Free Republic

One of the five self-described anarchists arrested last week for attempting to blow up a local bridge signed the lease for a West Side warehouse where about a dozen members of the Occupy Cleveland group live. In a one-hour recording of a Friday evening general assembly meeting of the group posted on its website, occupy leaders expressed concern about Anthony Hayne's name being on the lease, which strengthens his link to the group.... "If this gets into the media, it would be a disaster."

With the Maryland General Assembly looking toward two possible special sessions this year, some lawmakers are calling for an expanded agenda to address long-term transportation funding. Gov. Martin O'Malley and House leaders have made clear that they want to devote a May special session exclusively to passing new revenue and income-tax increases to supplement a $35.4-billion budget that currently includes more than $500 million in cuts because of the assembly’s failure to pass a revenue package during the regular session. Mr. O'Malley, a Democrat, said Tuesday that is his only priority for a May special session. Other proposals would have...

It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Steve Bridges. His passing comes as a shock to all of us. The cause of death is not known at this time, but we will publish more information as it becomes available. Steve brought joy and laughter to millions and was a great inspiration to all who knew him. He will be sadly missed. Our prayers go to his family at this time.

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP/1010 WINS) -- A police detective said Tuesday that he hadn't finished shaking Muzzammil Hassan's hand upon meeting him before Hassan confessed to killing his wife.

Cities hire Chinese instead of American workers for building projects.

United Steelworkers international president Leo Gerard has a message to the flea party whiny-whiners still camping out instead of sleeping in their parents' basements -- playtime is over. Just in case the Occupy movement fails -- in other words, when it fails -- Gerard is urging union members to fill that gaping void with "more militancy." "And no wonder people are occupying. We oughta be doing more than occupying parks. We oughta start occupying bridges. We start oughta occupying the banks places themselves."

ANNAPOLIS — A Maryland commission recommended Tuesday that the state raise its gas tax by more than 60 percent over the next three years, but members acknowledged that taxpayers facing a dire economy could find the increase hard to swallow. The proposed hike, approved by the state-appointed Blue Ribbon Commission on Maryland Transportation Funding, would raise the gas tax on wholesalers by 5 cents a year for three years, from the current rate of 23.5 cents per gallon. The move could generate nearly $500 million in annual revenue and is part of $870 million in annual tax-and-fee increases recommended by...

You know all those rusting bridges that President Obama wants to spend billions more dollars repairing to allegedly stimulate the economy? He's headed out to one today which he's described as a "bridge that needs repair between Ohio and Kentucky that's on one of the busiest trucking routes in North America." It is on a busy trucking route, spanning the Ohio River between Covington, Ky., and Cincinnati. It's the Brent Spence Bridge. It doesn't really need repairs. It's got decades of good life left in its steel spans. It's just overloaded. The bridge was built to handle 85,000 cars and...

(CNN) -- Two bodies dangling from a pedestrian bridge in the border town of Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, created an image as gruesome as any in the four years of the country's offensive against the drug cartels. A man and a woman, both in their early 20s, were left hanging like cuts of meat. The woman was hogtied and disemboweled, her intestines protruding from three deep cuts on her abdomen. She was then hung from the bridge by her feet and hands, topless. The bloodied man was suspended next to her by his hands, his right shoulder severed so deeply you...

Release from VDOT: RICHMOND — The Virginia Department of Transportation today dispatched inspection teams to bridges and tunnels across the state soon after the 5.9 magnitude earthquake to assess any potential damage. Currently, no damage has been confirmed to bridges, tunnels or roads. Inspections are expected to continue for 24 hours. All four tunnels in the Hampton Roads area (Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel, Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel, Downtown Tunnel and Midtown Tunnel), as well as Virginia's two mountain tunnels on Interstate 77 have been inspected with no sign of damage. VDOT's Culpeper and Fredericksburg Districts did report some minor damage to buildings....

When Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. won election as governor in 2002, he was faced with a tricky problem. He had campaigned on a pledge to build the long-delayed Intercounty Connector in suburban Washington. The highway project would cost a fortune, far more than the state could afford out of its Transportation Trust Fund, and the Republican Ehrlich had taken a hard line against new taxes. He had to come up with some way to pay the $2.6 billion it would eventually cost. The answer? He would make it a toll road. And to give his policies a semblance of geographical...

Royal Gorge Bridge Colorado America's highest suspension bridge may be breathtaking for some, but those scared of heights may be left gasping for air as they stare straight down nearly 90 stories at the Arkansas River below. Completed in 1929, the bridge didn't have stabilizing wind cables until 1982. Where: Royal Gorge, Colorado, over the Arkansas River. Stats: 969 feet above the gorge; 1,260 feet long.... Mackinac Bridge Michigan Some drivers get so nervous about crossing this five-mile-long bridge that they don't even go. And this happens so often that the Mackinac Bridge Authority will drive your car or motorcycle...

Renee Crays hunched forward in the rear seat of her pickup. One hand clutched the headrest of the seat before her so tightly that her knuckles turned white. The Mackinac Bridge's vertical suspension cables flowed past her window as the truck climbed the gentle slope toward the center span on a recent sunny, beautiful day. Gulls soared about the bridge towers. A freighter lumbered in the distance. But Crays showed no interest in the panoramic view. She didn't glance out the side windows at all, only straight ahead, tense. "I'm scared to death of this bridge," she said. "It makes...

I've had it with the phrase "Bridges to Nowhere." Someone has to speak up for Alaskans. I've lived in Ketchikan and the Mat-Su valley, two of the places next to "nowhere." Ketchikan is a thin strip of roadway on a mountain cliff next to the ocean. The bridge would connect Ketchikan to the island next door, which has many square miles of flat land that could be developed for the benefit of the community. The Knik Arm bridge connects Anchorage, Alaska's largest city, with the Mat-Su valley, Alaska's fastest growing community. Calling the Knik Arm bridge a bridge to "nowhere"...

MILLAU, France (AFP) - A bridge officially designated the tallest in the world is to be inaugurated in southern France Tuesday -- a spectacular feat of engineering that will carry motorists at 270 metres (885 feet) above the valley of the river Tarn. Designed by British architect Norman Foster, the Millau motorway viaduct stretches for 2.46 kilometres (1.6 miles) between two plateaux in the Massif Central mountain range and when it opens Thursday will remove one of the country's most notorious traffic bottlenecks. Built of steel and concrete at a cost of 390 million euros (520 million dollars), the bridge...

(UPDATE 2:06 p.m.) The Maryland Transportation Authority took one step closer toward making it dramatically more expensive to utilize state tunnels and bridges after its board formally recommended Thursday the largest toll increase in state history. Under the proposal, tolls for passenger cars on the Bay Bridge would, beginning Oct. 1, increase from $2.50 to $5 and eventually would increase to $8 on July 1, 2013. In addition, the cost for a one-way toll on the Fort McHenry Tunnel, the Harbor Tunnel and the Key Bridge would jump from $2 to $3 on Oct. 1 and then $4 on July...

Encinitas city officials ---- already wrestling with how to handle a popular but unauthorized surfing Madonna mosaic installed under a rail bridge last month ---- discovered this week that another rogue public art project has gone up at a different bridge in town. But this artwork ---- a painting of a colorful creature with huge teeth along Coast Highway 101 ----- is likely to vanish much more quickly than the intricate stained-glass mosaic that made a huge splash when it appeared in late April. Plans are already in the works to cover up the art with a fresh coat of...

According to the report, the top 10 most heavily traveled of the structurally deficient bridges are in the greater Los Angeles area. The report estimates the state needs an average of $323 from each licensed driver to address the bridge problems. The report comes from the group Transportation for America. List of California's top 10 heavily traveled, most structurally deficient bridges Interstate 10 at Normandie Ave. (Los Angeles County) Interstate 10 at Budlong Ave. (L.A. County) Interstate 10 and ramps at 16 streets (L.A. County) Interstate 10 at Interstate 110 (L.A. County) I-10 and ramps at 11 city streets (L.A....

