Free Republic

THE United States is “America” to most people. But that word refers to the continent. When applied to the United States, it is better spelled with a “k,” as in “swastika.” It’s the country most Filipinos want to visit. But if you’ve ever been involved in any group or activity faintly progressive; if you have relatives or friends who have been there; or you’re from a country that its officials say harbors “terrorist groups,” you’d be tempting fate to go there. No matter how vague or past your involvement, it could earn you a strip search, an interrogation session with...

Anti-Americanism is a phenomenon which, though common and ubiquitous, is difficult to explain because it is illogical, irrational, contradictory, and mysteriously primitive. A good deal of it is parroting. And, oddly enough, a parrot has recently emerged in England which may cast light on the subject. This bird had been owned by a long-distance truck driver who emigrated, bequeathing it to a bird sanctuary. There it behaved well; but there were exceptions. In succession, a local mayor, wearing his chain of office, a police inspector, and a female vicar — all visitors to the sanctuary — were subjected to four-letter...

I'm watching Larry King Live and I notice that he (and Anderson Cooper, CNN in general, and Keith Olbermann) are all expressing outrage at the lack of support to the people of New Orleans that have been without food or water for 3 days. However, Larry King's guests are all Republicans. Not a single Democrat or member of LA government has been on his show. Not a single mention of the LA government's previous evacuation plan, especially with regards to transportation to those on welfare with no savings. I know it's still early and we shouldn't be blaming anyone, but...

By: Michael Medved Monday, Aug 22, 2005 At the end of August the American Left wallowed joyously in 1960's nostalgia, taking comfort and joy in the alleged parallel between the wars in Vietnam and Iraq. Grey-haired folksinger Joan Baez, startling millions with the revelation that she is still alive, found her way to Crawford, Texas, where she delivered an impromptu protest concert (including the insufferable "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?") for several hundred supporters. At the same time, Senator (and Vietnam vet) Chuck Hagel curried favor with the mainstream media (cementing his claim to the coveted epithet "maverick") with...

Full Blown Humanitarian Crisis in NigerArmstrong Williams August 8, 2005Niger is facing a holocaust. Famine has ravaged the nation. Inflation is vertical and shows no signs of slowing down. Nearly a million children are facing starvation, after severe drought and locust swarms wiped out much of Niger's vegetation and livestock last year. Already the second poorest nation in the world, where one in four children under the age of 5 dies each year of hunger, the death toll now threatens to exceed any war or famine in the modern era, if only because no end appears in sight. Each day...

Where are they? Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton are the supermen of the civil rights establishment — able to leap tall buildings in a single bound to get in front of a picket line. When victim politics calls, the demagogic duo leap into patented action: March. Boycott. Shakedown. Repeat. But the raging reverends are nowhere to be found as a scandal involving the liberal radio network Air America and a Bronx, N.Y.-based inner city charity for poor children brews. Why the silence?

<p>HERE'S one thing New Yorkers do not need — Colorado pin heads telling us what to think.</p> <p>Just last week, the Aspen Institute was an obscure, left-listing think tank boasting a high-fallutin' roster of billionaires, moguls and retired government types, who regularly gather in a circle in the Rocky Mountains to think Big Thoughts.</p>

I guess Kerry really is as dumb as his mediocre college grades suggest. Check out his latest email to supporters, below. Here's a guy who lost in 2004 due to being rightfully painted as a flip-flopper. So of what does he accuse W? Of being resolute! Throw us in that briar patch, Mr. Teresa, please! Also, note his disingenuous claim that "I've never met an American who doesn't want to see America succeed in Iraq." Does Kerry expect us to believe that he hasn't met Michael Moore, an honored guest at Kerry's convention? ------------------------------------ Dear , Last night the President...

I am abnormal and wish to explain. I am abnormal, according to leftist extremist Reggie Rivers, who writes a column in the Denver Post, because I believe in defending (and have defended with my life, as have millions more true Americans) the flag which represents the principles for which so many Americans have died. Frankly, I am proud to be so abnormal. In his latest anti-American tirade in the way-to-the-left Post, "Radical Reggie" continues his never-ending attacks on America by stating that "the flag is not without its problems." People like Osama bin Laden love it when Americans attack their...

What do our students understand about the war we’re in and how we are fighting it? With all the condemnations from political groups, the media and the Blame America First crowd, what do our young adults believe about our nation? That question is second only to the question of what we have to do to win the war, and not only because our young adults are called on to fight it. This war will outlast our generation and eventually it will be they who have to reckon with our enemies and decide our course. We – and they -- are...

