Free Republic

With the general election a long way off and much of the general public still tuning out the presidential race, you'd think the online activist corps that have injected unprecedented amounts of cash to fuel this campaign season might want to take a few weeks off. You'd be wrong.

When Netroots Nation organizers were considering New Orleans as the host site of their convention devoted to the Internet as an instrument of the political left, Texas Netroots members made a convincing case that Texas is at the center of the blogging culture driving the political discussion for liberals. In an online vote conducted by Netroots Nation, a Web site for liberal bloggers to exchange ideas, the nation overwhelmingly chose Austin for this year's conference, said Vince Leibowitz, a blogger from Tyler. So on Thursday, more than 3,000 bloggers are expected to fill the Austin Convention Center for the four-day...

Fitzgerald: Why Obama makes people nervous It would be silly for Barack Obama and his advisers not to recognize that there are many people in this country who are anxious about his Muslim background, his Muslim name, and his Muslim supporters getting out the vote for someone whom, they, at least, in this country, and abroad, are convinced is deeply sympathetic to Islam and to its aims. This does not go away by declaring oneself a Christian. And it does not go away after the election, whether Obama wins -- in which case the anxiety only increases -- or if...

Texas' Defending the American Dream summit will include topics for bloggers. Move over, Netroots Nation: The conservatives are coming. As an estimated 3,000 people, mostly liberal bloggers and online activists, convene in Austin next week, the Texas chapter of Americans for Prosperity, a grassroots organization that champions limited government and free markets, has added for the first time a new-media emphasis to its traditional Defending the American Dream state summit. "We're not trying to go toe-to-toe with Netroots," said Peggy Venable, Texas director of Americans for Prosperity, noting that the conservative meeting might be one-tenth the size of the Netroots...

Col Bay is asking for help if anyone is ready or willing.

The liberal blogosphere was aflame today with new accusations that Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill) is trying to win the 2008 presidential election.

Iran's parliament is set to debate a draft bill which could see the death penalty used for those deemed to promote corruption, prostitution and apostasy on the internet, reports said on Wednesday. MPs on Wednesday voted to discuss as a priority the draft bill which seeks to "toughen punishment for harming mental security in society," the ISNA news agency said. The text lists a wide range of crimes such rape and armed robbery for which the death penalty is already applicable. The crime of apostasy (the act of leaving a religion, in this case Islam) is also already punishable by...

Bloggers: Big Media Is Watching As content recognition software gets more sophisticated, expect more copyright-related battles online like the recent AP-blogger flap by Peter Burrows The Associated Press unleashed a firestorm in the blogosphere earlier this month when it demanded that a political site take down AP content it said violated copyrights. Bloggers, including Michael Arrington of TechCrunch.com and Markos Moulitas of Daily Kos, cried foul, saying the AP's move threatened the free flow of information over the Web. The furor abated a few days later when the AP tempered its demands. But the dustup between the AP and bloggers...

The bloggers in question, most of them supporters of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, and all of them opposed to Senator Obama, received a notice from Google last week saying that their sites had been identified as potential "spam" blogs. "You will not be able to publish posts to your blog until we review your site and confirm that it is not a spam blog," the Google e-mail read. In an article that appeared on Bloggasm.com, the reporter Simon Owens spoke with some of the affected bloggers, who said they believed that Google had fallen prey to a campaign by activists...

Here at PRNewser, we're not lawyers, so therefore we won't speak to the legal implications of the Associated Press instituting guidelines on how bloggers can use their content. You may have already read the above linked story from the New York Times' Saul Hansell that set off the firestorm. Basically, the A.P. sent a blogger a cease-and-desist letter, claiming he was violating copyright law by excerpting part of A.P. stories. Now, some are reporting they want to charge bloggers $12.50 to quote as little as five words from them. If you're looking for the official government definition of fair use,...

As the Democratic primary finally grinds to an excruciatingly messy halt, I keep hearing from Hillary Clinton supporters who vow to cast their lot with Republican John McCain now that Barack Obama has wrapped up his party’s nomination. Honestly, it’s an assertion that goes beyond ludicrous and eclipses disastrous, landing somewhere in the neighborhood of apocalyptic. After over five years of failed policies concerning the war in Iraq (and don’t forget that other unfinished war in the country that actually was involved in 9/11), electing McCain would lead this country beyond the point of no return. If George W. Bush...

Jihadism in the 21st century has plans for all types of situations, including Mujahada (Jihadi activity) in a courtroom when needed. This is now what the world will witness during the trials of the al Qaeda detainees in Guantanamo, Cuba. Both the inmates on the inside and the Jihadi-mates on the outside were waiting for this moment to strike, politically and psychologically, using the media as their weapon. To the well-trained and -indoctrinated five standing trial, the objective is not to gain as many rights and freedoms as possible under current U.S. and international law; rather it is to resume...