Hollywood has famously had better luck using makeup to make young actors look old — like Russell Crowe in "A Beautiful Mind" — than making old actors look young. But the ability to manipulate images digitally could prove to be a fountain of youth for some. In "Tron: Legacy," which opens Dec. 17, 61-year-old actor Jeff Bridges will play Kevin Flynn, at his natural age, and a computerized avatar called "Clu," who hasn't aged since around the time he was first created in the original "Tron" in 1982. Clu bears Bridges' face, altered to make him about 35 years old,...

BUFFALO, N.Y., Sept. 4 (UPI) -- Attorneys for a television executive charged with stabbing and beheading his wife can introduce evidence of "battered spouse syndrome," a New York judge ruled. Prosecutors in the case against Muzzammil Hassan said the decision by Erie County Judge Thomas P. Franczyk would force them to ask for a delay in the trial in the February 2009 killing of Aasiya Zubair Hassan, The Buffalo News reported Saturday. Muzzammil Hassan has been in custody since the body of his wife was found in the studio of Bridges TV, the Muslim-oriented cable station the couple had co-founded...

REYNOSA — At least six people are reportedly dead after several vehicles exploded during an apparent shootout Tuesday evening. Gunfire and explosions erupted about 5 p.m. Tuesday along the highway between Monterrey and Reynosa on the city’s far west side, near the Anzalduas International Bridge, sources said. Apparently slain in the battle were two Mexican army soldiers and four suspected drug cartel members who were burned to death inside an SUV. A woman was also reportedly shot in the rear end and was rushed to an area hospital for surgery, a source said. The apparent explosions along the Reynosa-Monterrey highway...

ACAPULCO, Mexico -- The dismembered bodies of two men were hung from a bridge Tuesday on a highway leading to Acapulco, the second such discovery in three days in a region where two drug lords are fighting for control of their divided cartel. The men were hung from their feet at the entrance of Chilpancingo, the city nearest to Acapulco along the highway connecting the Pacific coast resort to Mexico's capital, according to police in the state of Guerrero, where Acapulco is located. Their arms had been cut off, and a message was left threatening extortionists, kidnappers, police and the...

The bodies of the four young men were discovered early on Sunday, hung upside down by their feet from a bridge near a wealthy area of Cuernavaca, a leafy city about an hour outside Mexico City, where many of the nation's elite own homes. The victims' genitals, index fingers and heads had been cut off, according to a statement from the attorney general's office in Morelos state, which includes Cuernavaca. Their heads and genitals were found nearby, along with a handmade sign, the statement said. "This will happen to everyone that helps the traitor Edgar Valdes," the placard read, referring...

Beheaded woman left statement detailing years of torment, tragedy. When Aasiya Zubair Hassan was finally ready to leave her husband, she prepared herself. She gathered copies of her police reports, photos of her beaten face, images of her ransacked house, scripts her husband made her memorize. Then she painstakingly chronicled her years of torment in a 21-page court statement that painted her husband as not just a batterer, but a cruel, manipulative monster. She detailed how he deprived her of sleep to "improve her personality," made her sign memos authorizing him to punish her if she talked with the police...

Mysterious Group Buys Building Next to Ground Zero For Mosque Wednesday, December 16, 2009 Jim Hoft A mysterous Muslim group with unknown sponsors has purchased a building steps away from Ground Zero. Hudson New York reported: An identified group with unknown sponsors has purchased building steps away from where the WorldTrade Center once stood — to turn it into potentially one of the largest New York City mosques. At the moment the building, the old Burlington Coat Factory, already serves as a mini-mosque: an iron grill lifts every Friday afternoon for a little known Imam leading prayers a few yards...

