Free Republic

Investment tips for 2012 With all the turmoil in the market, the collapse of Lehman Bros and the acquisition of Merrill Lynch by Bank of America, we all need some good investment advice For any of you with any money left, beware of the next year's expected mergers. Watch for these consolidations later this year: 1.) Hale Business Systems, Mary Kay Cosmetics, Fuller Brush, and W R. Grace Co. will merge and become: Hale, Mary, Fuller, Grace. 2.) Polygram Records, Warner Bros., and Zesta Crackers join forces and become: Poly, Warner, Cracker. 3.) 3M will merge with Goodyear and become:...

The most significant obstacle to restoring liberty by way of the electoral process is the fact that so many Americans know so little about civics or civic responsibility. When it comes to getting government right, ignorance is not bliss. It follows, then, that there is a dearth of qualified candidates who are able to articulate the difference between Rule of Law and rule of men, who instead get lost in the high weeds of lesser political issues.

A Baltimore mayoral candidate proposes a tax on bullets as part of a plan to reduce crime. Do you consider that an effective option as part of a larger plan? Yes No

Stellar sprinklers may help irrigate cosmos, study suggests.Seven hundred and fifty light-years from Earth, a young, sunlike star has been found with jets that blast epic quantities of water into interstellar space, shooting out droplets that move faster than a speeding bullet. The discovery suggests that protostars may be seeding the universe with water. These stellar embryos shoot jets of material from their north and south poles as their growth is fed by infalling dust that circles the bodies in vast disks. "If we picture these jets as giant hoses and the water droplets as bullets, the amount shooting out...

JERUSALEM -Masked Palestinians whirling slingshots clashed with Israeli riot police in two Arab neighborhoods of Jerusalem on Saturday after the shooting death of a teenage stone thrower. It was a sign of rising tensions on the eve of Palestinian commemorations of their uprooting during Israel's 1948 creation. The possibility of escalation comes at a critical time for U.S. Mideast policy. President Barack Obama's envoy to the region, George Mitchell, resigned Friday, and the U.S. president may now have to retool the administration's incremental approach to peacemaking. Obama is to deliver a Mideast policy speech in the coming week. Mitchell held...

Authorities investigating the shooting of a University of San Diego student as she drove south Tuesday morning on state Route 163 found about 10 bullet casings that may be linked to the incident. All southbound lanes of Route 163 between Interstate 15 and Balboa Avenue were closed from 10:40 a.m. to 1:55 p.m. as officers fanned out across the lanes searching for evidence. At one point, traffic was backed up to Carroll Canyon Road, the CHP said. The casings were found about 12:30 p.m. just south of Clairemont Mesa Boulevard, the California Highway Patrol said. The 21-year-old woman was on...

In the ghost town of Fort Quitman, 80 miles southeast of El Paso, four US road workers were up at dawn attending to "shovel ready" jobs by filling potholes with gravel. Unfortunately, "at least one Mexican gunman," who probably just wanted a chance to do jobs Americans won't do, "fired a high-powered rifle across the border," barely missing the workers. "The bullets struck private land ...about half a mile from the border fence." Thankfully, the quartet escaped unharmed. "Mike Doyle, Chief Deputy of the Hudspeth County Sheriff's Office, said after the fact, a rancher spotted a white pickup fleeing the...

Ever wonder what the effects of a high power round on glass, metal plates and ballistic gels? This video captures impacts of rounds in stunning close up with ultra-slow motion. Hope you will enjoy as much I did. Direct Link: 1 million fps Slow Motion video of bullet impacts made by Werner Mehl from Kurzzeit

A man has been arrested after FBI and TSA officials said his luggage contained volatile gun parts, which caused his bag to explode Tuesday just before it was about to be loaded on a plane. The unidentified 37-year-old man had 500 to 700 bullet primers in his luggage. Primers are considered the "spark plugs" of a bullet and ignites the gun powder, projecting it toward the intended target. Officials originally said the exploding bag was caused by a hairspray aerosol can. The situation turned out to be much more serious and could have been even more dangerous if the bag...

Caveat Emptor The following reports are unconfirmed 2nd or 3rd hand accounts, but come from three different sources that have all been credible in the past. I was told twice today that (Border Patrol Agent Brian A. Terry, who was killed on December 14th, was armed with “bean-bag rounds.” "Bean bag rounds" are used when a person is a danger to himself or others, but is not a direct threat in such a manner that lethal force would be appropriate. The round is intended to disable or stun the person without killing them. 50% of cases are when the assailant...