Judge Richard J. McAdams of the California Court of Appeal wrote yesterday, in Tendler v. www.jewishsurvivors.blogspot.com (unpublished), so I thought I'd pass it along: Attention anonymous Internet posters and bloggers: this court has good news and bad news for those of you who engage in nontortious discourse [i.e., in this context, speech that isn't libelous -EV]. The good news, announced earlier this year: your message will be protected by the First Amendment and your identity will be protected by the court quashing a third-party subpoena, unless the requesting party can make a prima facie showing of defamation. (Krinsky v. Doe...

Both the media and Obama supporters closely watched every word uttered by the Clinton campaign and her supporters for a racial connotation. Undoubtedly, such scrutiny will only be doubled as we head into the general election. But equal attention ought to be paid to the line of attack being directed at McCain. And it seems liberals have already begun to push the envelope. John Aravosis, who writes at Americablog, had this headline yesterday: "Why is McCain getting $58,000 a year in disability income?" In his post, Aravosis wonders why the GOP nominee is receiving a military pension for the injuries...

We’re back, and the first item for business is Joseph demanding an apology for yesterday’s “scaredy-pants” outburst, which he says is causing his client “stress.” It seems he is going to call Habib, but first wants to introduce yet another piece of last-minute evidence, from yet another blog post — this one from the California-based “Free Republic” site — which is yet again operated from somewhere in that vast section of the universe that is outside the jurisdiction of the tribunal. McConchie is raising objections, probably futilely.

You pathetic little people of the blogosphere. You're nothing more than "nitwits at home with [your] computers" who've deluded yourselves into imagining you're "part of the news media." Just ask Mike Barnicle. The former Boston Globe columnist broke the tough truth to us on today's Morning Joe. WaPo editorial writer Jonathan Capehart was "so glad" to agree. Capehart was in full courtier mode to Mika Brzezinski, anchoring the show during Joe Scarborough's extended absence awaiting the birth of a child home in Florida. When executive producer Chris Licht read a viewer email critical of Mika, Capehart leapt to her defense,...

CULTURE WATCH, Volume 16 by Nancy Morgan Right Bias This weekend, the country mourns our fallen soldiers. Without them its very possible our lives would mirror those poor souls in Burma, or worse. Thank God for our country, our soldiers and our way of life. I count my blessings every day. Unfortunately, there are those that don't appreciate how very blessed we are to live in the greatest country in the world. I'm referring to the liberal media. A resounding Shame On Them for their continuing refusal to inform the American people of the progress our soldiers and the Iraqi...

Yoani Sánchez was a student at the University of Havana when she did the unthinkable and wrote a thesis about dictatorships in Latin American literature. It wasn’t a direct criticism of Fidel Castro, but it was too close for comfort in a country where there’s so much that’s officially unthinkable. Ms. Sánchez eventually fled Cuba for Switzerland in 2002, with her son and husband soon joining her. Then she once again did the unthinkable and in 2004 moved back to Cuba when her husband couldn’t find employment in Europe. It’s not unheard of for people to return to Cuba to...

No. 9 Shaggy - Baghdad Bacon & Eggs We love Shaggy, Iraq's premiere Slacker blogger. Who else in the Iraqi blogosphere would want you to click on his Google ads, so he can travel to Egypt to meet a sexually insatiable hot Iraqi divorcee? We look forward to Shaggy's upcoming autobiography, Good News from Iraq, My Piles are Gone.

The 25 Most Influential People On The Right According To Conservative Bloggers Right Wing News emailed more than 235 right-of-center bloggers and asked them to send us a list of whom they considered to be the most influential people on the right. Representatives from the following 54 blogs responded... Aaron's CC, David All Group, All American Blogger, Atlas Shrugs, Baldilocks, The Baseball Crank, Betsy's Page, BitsBlog, BizzyBlog, Blonde Sagacity, Bookworm Room, Cassy Fiano, Dr. Melissa Clouthier, Conservative Grapevine, Argghhhh!, Ed Driscoll, Election Projection, Cara Ellison, Eternity Road, Exurban League, Elocutio, Euphoric Reality, Fetching Jen, Five Feet Of Fury, Fraters Libertas,...