For a man whom one would hope has nothing to hide, the imam behind the Ground Zero mosque project sure has dropped out of sight. Having triggered an uproar in the U.S., Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf ducked out of the country weeks ago and, apart from a potted statement last week praising his own project, has pretty much clammed up. In New York Rauf has become a sort of phantom celebrity. His name is plastered all over the public debate, but Rauf himself has been absent and oddly unavailable, even by phone or e-mail, to answer questions. From his New...

n the depths of northeastern India, in one of the wettest places on earth, bridges aren't built - they're grown. The southern Khasi and Jaintia hills are humid and warm, crisscrossed by swift-flowing rivers and mountain streams. On the slopes of these hills, a species of Indian rubber tree with an incredibly strong root system thrives and flourishes. The Ficus elastica produces a series of secondary roots from higher up its trunk and can comfortably perch atop huge boulders along the riverbanks, or even in the middle of the rivers themselves. The War-Khasis, a tribe in Meghalaya, long ago noticed...

Port Authority cops who staff the agency’s bridges and tunnels were read harrowing details of a terrorist threat today advising them to be on the lookout for a fuel-filled tanker meant to explode prior to a secondary blast designed to decimate any first responders, The Post has learned. The chilling warning was read at roll call for four police commands – cops assigned to the Holland and Lincoln Tunnel; the George Washington Bridge; and also the Staten Island command, which incorporates the Bayonne and Goethals Bridge and the Outerbridge Crossing, a source said.

Arizona abruptly canceled plans today to spend $1.25 million to build bridges for a colony of 250 squirrels so they would not have to cross a rural road and could avoid becoming road kill. John Halikowski, director of Arizona's Department of Transportation, halted the bridge project that was being paid for with federal highway funds. "ADOT will not spend funds simply because they are available," he said in a statement. "Protection of the red squirrel may be an appropriate effort," Halikowski said, "but not with transportation funding." The money was being spent, officials said, because cars kill about five of...

OAKLAND — In 1851, riding a ferry from the foot of Broadway across the Bay to San Francisco cost $1. Horses, wagons and cattle cost $3. Today, the boats carry workday commuters who, under an ambitious expansion plan 10 years in the making, could soon choose to travel far beyond those two destinations in high-speed, earth-friendly vessels. The latest addition to the fleet of four new low-emission ferries made its maiden voyage in Bay Area waters Monday not far from Oakland's original ferry stop. The christening of the Taurus at the Oakland Ferry Terminal also marked a turning point in...

With the spring primaries only weeks away, most voters probably assume that elected leaders seeking new terms have been busy representing us and leading this state into the future. Seems simple enough. But what, more precisely, do we expect? For starters, showing up, not lying and obeying the law, but that goes for every citizen. Certainly we expect more of leaders. At a minimum, we should expect them to pay attention to the long-term needs of our state, and the long-term consequences of the decisions made today to meet needs now and likely to emerge. You and I get to...

The "American Heritage Invention and Technology" magazine has an article on interstate highway bridge construction. The article was prompted by the collapse of the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis a few years ago. The legal weight limit for semi-trucks was quoted as 80,000 pounds. This weight limit is what interstate highway construction in America is designed to carry. The article also mentioned that Nevada has found one in 14 trucks exceed the 80,000-pound legal limit. It was not clear from the article if the legal limit of 80,000 pounds is a federal limit and applies anywhere in the United States or...

From 1811 to 1838, the Federal government funded the construction of a new route west. Beginning in Cumberland, Maryland, and running through Pennsylvania, now-West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, and into Illinois, the National Road was in its day an important part of the westward expansion of population and trade. [Vintage pictures]

From early American times through the 1920s, many highway bridges were built of wood and were often "covered" -- roofed in, and typically walled-in as well -- in order to protect the heavy timber trusses which carried the weight of the structure. At one time there were an estimated ten thousand-plus covered bridges in the United States. Only about 750 remain. In this article -- vintage photographs of covered bridges of the Appalachian Backcountry.

Less than a mile downstream from one of the nation's best-known engineering marvels, the Hoover Dam, a second is taking shape. A soaring 1,900-foot span across the gorge created by the Colorado River on the Arizona-Nevada border should be completed this fall, eliminating much of a sometimes hourlong bottleneck as traffic creeps over the dam on the key route between Phoenix and Las Vegas. When it is scheduled to open in November, motorists will cross the longest bridge of its kind in the western hemisphere, with towering concrete columns that rise above a twin rib arch beneath them. "It's pretty...

