Free Republic

With the release of Ben Stein's new movie "Expelled" on April 18, the question as to whether Intelligent Design is a scientific theory, or only religion in disguise, will be debated across the country as never before. Here is a little background, and a prediction as to how this controversy will play out in the coming years.A November 5, 1980 New York Times News Service article, reporting on a meeting at the Chicago Field Museum of Natural History of "nearly all the leading evolutionists in paleontology, population genetics, taxonomy and related fields," begins:Biology's understanding of how evolution works, which...

The family and friends of two teenagers who died in a car accident over the weekend are puzzled as to why a fundamentalist church group plans to demonstrate at the teens’ funerals. Tracey Burke, whose daughter Emily died in the crash near Finksburg late Saturday night, said she doesn’t understand the logic of Topeka, Kan.-based Westboro Baptist Church unless its members, "are just people of hate." "It makes no sense," Burke said. "I can’t believe they’d choose to [demonstrate at] the funeral of a child." Julio Calderon, whose brother Rodolfo Calderon also died in the crash, said he was...

BALTIMORE - A federal judge in Baltimore ordered Westboro Baptist Church members to post their church building and nearly $500,000 more in cash and property while appealing a judgment for protesting a Marine’s funeral. The Kansas church members had hoped to avoid posting a bond while delaying payments in the $5 million judgment a jury awarded Albert Snyder, the father of Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder who died in Iraq. Westboro church members preach that God kills American soldiers as punishment for the country’s tolerance of homosexuality. They protested Matthew Snyder’s Westminster funeral in March 2006 by waving signs...

Hello Katy Fans – We hope this note has found you well. We are very happy to be able to tell you that Katy's husband returned home from Iraq in February. After vacationing in the Caribbean, Katy and Ryan are getting right back into the rhythm of everyday life. We are all glad he and his men are home safe and sound. We are also writing to inform you that Katy will be appearing tomorrow night (Friday, April 4th) on an internet radio show. She will be appearing on American Truth Warriors at 7pm EST. They will be playing...

For gun control proponents and opponents a lot is riding on a former security guard for the Supreme Court Annex. Next Tuesday , the Supreme Court will hear arguments over whether the District of Columbia's ban on handguns and its requirement that any rifles or shotguns remain locked violates the plaintiff, Dick Heller's, constitutional rights. Whatever the court decides, no one expects them to end gun control any more than the First Amendment's "congress shall make no laws" has prevented the passage of campaign finance regulations. The decision is likely to be limited to just whether a ban "infringed" on...

Tom the Red Environmental Wacko and Fraxinus the Tree Hugger It was a dark and stormy rainy drizzly night. It must've been raining Bacardi because Tom the Red Hunter seemed a little inebriated. He babbled something about favoring high mileage standards for cars, the dictatorship of the SUV, the exploitation of the subcompact, and the class struggle for parking spaces. I was appalled. We argued heatedly about CAFE standards, the Caribou, ethanol, and the like. But there's no arguing with someone who's had too much rain to drink. I quickly alerted everyone, "Do NOT drink the rain!" At least...

Early last week Buzz Krohn of Columbia, MD discovered That guy called me Horse pucky! That's the nicest thing [sniff] anyone's said to me in a long time! a fundraiser was planned at a nearby community college featuring an awards ceremony honoring members of Code Pink. Trooprally posted this thread to alert FReepers. Buzz played the biggest part in gathering info and getting the counter protest organized. The ceremony and fundraiser was organized by the local chapter of Women in Black. What grand honor were the WIB bestowing on Medea Benjamin, Jodie Evans, and Gael Murphy? VAGINA WARRIOR AWARDS!...

I found out from Gateway Pundit yesterday about a protest planned at the Israeli Embassy in DC this afternoon, so I packed up my cameras and took a half hour off from work and slipped across town to Embassy Row.The first people I found was a small group of counter protesters, part of the same bunch that counter protest at Walter Reed every Friday night.They told me that before I got there, the protesters were pretty quiet, but the counter-protesters broke out their bull horn and got them all worked up;So they got their own bullhorn out;An arms race...

Actually, last night marked a gross plus one. This report is for the previous Friday and I'm just getting it out now. Tell me how ashamed you are of me for procrastinating...while bumping the thread of course. Definitely getting colder. But if we can just survive the next few weeks I think we'll manage to make it through another winter. Maybe if I go buy some Carhartt clothing that'd do the trick. Check out concretebob and TankerBabe's thread about the awesome donation Carhartt made to the troops in Afghanistan. Nothing much else to say about this weeks FReep except...

TrueBlackMan and his future bride First Walter Reed FReep of the new year! Arrived around 6:30pm. While we were setting up TrueBlackMan stopped by to pay a visit. Unfortunately he was only able to stay for about 15 minutes ... and let us know that he's getting married! Reply to TrueBlackMan and give him your condolences ... I mean, CONGRATULATIONS! Date is yet to be firmed up. Sometime in October. He wanted you all to know. Ever wonder what we do for for three hours standing on the street corner every Friday night? Well, VictoryNY screams, "WE LOVE OUR...