When Bigots Accuse by Clark Baker "I know, Officer - you're just stoppin’ me ‘cause I’m BLAAACK!� Cops hear it every day, and although millions of hours and tax dollars are wasted each year to disprove false allegations, many blacks (and guilt-ridden whites) consider the non-existence of racial profiling as proof of an institutional cover-up that corroborates its existence. Who needs more proof than that? Trial lawyer Merrick Bobb, who faked portions of the Christopher Commission Report, blames “… the impossibly high burden of proof…� for the exoneration of the falsely accused. While Bobb rejects the value of evidence, he...

For some reason, I'm not afraid of blogs. I enjoy them. I post on message boards using my real name. I respond to the e-mails of bloggers. They don't threaten me or the newspaper/journalism industry I love. So I was somewhat stunned Tuesday night when one of the great journalist/authors of this era, Buzz Bissinger, erupted on HBO's "Costas Now" at the mere sight of deadspin moderator Will Leitch. All great journalists (and there's a huge difference between writers and journalists) walk with anger. However, they normally save their venom for more important targets than leaders of the online paparazzi....

HAVANA - Only a month has passed since ordinary Cubans won the right to own computers, and the government still keeps a rigid grip on Internet access. But that hasn't stopped thousands from finding their way into cyberspace. And a daring few post candid blogs about life in the communist-run country that have garnered international audiences Yoani Sanchez writes the "Generacion Y" blog and gets more than a million hits a month, mostly from abroad — though she has begun to strike a chord in Cuba. On her site and others, anonymous Cubans offer stinging criticisms of their government. But...

Allen West for Congress Blog Ryan SmithApr 17, 06:39 PM by Allen WestLt. Col. West,You probably don’t remember me, but I was in 2/20FA (one of the 13M “lightfighters from Bravo Battery” specifically) with you in Iraq in 2003. I just wanted to tell you that I remember your kindness to me, specifically the fact that you always took time to ask me by name how I was doing and how my day was going, and that was something that most officers wouldn’t do for a young enlisted soldier. I never had the opportunity to thank you for what you...

If only those were just hanging chads they were talking about on the Senate floor Wednesday afternoon. Republican Sen. Carey Baker of Eustis proposed an amendment to a transportation bill that would have cracked down on an increasingly popular accoutrement on trucks: hanging sacks - dubbed “truck nutz” — that very realistically resemble male genitalia. His proposal is to make it a violation worthy of a $60 non-moving violation to have the testicular feature on your car, which are most commonly found hanging down from the trailer hitches of pickup trucks. It’s just like the state’s existing regulations against obscenity...

In a widely splintered decision, the Supreme Court cleared the way for executions to resume across the country, concluding that the most common method of lethal injection does not violate the Constitution.

Seeking to cash in on superstitions, Zodiac vodka has looked to the stars to find the next president. "Based on non-partisan research of the fifty-five United States presidential elections to date and the astrological signs of each winning candidate through the years, ZODIAC Vodka, a luxury potato vodka handcrafted and distilled in Idaho, USA, has concluded that the Leo, Barack Obama, will defeat the Scorpio, Hillary Clinton for the democratic nomination, as well as, the Virgo, John McCain in the general election. … "ZODIAC researched every major presidential contestant since Washington and Adams in 1789. Statistics were compiled for each...

Kathleen Seidel is a New Hampshire mother of two. She runs a blog, Neurodiversity.com, about autism--a topic of special interest to her as one of her children had an "autistic spectrum diagnosis." There is a theory that thimerosal, a preservative formerly used in vaccines, causes autism. Seidel has written skeptically of that theory, and of the trial lawyers who have sought to cash in on it.

Richard "The Boy Named Sue" Warman has finally filed his statement of claim. Canada's busiest litigant, serial "human rights" complainant and -- the guy Mark Steyn has called "Canada’s most sensitive man" -- Richard Warman is now suing his most vocal critics -- including me. The suit names: • Ezra Levant (famous for his stirring YouTube video of his confrontation with the Canadian Human Rights tribunal after he published the “Mohammed Cartoons”) • FreeDominion.ca (Canada’s answer to FreeRepublic.com) • Kate McMillan of SmallDeadAnimals.com • Jonathan Kay of the National Post daily newspaper and its in-house blog • and me, Kathy...

Prominent writers, members of progressive American organizations known for their heavy criticism of Israel will tour the country, meet with top officials. 'We want to provide them with an eye-opening experience that will help them better understand the complexity of the Arab-Israeli conflict,' says trip organizer Ira Forman WASHINGTON – A group of influential bloggers from the left of the US Democratic party's spectrum will land in Israel on Thursday for a six-day visit. The Foreign Affairs Ministry has long since been exerting considerable efforts to bring the prominent writers for an extensive tour of the country, in recognizing the...