THE Roads and Traffic Authority has proudly announced the success of a road safety program - for our State's native wildlife. To reduce the number of animals killed on NSW roads each year, the RTA has installed more than 200 animal crossings on NSW highways. Rather than wait for a break in the constant flow of traffic, native animals are using specifically built tunnels and bridges to cross roads. And some of Australia's favourite native creatures have been smiling for the cameras as they scurry by. A little possum was snapped crossing over a rope bridge that hangs above the...

New York State’s Dedicated Highway and Bridge Trust Fund hasn’t been all that dedicated. Since 1991, only 34.9 percent of the money in the fund went directly toward the repair and improvement of the state’s deteriorating roads and bridges. And over the next four years, that will shrink to about one fifth. It’s supposed to be a “locked box,” but apparently the lock wasn’t very strong. If only one-third of the money in the Highway and Bridge Trust Fund has actually been used to pay for highways and bridges, the question, is, where did the money go? The answer is...

"Muslim in Washington, DC: "I'm not scared to die! I will kill you! I will blow people up and the Metro!"" SNIPPET: ""Three blocks of Wisconsin Avenue Northwest were cleared of cars and pedestrians. Adjacent buildings and restaurants were evacuated..." "DC Security Scare Becomes Federal Case," by Bob Barnard for MyFoxDC, October 8 (thanks to Heidi): WASHINGTON, D.C. - A man who was arrested in a security scare in Northwest D.C. on Tuesday night threatened to blow up the Friendship Heights Metro station, according to a criminal complaint in the case. It was a chaotic scene Tuesday night in Friendship...

A man accused of beheading his wife at the television station they founded to counter stereotypes of Muslims is likely to claim emotional distress was behind the killing in hopes of avoiding a murder conviction. Muzzammil Hassan, 45, is scheduled to be tried in January on a charge of second-degree murder in the death of 37-year-old Aasiya Hassan. A psychiatric defense would allow jurors to find him guilty of a lesser charge of manslaughter, according to Hassan's attorney, who made his plans known during a pretrial conference Friday. Muzzammil Hassan had been served with divorce papers a week before his...

A computer belonging to alleged al Qaeda suspect Najibullah Zazi showed he had researched baseball and football stadiums and sites used in the recent Fashion Week event in New York City, law enforcement officials tell ABCNews.com. As the 24-year-old was being questioned for a fourth straight day by FBI agents about his alleged ties to al Qaeda, law enforcement officials said the Denver man's computer showed he had researched baseball and football stadiums and sites used in the recent Fashion Week event in New York City. Zazi, 24, was scheduled to be questioned for a fourth straight day today by...

TAJI — Iraqi Army (IA) Field Engineer Soldiers partnered with U.S. Soldiers to train on Mabey and Johnson Bridge emplacements at the Iraqi Army Engineer School here, July 3-13. Like most training the IA receives, a “train the trainer” approach was taken. Students from previous classes can now help new students learn these skills. The IA Engineer School trains 400-500 Engineers each rotation. The 50th Multi Role Bridge Company (MRBC), which supports 555th Engineer Brigade, assists this effort by instructing groups of 20 to 30 IA Engineers during ten-day blocks of classroom and hands-on bridge training. The combined IA and...

Washington Congressman Brian Baird says the states revenue projections for a toll on the new 12 lane Columbia River Crossing are innaccurate. By Christine Alexander Tuesday, April 14, 2009 As the plans for a new Interstate Bridge progress Washington Representative Brian Baird (D-Vancouver) is concerned that toll projections from the Washington Department of Transportation and the Columbia River Crossing are not realistic and will not create$1.35 billion in revenue. "The toll piece will probably not generate as much money as they indicated. In fact they will probably need more tolls because the Federal and State shares will probably be less."...

