roses, had skeptical critics baying with praise at how effectively she examines the subtle but cruel ways girls exclude those they envy or pity. The book has been translated into 37 languages, and it has been on the USA TODAY Best-Selling Books list since Sept. 22. Its highest rank was No. 7. In the second of Madonna's expected five books, Mr. Peabody's Apples, illustrated by Loren Long, the pop star and mother turns her...

LONDON: "Material Girl" Madonna is said to be gearing up for a fistfight with Warner Bros Records over differences about where her Maverick Records is heading. According to PeopleNews , a reason for the impending parting of the ways may be attributed to a rumour that Time Warner is lining up to sell off the Warner Music Group. Tension seems to be brewing, as renegotiations between the two warring parties is virtually non-existent, sources close to the disgruntled Warner executives, say. Others are even predicting "a nuclear lawsuit," with the big guns of parent company Time Warner lining up for...

Madonna's bestseller November 26, 2003 MADONNA'S second children's book Mr Peabody's Apples is on top of the New York Times best sellers list for children this week. The queen of pop has topped the book chart just eight weeks after her last number one with The English Roses. Children are loving Madonna's tales. As funny as it may sound, Madonna has kept The Cat In The Hat from going number one in the book world. The Cat In The Hat is being propelled by the movie starring Mike Myers, Alec Baldwin and Kelly Preston. Madonna's career as an author couldn't...

Nobody ever says, "Madonna who?" She's part of our culture, an American success story who's maintained a media presence for 20 years now, re-inventing herself with every prevailing wind, while never, ever giving the impression she's doing anything other than what she wants to do. We are by turns impressed, embarrassed, shocked and amazed by Madonna's antics, but we're rarely surprised anymore. Madonna, the dancer from Detroit, set out to become famous and succeeded beyond anybody's but her own wildest dreams. She's 45, and shows no signs of slowing down or relinquishing her place in the spotlight; in fact, she's...

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) --The Material Girl has stepped onto the political stage and endorsed Democratic presidential hopeful Wesley Clark. "I think he has a good handle on foreign policy, I think he's good with people, and I think he has a heart and a consciousness," pop singer Madonna said. "He's interested in spirituality -- I mean, those things mean a lot to me." The singer and children's book author met Clark a few weeks ago for over an hour. In an interview recorded last week with CNN's Denise Quan, Madonna said they discussed his becoming president. The singer told...

Sgt. Coleman Comes Home for Good By Deborah Hastings The Associated Press Published: Dec 1, 2003 PIKEVILLE, Ky. (AP) - He traveled in his green dress uniform, in a gleaming oak box. His buttons were polished, his handsome face meticulously preserved by the Army mortician so his family could have an open-casket funeral. Sgt. Gary Brent Coleman, age 24, was supposed to arrive Thanksgiving weekend for a two- week vacation from war. He came home early. He was born and raised in this Appalachian county, like his father before him. On Sunday, he was buried here, in the Eastern Kentucky...

Special Note The Turner Prize, which was for an empty room as discussed in this article, really leaves nothing to illustrate. Therefore we are illustrating fine works by living artists that wouldn't have even been considered for the Turner award, which rather than being a trophy of achievement, we at the Art Renewal Center consider an accolade of shame. AS FAITHFUL READERS KNOW, I AM A TRUE Renaissance man. Humani nihil a me alienum puto, and there is no sphere of human endeavor into which I have not, at one time or another, peered inquisitively, grasped the fundamentals more or...

The truth about John Nash of "A Beautiful Mind" This is reality: There is a mathematician named John Nash who got his PhD at Princeton and was a professor at MIT. He was diagnosed with schizoprenia in the 1950's and was incapacitated for many years. He was allowed by the Princeton administration to hang around the campus during the 1970's and '80's during which time he gradually recovered his sanity. He was awarded the 1994 Nobel Prize for Economics after the Nobel committee took the unusual step of sending a representative to Princeton to see if he was in good...