BAYOU LA BATRE, Ala Police Search for Bodies of 4 Children; Police Say Father Threw Them Off Ala. Bridge A man angered after a dispute with his wife confessed to tossing his four young children off a bridge, authorities said Wednesday as they searched murky waters for the bodies.Lam Luong, 37, who is charged with four counts of capital murder, ... Luong came to coastal Alabama from Vietnam in 1984 and worked in the commercial fishing industry as a shrimper, Police Chief John Joyner and a relative said. He had argued with his wife, Ngoc Phan, before taking the...

<p>We were outnumbered...by the good guys from Gathering of Eagles (GOE)! They were in town to help celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Vietnam Wall Memorial Wall. These Eagles already had all 4 corners crowded before Mr Trooprally arrived at 6:40. Suzanne said she had been out there since 1pm!</p>

Karen Burton of Chapmanville, W.Va., appears in magistrate court as Carmen Williams, right, covers her face Thursday, Oct. 4, 2007 at the Logan Co. Courthouse in Logan, W.Va. Burton is one of six whites accused of torturing Williams' daughter Megan Williams, 20, of Charleston, for days at a ramshackle trailer in Big Creek, W.Va. (AP Photo/Jeff Gentner) LOGAN, W.Va. (AP) — Charges against a sixth white suspect in the alleged rape, assault and torture of a black woman were sent to the grand jury Thursday.Karen Burton, 46, is charged with kidnapping, first degree sexual assault, malicious wounding, assault during...

Okay, I can think of quite a few individuals and organization more deserving of the Nobel Peace Prize than the DC Chapter of FreeRepublic.com. But Algore? Come on! Has Algore ever stood at the gate to prevent Code Pink from demoralizing our troops as they come and go? No! Has Algore ever visited the wounded troops at Walter Reed? I don't think so! In fact, Algore has done more to circumvent his own cause by bloviating more CO2 into the atmosphere than any other man or machine on the face of the Earth. But that's okay. We don't need...

Every Friday night, dozens of people gather outside the main gate at Walter Reed Army Medical Facility in Washington to show their support for the wounded troops who are being cared for inside. On Friday, September 15, we joined them. Anti-war protesters from Code Pink were also demonstrating down the street, just as they do every Friday night. By the way, the night’s head count was patriots 109, Code Pink 12.

Bryan Preston and I went down to Washington to document the recent damage at the Vietnam War Memorial, first reported by Free Republic members. Photos do not do it justice. Here’s our video: [video link] Transcript of our report: Over the weekend, something happened here at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC. Something destructive. Something dishonorable. Along the foot of the wall, covering a stretch almost two-thirds of the entire monument, an oily substance was spilled on the panels and paving stones that were built to pay tribute to those who gave their lives on the battlefield. The...

Committee Participants: the Honorable BillF, the Honorable kristinn, the Honorable tgslTakoma, the Honorable 3D-Joy, the Honorable Tom the Red Hunter, the Honorable Cindy True Supporter, the Honorable [Mr/Mrs] trooprally, the Honorable *Lurker Bill, the Honorable Fraxinus, the Honorable TennesseeNana, the Honorable BufordP, the Honorable PortCall24, the Honorable PrezUSA222, the Honorable VaFlagWaver, the Honorable Albion Wilde, the Honorable *Alicia, the Honorable *George and *Ethel, the Honorable Sensei Ern * lurkers Thank you, Mr Chairman, ranking members, members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to provide my assessment of the security situation at the gates of the Walter Reed...

The U.S. Park Police are investigating suspected vandalism at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the Mall. Volunteers and National Park Service rangers on Saturday discovered a "light, oily" substance on the memorial's wall panels and the paving stones in front of it, Bill Line, a Park Service spokesman, said yesterday. The substance, which has not been identified, was spread over an area of about 50 to 60 feet, mostly on the paving stones, Mr. Line said. Maintenance and preservation staff were working to remove the substance with no permanent damage to the memorial. Mr. Line could not predict when the...

It's a good thing Leonardo DiCaprio made so much money from "Titanic" a decade ago. His environmental documentary, "The 11th Hour," has been a total bust at the box office. After 18 days in release, the film has grossed only $417,913 from ticket sales. The 90-minute snore-fest is playing on 111 screens this week, but that number is likely to be reduced this Friday. The film will be sent to DVD heaven after that. By comparison, Al Gore and Davis Guggenheim's similar but far more engaging "An Inconvenient Truth" had already made $3.5 million by its 18th day of release....

Now here's a story the climate change obsessed media can really sink their teeth into: a Berkeley, California, based environmental group claims that dams all around the world are adding to global warming. If you're keeping score, this means we can't use heating oil or coal to produce energy to heat and/or light our homes. They killed nuclear power. Now they want to ban all hydroelectric facilities.Just how far back into the Stone Age must we go to save the planet?While you ponder, Australia's News.com reported this astonishing claim Tuesday (emphasis added throughout): International Rivers Network executive director Patrick McCully...