Gruesome killing poses another test for US Muslims ERIC GORSKI, AP Religion Writer February 21, 2009 The crime was so brutal, shocking and rife with the worst possible stereotypes about their faith that some U.S. Muslims thought the initial reports were a hoax. The harsh reality of what happened in an affluent suburb of Buffalo, N.Y. — the beheading of 37-year-old Aasiya Hassan and arrest of her estranged husband in the killing — is another crucible for American Muslims. Here was a couple that appeared to be the picture of assimilation and tolerance, co-founders of a television network that aspired...

Muzzammil “Mo” HASSAN, the founder and chief executive officer of Bridges TV Muzzammil “Mo” HASSAN, the founder and chief executive officer of Bridges TV, a Buffalo, NY based Islamic television Network he helped pioneer in 2004 amid hopes that it would help portray Muslims in a more positive light, reportedly admitted to police that he beheaded his wife at the television station yesterday afternoon.The victim was identified as Aasiya Z. Hassan, 37, who just last month, filed for and received an order of protection against her husband. According to police, HASSAN walked into the Orchard Park police station shortly after...

CHAMCHAMAL — Partnering is not a new concept to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, but the practice is expanding in relation to projects in Iraq, and that is helping to fuel the success of reconstruction efforts. In November 2007, the Gulf Region Division's district, which operates within Iraq's seven northern provinces, initiated a partnering agreement in Sulaymaniyah for a $27.4 million project to design and renovate an existing fort into a correctional facility in Chamchamal. The project included more than 20 partners from several organizations, including, the Department of State's Regional Reconstruction Team, the office of the Iraqi prime...

JALALABAD AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, Jan. 26, 2009 – U.S. soldiers are building roads to remote areas in eastern Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province that are opening doors to a better way of life for local Afghans. Afghan security forces, local residents and U.S. soldiers lay planks for a bridge in the Lal Por district of Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province. U.S. Army photo by Capt. Jay Bessey  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Soldiers from the 1st Infantry Division’s 3rd Brigade Combat Team are improving accessibility into the province’s Lal Por district by building a bridge and improving three miles of road. Prior to...

The United States will need $1.6 trillion to repair damage to its infrastructure from a massive influx of immigrants, a new report reveals. In his report titled, "The Twin Crises: Immigration and Infrastructure," prominent researcher Edwin S. Rubenstein examines 15 categories of infrastructure: airports, border security, bridges, dams and levees, electricity (the power grids), hazardous waste removal , hospitals, mass transit, parks and recreation facilities, ports and navigable waterways, public schools, railroads, roads and highways, solid waste and trash, and water and sewer systems. Rubenstein, a financial analyst and former contributing editor of Forbes and economics editor of National Review,...

Confronted with a struggling transportation fund, lawmakers in Texas soon are expected to wage battle on various methods to help generate $14 billion for roads and bridges throughout the state. Another bill is intended to sideline the planned Trans-Texas Corridor. A report released this week from the Texas Department of Transportation says that the state will need to come up with $313 billion by 2030 for road and bridge maintenance and for congestion solutions. The report’s unveiling happened a couple of weeks before the Texas Legislature is set to convene its 2009 session. Lawmakers say they already were committed to...

KABUL, Afghanistan, Dec. 3, 2008 – Afghan and coalition forces celebrated with local villagers Dec. 1 at a ribbon-cutting for a new low-water bridge near Kandahar city. The Commando Bridge will provide easier access to areas around the city, including a bazaar, a school under construction and a nearby highway. A rainstorm several months ago flooded the creek that the new bridge spans, making travel through the area difficult, and Afghan army officials approached coalition forces about the need for a bridge. The project was funded through the Commanders’ Emergency Response Program, which allows leaders to fund projects that meet...

Go ahead. I already find myself perpetually crooked over the table, living in this city. I should have rock-hard abs as often as I bend over. Mr. Bloomberg, I only ask that you are quick about it, so that I might go back to walking around Brighton Beach, Brooklyn on my never-ending mission to locate signs written in English. You have hurled a large medicine ball of saliva at the people of New York, shoving that huge middle finger of yours in the faces of the electorate by eliminating term limits – because only you could save the Apple from...