Free Republic

A jury late this afternoon awarded a state senator from Sioux City $231,000 in damages after finding his 2010 opponent and the Iowa Democratic Party committed libel and slander against him. Republican Senator Rick Bertrand of Sioux City objected to a 2010 TV ad which claimed Bertrand’s company had been singled out by the FDA for the “marketing of dangerous drugs to children.” “This is how you change the face of American politics, it’s by standing up to the political party machine,” Bertrand said this evening during a telephone interview with Radio Iowa. “This is how it works.” Bertrand, who...

Gannett Rag - Link Only http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20120218/NEWS09/120218015/Obama-trails-three-four-Republican-candidates-latest-Iowa-Pol

In the wake of this week’s announcement that Susan G. Komen for the Cure will no longer be awarding grants to Planned Parenthood, the breast cancer organization’s donations have gone up 100 percent in the last two days. On a Thursday conference call Nancy Brinker, the founder and CEO of the Komen Foundation, told reporters that the organization is “singularly focused” on combating breast cancer, and that the politics of the decision to stop funding Planned Parenthood has been distracting from their mission. Nevertheless, since cutting ties, Brinker announced that Komen’s donations have gone up in the last two days...

U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords will step down from Congress this week to focus on her recovery, her staff announced Sunday. "I have more work to do on my recovery, so to do what is best for Arizona, I will step down this week," Giffords said in a video message. Giffords, a third-generation Arizonan who served five years in the state Legislature before being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in November 2006, will not seek re-election this fall. Giffords vowed to return public service. "I will return and we will work together for Arizona and this great country," she...

PPP's 3rd annual TV news trust poll finds that Fox News tops the list for both the source Americans trust the most and the one they trust the least. Fox is the most trusted TV news source for 34% of voters, followed by PBS at 17%, CNN at 12%, ABC News at 11%, CBS News at 8%, MSNBC at 5%, and Comedy Central and NBC each at 4%. 68% of Republicans pick Fox as their most trusted source, with no one else even hitting double digits. Democrats split closely three ways with PBS at 21%, ABC News at 19%, and...

3.0 M - SOUTH DAKOTA Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 3.0 M Date-Time 16 Jan 2012 13:41:10 UTC16 Jan 2012 06:41:10 near epicenter16 Jan 2012 07:41:10 standard time in your timezone Location 43.446N 103.051W Depth 5 km Distances 22 km (14 miles) ESE (104 degrees) of Buffalo Gap, SD 30 km (18 miles) SSE (154 degrees) of Fairburn, SD 33 km (20 miles) NNE (27 degrees) of Oelrichs, SD 362 km (225 miles) NNE (27 degrees) of Fort Collins, CO 443 km (275 miles) NNE (20 degrees) of Denver, CO Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 13.5 km; Vertical Parameters Nph = 9; Dmin...

== PRELIMINARY EARTHQUAKE REPORT == Region: OHIO Geographic coordinates: 41.159N, 80.728W Magnitude: 4.0 M Depth: 2 km Universal Time (UTC): 31 Dec 2011 20:04:58 Time near the Epicenter: 31 Dec 2011 15:04:58 Local standard time in your area: 31 Dec 2011 14:04:58 Location with respect to nearby cities: 0 km (0 miles) SW (229 degrees) of McDonald, OH 1 km (1 miles) ESE (117 degrees) of Hilltop, OH 3 km (2 miles) W (271 degrees) of Girard, OH 67 km (42 miles) E (82 degrees) of Akron, OH 102 km (63 miles) NW (322 degrees) of Pittsburgh, PA ADDITIONAL EARTHQUAKE...

Most of Ron Paul’s Iowa campaign stops have been in the state’s largest population centers and college towns. Now, with a caucus victory within reach, the Texas congressman is taking his libertarian message to Iowa’s smaller cities. Paul visited Perry, Iowa over the noon hour on Thursday. The crowd of 100 was definitely more reserved than what Paul is used to. There was no standing ovation at the beginning or end of his speech. There were no whoops or cheers, but plenty of polite applause. “I like a lot of what he says, especially about the U.S. economy and balanced...