In a swift and unexpected decision, the Environmental Protection Agency today rejected a petition from environmental groups to ban the use of lead in bullets and shotgun shells, claiming it doesn't have jurisdiction to weigh on the controversial Second Amendment issue. The decision came just hours after the Drudge Report posted stories from Washington Whispers and the Weekly Standard about how gun groups were fighting the lead bullet ban. The EPA had planned to solicit public responses to the petition for two months, but this afternoon issued a statement rejecting a 100-page request from the Center for Biological Diversity, the...

Regulation: The U.S. Supreme Court says Americans have an individual right to keep and bear arms. The EPA says the bullets for those guns may be banned as an environmental hazard. The endless power grabs by the federal leviathan know no boundaries of law, science or even common sense. The Environmental Protection Agency of Lisa Jackson is seriously considering a petition by the Center for Biological Diversity, a leading anti-hunting group, to ban all traditional lead ammunition under the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) of 1976. If the EPA approves the petition, the result will be a ban on all...

Once again, the Øbama Administration is making another stealth move for circumventing the 2nd Amendment against the will of the American People. It is time to S.T.O.P. this nonsense once and for all, the EPA is the tool he is using again, this time to ban “lead” bullets … which are the ONLY kind that are affordable and legal. There is an actual petition that is now “ready for comment”. All of us need to take this opportunity to give them the “comments” they deserve. Below is the information you will need to (1) Understand the Problem, (2) Look at...

Few details emerged Saturday on a reported threat at Fort Benning. Thursday a solider found a suspicious package and a note threatening a massacre similar to the Nov. 5 attack at Fort Hood, Texas, Elsie Jackson, post spokeswoman at Fort Benning confirmed Saturday. The anonymous note and package -- reported by The Army Times as a box of 20 hollow-point bullets -- were found Thursday morning outside a motor pool area at Fort Benning, located near Columbus. "There may be an update Monday," said Jackson Saturday. "But at this time there is an ongoing investigation of the incident." The discovery...

My brother and I attended a gun show last weekend and I have good news. Bullets are back. Not only was I able to buy all the 9mm rounds I wanted, but my brother found adequate supplies of .380 ammunition as well. Stacks of .223 ammo were also in evidence. Since our government hasn't changed in six months, what has changed? Economics 101 tells us that the marginal utility of the next bullet will be less than the last one. In other words, if I have no bullets to shoot in my pistol, I really, really want the first 10...

A RIFLE capable of firing explosive bullets that can detonate within a metre of a target could let soldiers fire on snipers hiding in trenches, behind walls or inside buildings. The US army has developed the XM25 rifle to give its troops an alternative to calling in artillery fire or air strikes when an enemy has taken cover and can't be targeted by direct fire. "This is the first leap-ahead technology for troops that we've been able to develop and deploy," says Douglas Tamilio, the army's project manager for new weapons for soldiers. "This gives them another tool in their...

One of the most controversial measures to come before the County Legislature in some time is expected to draw an overflow crowd at a public hearing Tuesday night. At issue is a proposed law that would require gun shops to register sales of ammunition, a measure that has been condemned by gun proponents as a back-door means to register guns and learn what weapons people have. Supporters say it is merely an attempt to close a loophole in state law governing how ammunition is purchased.

Doctors in southwest China have successfully removed a bullet from a woman's head 42 years after she was shot, putting an end to decades of increasingly unbearable pain, state media said on Friday. Staff at a hospital in Chongqing municipality extracted the inch-long (2.5-centimetre) bullet from the right temple of He Wenying, 65, on Thursday, the Chongqing News reported on its website. She was hit by the ricocheting bullet during a gun battle between warring factions at the start of the Cultural Revolution, which lasted from 1966 to 1976. Doctors initially told her that her wound was only superficial, but...

Wellington - New Zealand authorities are baffled by a mystery cache of machine guns, bullets, grenades and mortar bombs found in a shipping container from China in the South Island port of Dunedin, according to news reports on Wednesday.

Authorities say a Cape Coral man was injured after striking bullets with a hammer in his driveway. Police say they received a report of a possible shooting at 21-year-old Matthew F. Dugger's home on Thursday afternoon. When officers arrived, they found the man had been injured. Dugger was taken to a nearby hospital to be treated for shrapnel that hit his leg.

In this economy, the bullet business is doing well. So well in fact, some gun shops across the country are actually running out of ammunition. There are a few vacant spots on the ammunition shelves at Joe's sporting goods in St. Paul. They've seen an increase in sales in the past three months. "I wouldn't say dramatically, but they're up," said Dan Florek with Joe's. He said the store is running low on 9 mm, and 40 caliber bullets. The bullets are mostly used for personal handguns. Some experts said a lot of people think lawmakers will put a limit...

