Free Republic

Introducing the American Traveler Dignity Act Mr. Speaker, today I introduce legislation to protect Americans from physical and emotional abuse by federal Transportation Security Administration employees conducting screenings at the nation’s airports. We have seen the videos of terrified children being grabbed and probed by airport screeners. We have read the stories of Americans being subjected to humiliating body imaging machines and/or forced to have the most intimate parts of their bodies poked and fondled. We do not know the potentially harmful effects of the radiation emitted by the new millimeter wave machines. In one recent well-publicized case, a TSA...

ARAB STATES LAUNCH SECRET MOVES WITH CHINA, RUSSIA, FRANCE TO STOP USING DOLLAR FOR OIL TRADING... DEVELOPING...

The political war over stimulus heated up this weekend: Several Republicans declared the $787 billion plan passed in February a "flop," while President Obama defended the package in a Washington Post op-ed piece: "It was, from the start, a two-year program, and it will steadily save and create jobs as it ramps up over this summer and fall," the President declared. "We must let it work the way it's supposed to, with the understanding that in any recession, unemployment tends to recover more slowly than other measures of economic activity." The rhetorical battle is occurring amid debate over whether more...

Here's something gross: I was given the world's largest Cheeto. So of course I had to eat it over the Optimus Maximus keyboard. Don't try this at home. Because I am the token shameless jackass of the Gizmodo crew, I was the first person that came to mind when Rothman was offered a chance at the "World's Largest Cheeto." This one-of-a-kind object is more buoy than snack, with the middle completely unseasoned by cheese and tasting basically exactly like styrofoam. But I persevered. It was stale and horrible. I will never eat Cheetos again. But hey, who am I to...

Today Apple CEO Steve Jobs said he is relinquishing his duties until June for health-related reasons. Tom Cook, the current chief operating officer, will take over until Jobs returns. Here is the e-mail that Steve Jobs sent to Apple employees today: Team, I am sure all of you saw my letter last week sharing something very personal with the Apple community. Unfortunately, the curiosity over my personal health continues to be a distraction not only for me and my family, but everyone else at Apple as well. In addition, during the past week I have learned that my health-related issues...

HONG KONG — Trade negotiators failed to tackle the toughest issues in a draft agreement circulated at WTO talks Saturday, showing they were making only modest progress as the meeting entered its final hours. Near the conference venue, hundreds of South Korean protesters scuffled with riot police, tossing eggs at security forces and hitting them with bamboo poles. Police with riot shields and helmets fought back with tear gas, clubs and pepper spray.

WASHINGTON — John Bolton (search), the newly named ambassador to the United Nations, has begun to do exactly what his supporters hoped, and his critics feared he would do — he has made a concerted effort to keep the focus of the world body on reforms. Bolton has recommended about 750 changes to a document identifying the U.N.'s objectives for reforming itself. Click in the video box to the right to watch a report by FOX News' James Rosen (search). The collision course began last month when Bolton met with U.N. General Assembly President Jean Ping of Gabon.

Welcome the next generation of Internet browsing. AOL has built upon Microsoft® Internet Explorer technology-the world's most widely used-and raised it to the next level. AOL Explorer has enhanced security and more time-saving features than any other browser. Built-in pop-up controls help protect you against annoying pop-ups and Spyware Quick Scan makes your surfing safer. A host of new tools, like Tabbed Browsing help make you more efficient. New AOL Explorer is the leap forward in browsing you've been waiting for.

Something you don't here much about is still being fought. The fight for our colleges and universities continue, and has only served as a breeding ground for liberal bias for years thanks to the self-proclaimed intellectuals left over from the hippie age. What has this world come to? A few days ago, a man named Michael Vocino was revealed in an article on FrontPageMag.com, where the first words out of his mouth to his students were "My name is Michael Vocino, and I like Dick!" Sure, so he revealed that he was gay...he also sexually harrassed two students, and was...

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- On a hot day, there's nothing like a cool, refreshing soda. And when soda bottles are exploding on an interstate off-ramp, there's nothing like that, either. "I've only been driving about three months on my own so... got to pay attention to all the rules," said driver, Ron Fife. Fife had just picked up a trailer full of sodas from the Southeast Atlantic Beverage Company and was headed to Atlanta. "You gotta pay attention, read those signs," said Fife.