Magnitude 3.3 Date-Time Sunday, December 25, 2011 at 14:10:41 UTC Sunday, December 25, 2011 at 08:10:41 AM at epicenter Location 35.399°N, 96.528°W Depth 10.4 km (6.5 miles) (poorly constrained) Region OKLAHOMA Distances 8 km (5 miles) NW (311°) from Cromwell, OK 11 km (7 miles) SSW (202°) from Boley, OK 13 km (8 miles) SSE (163°) from Paden, OK 37 km (23 miles) E (80°) from Shawnee, OK 92 km (57 miles) E (96°) from Oklahoma City, OK 290 km (180 miles) N (5°) from Dallas, TX

BREAKING: Bil Keane, creator of comic strip Family Circus, dies at 89. -BW

Link only - Copyright rules: http://caucuses.desmoinesregister.com/2011/10/17/iowa-gop-officials-set-a-date-for-the-republican-caucuses-jan-3/

3.6 M - SOUTHEASTERN MISSOURI Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 3.6 M Date-Time 22 Sep 2011 23:32:09 UTC22 Sep 2011 18:32:09 near epicenter22 Sep 2011 17:32:09 standard time in your timezone Location 36.835N 90.766W Depth 8 km Distances 5 km (3 miles) E (83 degrees) of Grandin, MO 11 km (7 miles) S (189 degrees) of Ellsinore, MO 24 km (15 miles) NNE (12 degrees) of Doniphan, MO 204 km (127 miles) NNW (340 degrees) of Memphis, TN 205 km (127 miles) SSW (193 degrees) of St. Louis, MO Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 8.9 km; Vertical 12.5 km Parameters Nph =...

Quite unusual.

3.0 M - ALABAMA Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 3.0 M Date-Time 13 Sep 2011 22:59:23 UTC13 Sep 2011 17:59:23 near epicenter13 Sep 2011 16:59:23 standard time in your timezone Location 33.591N 86.671W Depth 5 km Distances 5 km (3 miles) S (171 degrees) of Center Point, AL 7 km (4 miles) NNE (13 degrees) of Irondale, AL 7 km (4 miles) SSW (206 degrees) of Grayson Valley, AL 15 km (9 miles) ENE (61 degrees) of Birmingham, AL 514 km (320 miles) NE (38 degrees) of New Orleans, LA Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 14.0 km; Vertical 2.1 km Parameters Nph...

NO PATAKI: Former New York governor George Pataki won't run for president and has opted out of a scheduled event in Des Moines Saturday Former New York governor George Pataki has cancelled plans to attend a Polk County Republicans event in Des Moines Saturday, as he announces he won't seek the office of president. Pataki had been scheduled to speak at the Polk County Republicans summer picnic at the Iowa State Fairgrounds. Many expected Pataki to reveal he would run for president in 2012 at the picnic, but now sources close to him say he has decided against declaring as...

Prosecutor decides not to file charges against Wis. Supreme Court justice in choking incident

Tornadoes aren't the only funnels that touch down in the Midwest. "Bugnadoes" — vortexes of swarming bugs — occasionally twist through, too. On the night of July 4, professional storm chaser and photographer Mike Hollingshead caught sight of an enormous bugnado in southwestern Iowa. The air above the cornfields was so thick with bugs "it looked like it was smoking," Hollingshead told Life's Little Mysteries. He captured the strange sight on camera, and his video has gone viral in recent days. But what are the bugnadoes? Joe Kieper, an entomologist who is executive director of the Virginia Museum of Natural...

AMES, Iowa – Aug. 17, 2011 – The bridge carrying Iowa 9 over the Mississippi River at Lansing in Allamakee County is closed to traffic in both directions, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT). During a regular inspection, the consultant found a crack in the floor beam under the bridge deck. Upon discovery, the bridge was closed immediately. It is unknown at this time the duration of the closure. The bridge inspection will continue during the next two days. The Iowa DOT is in the process of developing a repair procedure, which will determine the duration of the...

An appeals court ruled on Friday that President Barack Obama's healthcare law requiring Americans to buy healthcare insurance or face a penalty was unconstitutional, a blow to the White House. The Appeals Court for the 11th Circuit, based in Atlanta, found that Congress exceeded its authority by requiring Americans to buy coverage, but also ruled that the rest of the wide-ranging law could remain in effect. The legality of the so-called individual mandate, a cornerstone of the healthcare law, is widely expected to be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Obama administration has defended the provision as constitutional.

3.4 M - SOUTH DAKOTA Preliminary Earthquake Report Magnitude 3.4 M Date-Time 9 Aug 2011 19:45:18 UTC 9 Aug 2011 14:45:18 near epicenter 9 Aug 2011 13:45:18 standard time in your timezone Location 44.365N 100.363W Depth 15 km Distances 1 km (1 miles) NE (56 degrees) of Fort Pierre, SD 2 km (1 miles) W (261 degrees) of Pierre, SD 34 km (21 miles) WSW (241 degrees) of Blunt, SD 305 km (190 miles) WNW (289 degrees) of Sioux Falls, SD 640 km (398 miles) NE (35 degrees) of Denver, CO Location Uncertainty Horizontal: 16.3 km; Vertical 10.9 km...