Selling bullets may be the most secure job in Florida as long as supplies last. After months of heavy buying, gun dealers across the state are experiencing shortages. Some say it began with the election of President Barack Obama. Others say it's about the economic downturn or fear of crime. Whatever the reasons, ammunition has been selling like plywood and bottled water in the days before a hurricane.

A week or so ago I read in a FReeper thread where someone made the claim that Wal-Mart was running out of ammunition and apparently lacked the resources to restock it quickly. I thought to myself, surely this can't be true. Afterall, Wal-Mart is huge enough to have access to unlimited supply to anything they choose to sell. I mean, they are Wal-Mart. So, this past weekend I decided to conduct my own investigation into this claim. On my way home from work Friday evening I stopped by three Wal-Mart's and visited their Sporting Goods (SG) department to buy some...

According to its sample legislation, manufacturers would be forced to code all ammunition sold in the state. Private citizens and retail outlets would be required to dispose of all non-coded ammunition no later than Jan. 1, 2011. Each vendor would record the following information about customers who buy the ammunition: Date, name, driver's license or ID number, date of birth and ammunition identifier. The businesses would maintain records for three years from the date of purchase.

U.K. researchers are developing a coating for bullet casings that sticks to the hands (or gloves) of anyone handling it and is very difficult to remove. The idea is to give each bullet a "fingerprint" that can be traced to a given crime. Today, cops rely on generic gunpowder, primer and lubricants getting on the shooter's hands and clothing when a bullet is fired. Such techniques can tell when someone has fired a gun, but can't tie a shooter to a specific bullet casing. The new coating is made from chemicals infused with nano-sized particles 30 microns in diameter (one...

A gun that fires variable speed bullets and which can be set to kill, wound or just inflict a bruise is being built by a US toy manufacturer. The weapon is based on technology used to propel toy rockets. Lund and Company Invention, a toy design studio based near Chicago, makes toy rockets that are powered by burning hydrogen obtained by electrolysing water. Now the company is being funded by the US army to adapt the technology to fire bullets instead. The US Army are interested in arming soldiers with weapons that can be switched between lethal and non-lethal modes....

TSU -- A doctor accused of illegally possessing guns has been slapped with a new charge of manufacturing bullets without permission, law enforcers said. Mie Prefectural Police have sent to the Tsu District Public Prosecutors Office additional papers accusing Kenji Abo, 58, a doctor from Tsu, of violating the Ordnance Manufacturing Law. "I wanted to make (bullets) by myself," Abo was quoted as telling police as he admitted to the charges. Abo had earlier been indicted on charges of violating the Firearms and Swords Control Law after he was found in possession of 18 guns and 1,000 bullets at is...

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Taiwan has shipped one billion rifle bullets to the United States for NT$560 million in a rare arms sale to the United States, it was reported yesterday. The 5.56 mm bullets are mainly used to replenish supplies which have run low after wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Taipei-based China Times reported, citing a military source. Taiwan's defence ministry last year beat off competition from the likes of Singapore and South Korea to win the five-year contract from a U.S. military subcontractor, it was reported. In a separate deal, the China Times said the Taiwanese Army plans...

An elderly Iraqi woman shows two bullets which she says hit her house following an early coalition forces raid in the predominantly Shiite Baghdad suburb of Sadr City.

Terrorist Propaganda Picture of the Week. An elderly Iraqi woman shows two bullets which she says hit her house following an early coalition forces raid in the predominantly Shiite Baghdad suburb of Sadr City.

Rocco DiPippo, AT contributor and blogger at The Autonomist, spotted enemy propaganda in the press, as delivered by the incompetent information warriors at French news agency AFP. Although we don't like to post news agency photos out of respect for copyright laws, this particular photo is the subject of the news story, so we violate our normal policy and post it. The caption run by Yahoo News, and presumably supplied by AFP states: "....An elderly Iraqi woman shows two bullets which she says hit her house following an early coalition forces raid in the predominantly Shiite Baghdad suburb of Sadr...

Magic Bullets Discovered in Sadr City by AFP PhotographerWed, Aug 15, 2007 at 9:45:56 am PSThttp://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=26666_Magic_Bullets_Discovered_in_Sadr_City_by_AFP_Photographer&onlySometimes the propaganda is so obvious it’s almost funny.An elderly Iraqi woman shows two bullets which she says hit her house following an early coalition forces raid in the predominantly Shiite Baghdad suburb of Sadr City. At least 175 people were slaughtered on Tuesday and more than 200 wounded when four suicide truck bombs targeted people from an ancient religious sect in northern Iraq, officials said. (AFP/Wissam al-Okaili)To make it even tastier, there’s another one from July 10, 2007, apparently featuring the same woman, holding...