NUEVO LAREDO, Mexico (AP) - Mourners honored Friday a border police chief gunned down just hours after taking over the post, while President Vicente Fox's spokesman said the United States shares some responsibility for the problem of border violence.'snip'Speaking to reporters in Mexico City, presedential spokesman Ruben Aguilar said the federal government "recognizes the violence in the northern region. It can't be ignored."This is a problem in which the United States also shares responsibility, and that can be solved only through the mutual action of both countries," aguilar said.Aguilar conceded that there had been "a breakdown of society in some...

I don't watch the Bill Maher show on HBO. I haven't thought much about him since he had a show on ABC and implied that the 9/11 attackers were courageous for flying hijacked planes into buildings and killing 3,000 people. At the same time, Maher said that the U.S. was cowardly for attacking terrorist bases in Afghanistan by launching cruise missiles from ships at sea. He is supposed to be a comedian but also tries to come across as someone who makes serious and thoughtful points about political issues. We had to take another look at Maher because after he...

Most Americans have not been paying attention to the bureaucratic wrangling and political jockeying that has plagued the construction of the World Trade Center Memorial at Ground Zero in lower Manhattan. But it’s not just New Yorkers and developers and 9/11 families who should care. A good portion of the project is federally subsidized. All of us have not only a financial stake, but also a moral stake, in protecting the honor of the victims­ and the dignity of our country. A Blame America Monument is not what we need or deserve. But it looks like one is already in...

Doctors in Belgium recently released an injured Iraqi girl who was wounded during the US invasion. The hospital billed the US embassy. One of the docs said, "I bet they won't pay." The bill is 66K. I thought maybe we could raise the money (using our tax returns) and pay it off with a little extra for the girl to show this moron up. Any takers? Anyone wanna get a .org going and get this taken care of real quick? If we could raise 60K+ for this website, don't ya think this is worth it - help an Iraqi girl...

Maggie Gyllenhaal has waded into sensitive political waters by raising questions about Sept. 11 and American foreign policy. The 27-year-old actress, who stars in a new film about the 2001 terror attacks on the World Trade Center, said in an interview last week that the United States "is responsible in some way" for the attacks.

STATEMENT BY SENATOR EDWARD M. KENNEDY ON ANNIVERSARY OF ABU GHRAIB SCANDAL The sad anniversary of the Abu Ghraib torture scandal is now upon us. It's an appropriate time to reflect on how well we've responded as a nation. The images of cruelty, and perversion are still difficult to look at a year later. An Iraqi prisoner in a dark hood and cape, standing on a cardboard box with electrodes attached to his body. Naked men forced to simulate sex acts on each other. The corpse of a man who had been beaten to death, lying in ice, next to...

Once again, the NYTIMES is using the catch-22 agains the US - damned if you do (Iraq), damned if you don't (Sudan). Clown boy's article claims that MTV has been more outspoken and active on Sudan than Bush. The author doesn't mention once the UN, French, Canadian, and Chinese misteps on this issue of course. Bush is writing another chapter of looking the other way on geocide in Sudan. "President Bush seems paralyzed in the face of the slaughter. He has done a fine job of providing humanitarian relief, but he has refused to confront Sudan forcefully or raise the...

In the absence of God, blame has become our prevailing religion FIRST COMES the horror, the chilling horror of the disaster. Then comes the craving for statistics, as if to calibrate a response. Then come the anecdotes, the charity and finally the blame. None is so compelling as the blame. Blame somehow softens the horror. It mutates charity into insurance. There will be post mortems aplenty on the Indian Ocean tsunami. That the world could organise a warning system for the Pacific Ocean because it borders Japan and America but not for the poorer Indian Ocean will be deplored. So...

I was watching CNN's Inside Politics today (no transcript up yet) and they had a panel on - someone from the Washington Post, LA Times (Ron Brownstein) and Time magazine (Karen Tumulty). They were discussing our response to the disaster and the host of the program mentioned that the UN called our response "stingy". Then the panel went on to talk about how we "fumbled" this and were basically AWOL for one day. This just really made my blood boil. What have other countries done? The Brits say over 10,000 of their citizens were on holiday in that area. It's...

Americans weigh down cruise ship 07dec04 DOZENS of seats on the world's most luxurious cruise liner have collapsed under the weight of obese American passengers. The chairs -- on the Queen Mary 2 -- are being replaced or repaired. The seating is mainly in the bar and restaurant areas. Alstom Chantiers, the French company that provided the liner with all its fixtures and fittings, claimed many of the chairs had buckled under the weight of larger passengers. "There are some things that need to be changed or replaced," said a spokesman. "For instance, there are some problems with the chairs...