Free Republic

(Reuters) - A Belarusian delegate at a United Nations disarmament forum warned fellow diplomats about an unusual type of weapon: jars of mayonnaise being thrown by topless women during discussions about war and peace. The delegate issued a statement of concern during the Geneva-based U.N. Conference on Disarmament's discussion on Tuesday about improving its transparency. Belarus asked whether there was a plan to open up the meetings to members of the general public. (snip) "What if there were topless ladies screaming from the public gallery throwing bottles of mayonnaise, asked Belarus," the official summary said. The record added that the...

SEATTLE -- If you own outdoor recreational gear, there's a good chance you have something made at Cascade Designs. The company manufactures MSR camping stoves, Platypus hydration packs, SeaLine dry bags, and Therma-A-Rest sleeping pads -- hundreds of products made by workers in Seattle. Those workers had a bombshell dropped on them Thursday. The company based in Seattle's SODO district along 1st Avenue South is moving 100 jobs later this year to a new plant it's leasing near Reno, Nevada. That's 20 percent of the work force. Some employees have been offered positions, but others will have to reapply. "We...

WASHINGTON — At a dinner in one of Fidel Castro’s palaces in 1999, Castro and several of Major League Baseball’s senior executives discussed one of the few bonds between Cuba and the United States: baseball. The executives, including baseball’s commissioner, Bud Selig, were there for an exhibition game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Cuban national team, as part of an effort by President Bill Clinton to thaw relations. As the dinner stretched into the early hours of the morning, Castro regaled Selig with tales from the history of Cuban baseball and fantasized about what would happen if the United...

In a bedroom lay a white silk pillow - yellowed with age and emblazoned with the screaming eagle emblem of the Army's 101st Airborne Division. On the walls were pictures and plaques telling the story of a World War II veteran; in another room was an adjustable hospital bed and, on a windowsill, a worn Bible. That October day, Jim Bennett was looking for an investment, a house to buy, rehab, then rent or resell, as he has done with about 500 others over more than 20 years. But Bennett found much more at the modest, two-story rowhouse on Winton...

PHILADELPHIA, PA – DECEMBER 3, 2014 – In conjunction with the Philadelphia 76ers’ announcement today of their wide-ranging partnership with DraftKings, the team’s Official Daily Fantasy Game Partner, the Sixers and DraftKings have announced an Instagram contest for fans, with the grand prize of a trip for four to see the team play in New Orleans. The Philadelphia 76ers today announced details for the official First-Day-of-Issue dedication ceremony for the Wilt Chamberlain Forever stamps. As the first NBA player to be immortalized on a stamp, the December 5 ceremony honoring the Sixers legend takes place when the Sixers host the...

wow. just wow. The Guv races to me are the real wow of this midterm.

The Bavarian Farmers Association (BBV) is calling foul on new rules proposed by the European Union Commission to ban cow dung from hillsides with a gradient more than 15 percent. The goal is to avoid water pollution by stopping nitrates from leeching into ground waters. "We demand that Germany stops this ban," said Upper Bavaria BBV president Anton Kreitmair at Wednesday's protest. "Slurry and dung are not pollutants, but valuable fertilizers." The protest had no placards or slogans - just Doris the cow, wearing a plastic sheet tied around her rear end by farmer Johann Huber. "We have no regular...

just listening on my scanner (police zone 7)

A few days ago, news broke about the US Forest Service demanding that one needed a $1500 permit to take photos on US Forest Service managed land. That was in response to a news organization who was filming a story on the forests and was denied access to the National Forest with out a permit. The "reason" given was that the USFS did not want their (note "their") forests commercially exploited at the risk of harm to the environment with increased human contact the photographs may encourage. This news went viral quickly, especially among the media, claiming a violation of...

Please fly our Flag on 9/11. We need to never forget - regardless of what the Left may say and do.

Carrot-topped children are aiming to reclaim the term “ginger” as part of a confidence-building course designed to help them beat the bullies. Run by Donna Strachan – a social worker who was teased mercilessly at school for her red hair and freckles – the workshop sees a string of flame-haired fictional characters talk about their experiences. The primary school children, aged between five and 12, then create their own red-headed personalities on mugs, T-shirts, gym bags and puzzles. Ginger activists have hailed the move, claiming the “light-hearted” approach might help redheads cope with any taunts they may receive later. Workshop...

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WASHINGTON — The U.S. military will provide housing space for up to an additional 5,000 unaccompanied Central American children who have illegally come across the border, Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren said Wednesday. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel signed the authorization last week at the request of the Department of Health and Human Services. Hagel’s order also extends the housing assistance mission to Jan. 31, 2015. In May, the Pentagon committed to providing space to up to 3,600 children for 120 days. There are 2,500 children being housed at Fort Sill, Okla., Naval Base Ventura County, Calif., and Lackland Air...

NINETY-year-old Sidney Marshall made an extraordinary sacrifice for his country. (snip) But Marshall, who died at his home in St Annes, England, on June 16, has few living relatives. And those who are still alive live considerable distances away. Undertakers fear no one will attend his funeral service. So a local funeral director has made an extraordinary plea to fellow Armed Forces personnel: Come to Mr Marshall’s funeral. Don’t let this brave man be sent off alone.

A man named T.K. Klotz appeared on Wheel of Fortune tonight, and apparently put on his contestant questionnaire that he's recently engaged. Show host Pat Sajak brought up the "woman who agreed to marry" Klotz during the introductions; no, no, that's not right. There's actually a lot to dig into here. Sajak, of course, is a right-wing extremist who just a few months ago mocked the string of athletes who, of late, have had the courage to come out as gay. There's also the overall assumption that Klotz is somehow undesirable, and all that traditional (and quickly becoming outdated) proposal...

After 38 years in the Washington National Guard, 1st Sgt. Brett Jensen received something new for a change. The citizen soldier belongs to an aviation battalion that’s receiving brand-new helicopters for the first time in five decades. It means the local unit will be able to retire aircraft dating to the Vietnam War era. “It’s kind of nice being able to see new aircraft in the fleet,” said Jensen, 56, a Tacoma resident who has deployed twice to the Middle East and participated in domestic missions ranging from the Mount St. Helens eruption in 1980 to the more recent disaster...

Archaeologists have formed a trade union grouping amid concerns that some highly qualified people are working for pay rates not much above the minimum wage — or in some cases, for free. Contract archaeologists, who mostly work in the private sector, have joined trade union Unite in an attempt to convince archaeological consultancies to sign up to a standardised pay agreement that would protect wage levels. The move comes after what the chairman of the new branch, Matt Seaver, described as “an apocalypse” in the sector. The union grouping comprises approximately 60 contract archaeologists — around half the total number...

Joint Base Lewis-McChord is among the military installations that could be tapped temporarily to house some of the thousands of young Central American immigrants who have been detained at the U.S.-Mexico border, congressional sources said Monday. Negotiations are still under way to place the minors in vacant housing at the South Sound base, said Kati Rutherford, spokeswoman for Rep. Denny Heck, D-Olympia. Gov. Jay Inslee’s office also has been in touch with the Defense Department and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on the proposal, a spokeswoman said. “This is an urgent humanitarian situation, and though this is...