WASHINGTON, June 7, 2007 – An award-winning Air Force photographer routinely braves bullets and bombs to tell the military’s story through the lenses of his Nikon cameras. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock, a member of the 1st Combat Camera Squadron, Charleston Air Force Base, S.C., is the Defense Department’s Military Photographer of the Year for 2007. Lock also earned that honor in 2002 and 2005. Defense Department photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Combat photographer Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock is the Defense Department’s Military Photographer of the Year for 2007. Lock also earned that honor...

Astronomers just got their most detailed look yet at supersonic 'bullets' of gas piercing through dense clouds of hydrogen gas in the Orion Nebula. Each bullet [image] is about ten times the size of Pluto's orbit around the Sun and travels through the clouds at up to 250 miles (400 kilometers) per second-or about a thousand times faster than the speed of sound. The bulk of both the bullets and the surrounding gas cloud [image] consists of molecular hydrogen. The tip of each bullet is packed with iron atoms that are heated by friction and glow bright blue in the...

Video: Machine gun problems in Afghanistan The lives of paratroopers were put in danger after the Ministry of Defence sent defective ammunition to Afghanistan, it can be revealed. The situation became so serious that a platoon from the 3Bn The Parachute Regiment refused to go out on patrol until the problem was resolved. The troops had to borrow ammunition off Canadian and American special forces as they battled to fight off Taliban attacks. The MoD, which yesterday unveiled plans for British troops to make a quicker-than-expected withdrawal from the front line in Iraq, has been unable to explain why defective...

Shooters encouraged to use nonlead bullets Event highlights dangers to California condor By KEVIN HOWE Herald Staff Writer Regular or unleaded? Big game hunters in Monterey County will get a chance to try ammunition using nonlead bullets free of charge this month, courtesy of a coalition of wildlife organizations, state and federal agencies, hunters, shooters and ammunition manufacturers. A "Non-Lead Ammunition Shooting Event and BBQ Lunch" will be held 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 15 at the Monterey County Swiss Rifle Club on La Gloria Road, just outside Soledad. Participants are asked to bring their own rifles and lead...

When he was 16, Gonzalo Llamas left his home in Zacatecas, Mexico, and illegally crossed the border by paying $20 to use an American citizen's passport. Though the passport holder was older and balding, Llamas made it across and began his new life cleaning restaurants for $9 a job. Now 50, Llamas is a U.S. citizen and owns a construction company in San Diego. And he wants the border sealed. The reason? Violent crime. "You have your good people and your bad people," he says. "I'm really open-minded for people to make a better life for themselves without causing problems...

MIAMI -- After a string of recent shootings that killed several children in South Florida, one church is starting a grassroots movement to stop the violence. People gathered at Faith, Prayer and Deliverance Church on Northwest 99th Street and 27th Avenue on Wednesday to sign a petition in support of the "No Right To Kill, Stray Bullet" bill. The goal is to get 1 million signatures in support of the bill, which demands life in prison for any act of violence that kills a child. Youth pastor Anthony Dawkins is spearheading the movement. "We want this to become a national...

A coalition of conservationist and health organizations has served notice that it will sue the state California Fish and Game Commission for continuing to allow lead ammunition to be used for hunting in California. The groups contend that lead bullets lodged in carcasses left by hunters are poisoning California condors that feed on them. "Lead poisoning from ammunition is the single greatest obstacle to the recovery of wild California condors," said Jeff Miller of the Center for Biological Diversity, one of the organizations joining forces in the suit. Other parties include the Natural Resources Defense Council, Physicians for Social Responsibility...

3 HOURS ON QNS. STREET ALL IT TAKES TO GET FORGED PAPERS IN SECURITY SHOCKER CAUGHT IN ACT: Post reporter Douglas Montero (left) shakes hands with shady documents dealer "Flaco" Photo: Matthew McDermott NEW YORK POST INVESTIGATION For an illegal immigrant desperately seeking to work in NY City, getting a high-quality forged green card or Social Security card is almost as easy as buying a soft-shell taco....... this reporter arranged a face-to-face meeting in Queens with a 20-something Hispanic man known in the neighborhood as "Flaco" - the Spanish word for thin......Flaco didn't appear threatening at all - surprising, considering...