A few years ago, the Federal Election Commission ruled that bloggers are eligible for the same exemptions from campaign-finance law as mainstream media outlets have enjoyed for decades. But the FEC's membership will change over time, meaning that the beliefs of the commissioners are likely to change as well. So a future FEC could rule differently. That's what concerns Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas), a longtime proponent of preventing the federal government from extending campaign-finance laws to the Internet. His answer: On Thursday, Hensarling introduced a four-page bill he's calling the Blogger Protection Act of 2008. Hensarling intends to enshrine into...

This list grows day by day.

Freeloading hippie Mark Boyles, 28, decided to demonstrate his contempt for the modern world, materialism, and a bunch of other really terrific things by walking to Gandhi's birthplace in Porbander, India. Boyles is an acolyte of the "Freeconomy" movement, a method of living that, according to the group, "allows people to make the transition from a money based communityless (sic) society to more of a community based moneyless society." In other words, he's a middle class beggar. On the first day of his trip, according to this BBC report, he scored two free meals in the English town of Glastonbury....

CNN has fired producer Chez Pazienza after the network brass realized he had been blogging at his own left-wing site and several others over a period of years: In a phone interview this morning, Mr. Pazienza, 38, said he joined CNN as a senior producer in January 2004 and has consistently received positive performance evaluations of his work. He spent his first year at CNN at the network’s headquarters in Atlanta, then moved to New York to work on “CNN Daybreak,” which has since been canceled, then “American Morning,” which is shown Monday through Friday, from 6 to 9 a.m....

It was less than two years ago that Mark Warner hosted his now-legendary bash for liberal bloggers--with its ice sculpture and $50,000 price tag--during the 2006 Yearly Kos convention in Las Vegas. At the time, the Democratic former governor of Virginia was mulling a White House bid and looking for netroots support. Tom Vilsack, a fellow aspirant, also appeared at the convention, as did Bill Richardson. Hillary Clinton didn't show, to the chagrin of many, but even she, a few weeks later, hired liberal blogger Peter Daou, and she made sure to swing by Yearly Kos the following year. The...

WASHINGTON - It's the government's idea of a really bad day: Washington's Metro trains shut down. Seaport computers in New York go dark. Bloggers reveal locations of railcars with hazardous materials. Airport control towers are disrupted in Philadelphia and Chicago. Overseas, a mysterious liquid is found on London's subway. And that's just for starters. Those incidents were among dozens of detailed, mock disasters confronting officials rapid-fire in the U.S. government's biggest-ever "Cyber Storm" war game, according to hundreds of pages of heavily censored files obtained by The Associated Press. The Homeland Security Department ran the exercise to test the nation's...

Friday night's episode of THE VICTORY HOUR: Special Guest: Joe Kaufman, Chairman of Americans Against Hate, the founder of CAIR Watch, and the spokesman for Terror-Free Oil Initiative. The call in number is 347-215-8917 Link: The Victory Hour

With Fred Thompson’s departure from the GOP field and Huckabee’s slow demise, the Republican race for 2008 is quickly coming into focus. The race is now between three candidates - John McCain, Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani. But is it? There is significant speculation about what Thompson’s departure means, and which candidate will benefit. There can be little doubt however, that Thompson’s departure helps Mitt Romney, who now becomes the clear conservative choice in the GOP field. This is particularly true given that Thompson did not endorse John McCain. Whatever the flirtations with Huckabee, he was never a viable option...

I'm voting for Mitt Romney. In two weeks, on Super Tuesday, I'm casting my primary ballot for Mitt Romney. It's been a decision that's taken almost a year, and it's involved several back-and-forths, but this is where I come down. The candidate I want to represent the Republican party in this year's presidential election is Mitt Romney. Let me tell you why. Before I look at him, I want to look at the others. First, Rudy. Great man, outstanding leader, would probably make a fine president. Proven in time of crisis, well spoken under pressure, as smart as they come....

In many ways, South Carolina has the future of the Republican Party in its’ hands. Up until now, the Republican primaries have only flirted with defining what the Republican Party wants. Independents in New Hampshire helped push McCain to victory in a small state with little Republican presence. Michigan rescued Romney and was the most populace stage for a Republican primary yet. However, even that win comes with an asterisk in a largely Democrat state with a fair share of activists who were urged to muddle with the Republican primary by fringe left leaders. But his margin of victory should...

Below are some sites that will give you more information about Senator Fred Thompson. He has had a long political career and, though checked as much as the other candidates have been, had no political skeletons found! He is the real deal. A true lifelong conservative! He has been criticized for not having fire in his belly and that is true. Fire in the belly is a longtime desire for something, a desire that make you do anything or say anything to get that. No, that is not Fred Thompson. His fire to win is in a much better place....