Microsoft is urging Windows users to update their systems with the latest security patches it has released to fix three critical flaws in its software. The flaws mostly affect Windows 2000 and Internet Explorer. Users with updated Windows Server 2003 and XP systems are not as much at risk. If left unplugged, they could allow hackers and virus writers to take control of personal computers remotely. Microsoft releases security bulletins regularly to alert people to updates. The most serious of the flaws are awarded a "critical" status.

p2pnet.net News:- For the moment, it seems the technology behind Apple’s menu-based software iPod interface is virtually open source. “The company's patent application, which lists Apple vice president Jeff Robbin and Apple chief executive Steve Jobs as two of its primary inventors, received a final rejection last month from the United States Patent and Trademark Office,” says AppleInsider. “Standing in Apple's way appears to be a prior filing by inventor John Platt, who submitted a patent application for a similar software design for a portable device in May of 2002 - just five months before Robbin submitted his claims on...

By Louis Charbonneau and Parisa Hafezi VIENNA/TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran broke U.N. seals at a uranium processing plant on Wednesday, angering the European Union which urged the U.N. nuclear watchdog's board to demand that Tehran halt all sensitive nuclear activities. Shortly after Iranian officials reopened sensitive areas of the Isfahan plant in central Iran, Britain, France and Germany submitted a draft resolution to the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) board of governors. The draft calls on Tehran to immediately resume "full suspension of all (nuclear) enrichment-related activities including the production of feed material," a European diplomat familiar with the text...

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A California appeals court on Tuesday upheld the casting aside of one of three ballot measures that California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger backs for a special election in November. The Republican governor favors Proposition 77, a voter initiative to change the way the state draws its political map by taking the responsibility out of the hands of the Democratic-controlled legislature. Last month a California Superior Court judge tossed out the measure because the text that voters signed to put the redistricting measure on the ballot differed in 17 places from the language submitted to state officials. Backers...

Those critical of the Boy Scouts of America argue that the Boy Scouts' exclusion of gays, atheists and females makes America more divided and divisive. One side wishes to strengthen the Boy Scouts; the other wishes to destroy the Boy Scouts by forcing politically correct changes upon it. Over the past two decades, the Boy Scouts has been both a flash point and the ground of sustained struggle between traditional and PC values. The central issue is whether the Boy Scouts is a private or public organization.

SAN FRANCISCO — For decades, panhandling and homelessness have been as much a part of the San Francisco (search) landscape as the bridges and fog. But now the nation's "Homeless Czar" is looking toward the Bay Area for possible solutions to America's homelessness problem. In 2002, an estimated 8,640 homeless people were residing in San Francisco, often living in such decrepit conditions that their existence threatened the city's tourism industry. However, the situation has improved. According to a study conducted by the city earlier this year, the number of homeless in San Francisco dropped by around 28 percent. City officials...

Lawyer Mark Geragos should go into business with political consultant Bob Shrum and defend Sen. Arlen Specter's claim to the chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee. They should advertise exclusively on MSNBC. Maybe they could even get Al Gore to endorse them and hire Howard Dean as their spokesman. Our motto: "A HUMILIATING DEFEAT EVERY TIME – OR YOUR MONEY BACK!" Shrum's losing streak obscures the fact that he is also a swine. Among his charming unifying political campaigns, in 1996, Shrum yanked his dripping snout from the political donation trough just long enough to design the commercial against California's...

Linda Sherrer has resigned as a director from the Jacksonville Airport Authority, becoming the fifth person to leave since the authority was formed in 2001. She will step down on Dec. 31, she told Gov. Jeb Bush in a letter dated Nov. 9. Bush, who appointed Sherrer to the seven-member board, responded on Nov. 23 accepting her resignation. Copies of the letters were obtained by the Times-Union Wednesday. Her term was to end in 2006. A spokesman for Bush, reached Wednesday afternoon, said the governor has no candidates to fill Sherrer's position because no one has applied yet. Sherrer, the...

Still furious about the election, liberals are lashing out at blacks. First it was Condoleezza Rice. But calling a Ph.D. who advised a sitting president during war "Aunt Jemima" apparently hasn't satiated the Democrats' rage. Even the racist cartoons didn't help. So this week, they've turned with a vengeance to Clarence Thomas. Only the Democrats would try to distract from their racist attacks on one black Republican by leveling racist attacks against a different black Republican. If Democrats don't nip this in the bud, soon former Klanner and Democratic Sen. Bob Byrd will be their spokesman. In the past few...

Aaron McGruder draws the sometimes-funny daily comic strip "The Boondocks." The strip centers around a black family that moved into a predominantly white neighborhood. In a recent strip, two young black characters considered renaming what they call the "Most Embarrassing Black People" award. One character suggested calling the award the "Larry Elder." My, my. An idea clicked. How about an award for the "Dumbest, Most Vulgar, Most Offensive Things Uttered by Black Public Figures"? Maybe we could call the award the . . . "McGruder." And the nominees are: Jermaine Jackson -- for the defense of his brother, Michael, against...