Safety catches do not always prevent firearm accidents and even newfangled biometric guns, which check the identity of a user by their fingerprint, cannot stop thieves from using stolen ammunition in other weapons. The way to make firearms really safe, says Hebert Meyerle of Germany, is to password-protect the ammunition itself. Meyerle is patenting a design for a modified cartridge that would be fired by a burst of high-frequency radio energy. But the energy would only ignite the charge if a solid-state switch within the cartridge had been activated. This would only happen if a password entered into the gun...

Safety catches do not always prevent firearm accidents and even newfangled biometric guns, which check the identity of a user by their fingerprint, cannot stop thieves from using stolen ammunition in other weapons. The way to make firearms really safe, says Hebert Meyerle of Germany, is to password-protect the ammunition itself. Meyerle is patenting a design for a modified cartridge that would be fired by a burst of high-frequency radio energy. But the energy would only ignite the charge if a solid-state switch within the cartridge had been activated. This would only happen if a password entered into the gun...

When the Founding Fathers took the initiative to permanently inscribe our natural rights on paper, one can imagine it being done so with a quill pen. The first copies enshrined our liberties in the Constitution as the Bill of Rights to include the freedom of religion, freedom of the press and the right to keep and bear arms and were printed with a manual printing press. This freedom of speech includes our right to express ourselves with every available medium. At no point have we considered that the freedom of speech is limited to expressing oneself with hand presses and...

Two Community High students accused of bringing a gun to the school and making threats Wednesday appeared in Juvenile Court before Judge Charles Rich on Thursday morning. The boys, ages 15 and 13, are each charged with possession of a gun on school property, reckless endangerment and unlawful possession of a weapon, sources said. They are being held in detention before another court appearance Monday. The 13-year-old brought a derringer, allegedly owned by his parents, to the school and showed it to the 15-year-old, sources said. Both boys, who are not brothers, started showing the gun to other students, according...

1/24/2006 - LITTLE ROCK AIR FORCE BASE, Ark. (AFPN) -- A trip to the desert is nothing new for the 463rd Airlift Group here. On Jan. 20, 24 Airmen and two C-130 Hercules stepped up to deliver "beans and bullets" to the warfighter for more than 120 days. The experienced crew understands that airlift is important for reducing convoy operations in Southwest Asia. "We know it is dangerous but each time we load up one C-130, that is one less convoy that will be put in harm's way," said Staff Sgt. Paul Rose, a 61st Airlift Squadron loadmaster. On Jan.18...

Shock waves play important roles in modern physics and engineering, military operations, materials processing and medicine. Historically, the study of shock waves has taught us much about the properties of gases and material responses to a sudden energy input, and has contributed to the development of gas lasers and the field of plasma dynamics. Recent attacks by terrorists using improvised explosive devices have reinforced the importance of understanding blasts, explosions and the resulting shock waves. These waves can be powerfully damaging in their own right, but in addition, studying them can help to quantify their originating explosions and can provide...

Still stinging from having to defend the use of spying on people within the US, and the practice of "rendering" terrorism suspects, President Bush today in a press conference had to dodge new attacks stemming from the shocking revelation that US troops, on his orders, are using live ammunition in Iraq and elsewhere in the world, where they are deployed. "I think I speak for all civilized people, when I say it's shocking that US military troops are using live ammunition - shooting real bullets! - during the course of their duty in warzones," said Charles Schumer, (D-NY). "This practice...

MIDI - SAN FRANCISCO If you are going to San Francisco...please wear your tennies 'cause you may have to run If you are going to San Francisco...they have decided just bad guys get the guns They're recommending in San Francisco...protect your family with knives or baseball bats Thugs are waiting in San Francisco...on their victims they'll all be getting fat What have they been smoking...they've got to be joking They've gone suicidal Although they are now cheering...very soon they will be fearing...what fools They're suicidal...all suicidal Those of you going to San Francisco...your home's your castle will no longer...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 25, 2005 – Information is as important in the global war on terrorism as bullets and bombs, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Oct. 24. In addition to killing or capturing terrorists, the United States is aiming to stop people from wanting to join extremist groups, Marine Gen. Peter Pace said. "What we're trying to do is influence others to understand that these thugs, these terrorists, are not out for anyone's good interest," he said to interviewer Jed Babbin on the Hugh Hewitt radio show. Pace said people must understand that these terror groups do...

Some days, when you read the paper in the morning with a cup of coffee, certain stories jump out at you with such impact that you end up staring out the window trying to gather yourself. For example, there was a story like that in Tuesday's Pioneer Press, on When I stared out the window I was thinking of what I saw on television the night before. The story said that, according to the Defense Department, we — you and me — spent $23 million in 2004 on erectile dysfunction medications for 128,000 active-duty and retired military men. Are we...