I want Fred Thompson to win the Republican nomination. (Did you hear he's surging in South Carolina?) And it's not just that the other candidates stink for various and sundry reasons--which I'll run through momentarily--or that he's the best of the worst or something. I want Fred for his own reasons. Let's run through the problems with the other guys: John McCain: He marches to his own little drummer who doesn't know the conservative rhythm. Of course there's McCain-Feingold that nifty little piece of legislation who's chief beneficiary was George Soros, but there's this other little thing: his only consistent...

Web site owners or editors will be legally responsible for any content on their site, including comments made in talkbacks and message boards, a bill passed on Sunday by the Ministerial Committee on Legislation states. According to the bill, which was drafted by MK Israel Hasson (Israel Beiteinu) web sites could be absolved of liability if they agree to reveal the details of posters. While the bill still needs to be approved in three readings in the Knesset plenum, receiving the support of the Ministerial Committee on Legislation gives it a much higher chance of passing into law.

The liberal Web site Daily Kos is encouraging Democrats in Michigan to cross over and vote for Mitt Romney in Michigan Tuesday primary. Apparently, the thinking of the liberals encouraging the crossover vote is that a Romney victory there will further muddle the Republican presidential picture and help the Democrats win the White House in November. Fox News reports that “it’s a classic dirty trick, but perfectly legal. And while Machiavellian political ploys of this sort rarely work, the author’s logic is thus: ‘A Romney victory in Michigan will keep him in the presidential race. And the more candidates slugging...

Right Wing News has done another Rightosphere temperature check on the Republican race for the Presidential nomination. Over half preferred Thompson as the Republican candidate — these folks must have been very happy with last nights debate, where Thompson finally woke up and realized politics ain’t bean bag and you can’t win if you don’t play. RWN’s does some helpful breakouts on relative preferences among the candidates, so do check out the temp check. The two candidates the bloggers don’t like are McCain and Huckabee. I’d pick it strongly the other way, but bloggers actually prefer McCain over Huckabee. My...

Update: Even Hugh Hewitt, devoted worshipper of Mitt Romney, says Fred won! Wow! Thompson came out of the gate swinging tonight! He went for the jugular on Huckabee exposing him as the tax raising liberal he is to the entire Nation. Huckabee definitely got taken to the woodshed. McCain is the one that is ahead right now in South Carolina and he got the pass. Fred will need to contrast himself from McCain as well. Other than that, Fred took the stage! Michelle Malkin is on the same page: The debate is finished. Fred will be declared the clear winner....

The long awaited endorsement from BackSpin is out: Fred Dalton Thompson. Every primary and caucus voter should watch Fred's message to Iowa voters: Rudy, Romney, and Huckabee all have their weaknesses, and their strengths, but the most important quality in a candidate is going to be the ability to communicate conservative principles. We as Republicans have to stop trying to win elections 'on the cheap.' For too many years, we have taken the lazy road to campaigning. We try to sell voters on tax cuts, because that's an easy sell, and then we try to offer all the candy that...

This afternoon, along with what sounded like 5 gazillion other bloggers, I was on a teleconference with Fred Thompson. It was a bit shorter than I would have liked and I didn't get a chance to ask a question, but here's a round-up (Everything that follows is from my notes, not actual quotes). Before Fred came on We can't tell you who it is yet, but Fred has a huge endorsement coming up tomorrow. Fred's opening statement We've been all over the ground in South Carolina. The money is coming in quickly, I feel good, they know me here, and...

The Thompson campaign held a conference call for sympathetic bloggers this afternoon. On the call, Senator Thompson stressed that he would stick to his campaign style, but added he would increase his efforts to make comparisons and draw distinctions with his opponents. A few highlights from call: On his campaign style: "If it's too laid back for folks, it's too laid back for folks," and "we used to judge our Presidents and what we wanted in our Presidents on a different basis." "I stand or fall on the basis of who I am and what I believe." On the press:...

This is almost too good. It’s the standard Big Media snobbishness about bloggers — coming in a quote from one of bloggers’ biggest punching bags, Helen Thomas: “What I really worry about is that I think the bloggers and everyone, everyone with a laptop thinks they’re journalists,” Thomas said. “And, they certainly don’t have our standards. They don’t have our ethics, and so forth. There’s a deterioration.” “[T]hey certainly don’t have our standards. They don’t have our ethics . . .” Well, she’s right about that.Here’s one example.On January 2, crab-grass blogger Dan Riehl wrote a post about a wide...