Free Republic

Ladies and gentlemen, you heard it RIGHT HERE first! Once again, FreeRepublic scoops the world! As of 2:07 pm Central Standard Time, Jan 25, 2004, Michael Moore has replaced our United States President as Google's preferred pick for "miserable failure." An article published just two days ago in Britain's Guardian newspaper commented on the, um "rising star" of Michael Moore in the Google search engine category. At that time, former US President Jimmy Carter was at the number two spot, and Moore was at third. Google's preferred pick is found by typing the words in the search engine window, then...

Howard Dean -- the toast of internetdom! Er, sort of. Dean is all the, um... rage... these days, and nowhere does it show more than at DeanGoesNuts.com, a site that brings to mind the "Star Wars Kid" internet video remix phenomenon. In just 3 days, the owner of www.DeanGoesNuts.com, a college student in Indiana, has compiled nearly FIFTY creative remixes of Dean's Tuesday night speech in Iowa. Sound like a lot? Not hardly. Caner Ozdemir (who, interestingly, seems to be a staunch Howard Dean supporter) has stopped accepting new submissions for the weekend in order to put together some submission...

<p>Hint: Both New Mexico and Missouri Constitutions have provisions that the state-recognized right to keep and bear arms doesn't include a right to carry concealed. The language in the New Mexico Constitution is STRONGER than that in the Missouri Constitution. New Mexico Constitution says "shall not permit." Missouri Constitution only says "shall not justify."</p>

MILLION MOM MARCH ADMITS 'WE ARE LOSING BATTLE AGAINST DANGEROUSHIDDENGUNS' January 7, 2004, Washington, D.C. - Sarah Brady of the Brady Campaign United With the Million Mom March today issued the following statement: "Today, the Governor of Ohio proved that he is a complete, absolute idiot and an obvious gun-toting right-wing fanatic wacko by caving in to pressurefromthedangerousgunlobby and agreeing to sign Ohio's dangeroushiddenguns bill into law." "In spite of the fact that more than half of all Americans live quite happily in States that have shall-issue concealed carry laws, and in spite of the fact that the balance of...

Forty years ago next week, a prominent black businessman, SB Fuller of the Fuller Products Company, addressed the National Association of Manufacturers. Because Fuller refused to "toe the party line," his speech touched off a firestorm of rage that would lead to much of black America boycotting his businesses -- thus destroying much of his fortune. Nevertheless, although his business enterprises were forced through bankruptcy, he managed to hold on to at least a portion of his wealth. When the great businessman died some 25 years later, at age 83, he was still quite a prosperous man. SB Fuller was...

<p>I quit! Overworked employees are fed up: a survey finds 8 out of 10 Americans want a new job.</p> <p>New York (CNN/Money) - Ready to quit? You have plenty of company.</p> <p>Many employees are overworked, stressed out, fed up -- and eager to quit their jobs once the economy picks up. In fact, worker angst is so pronounced it has surprised even the most tuned-in human resource professionals. They say employee anger is now almost palpable.</p>

Just signed the Star Wars Kid petition... I'm not sure whether the Star Wars kid actually *wants* to be in Star Wars III, but hey, why not help give him the chance? Here's the petition: Help put the Star Wars Kid in Star Wars III And more info: Star Wars Kid becomes Internet StarParents file lawsuit over Star Wars video

<p>SAN JOSE, California (AP) -- Just as Prohibition drove drinkers underground in the roaring '20s, the music industry's crackdown is pushing many song swappers away from the open Internet and into what amount to cyberspace speakeasies.</p> <p>These high-tech Cotton Clubs usually require users to be trusted or at least know someone inside. The files being traded, instead of out in the open, are encrypted -- the 21st century equivalent of hiding bathtub gin under a fake floorboard.</p>

THE MISSOURI MIRACLE by K. L. Jamison In 1990 WMSA Board member Keith Rice went through the concealed carry provisions of the various states and made two lists. One list consisted of provisions he liked, the other was provisions he didn't like. He presented these lists to the WMSA Board with the motion that we write a concealed carry bill for Missouri. The Board processed these proposals into three lists; one we liked, one we didn't like, ant the last we didn't especially like, but would take if it meant passing a bill. I took these lists and wrote a...

Missouri lawmakers show arrogance with gun issue By MIKE HENDRICKS Columnist I'm wondering how long it'll be before they bring back cockfighting and bear baiting in Missouri.Not long, judging by the contempt most state lawmakers have for the electorate.Last week, the General Assembly reversed the outcome of a statewide election by allowing Missouri residents to carry concealed weapons.So why not cockfighting while they're at it? The people voted against that, too, yet we know how much weight a little thing like a public vote means to most Missouri lawmakers these days.Zip.It's "to heck with the people" with these folks.And here...

OK, you are a Missouri resident planning to carry a concealed weapon under a new law that kicks in next month. You are in your car, weapon in your breast pocket, ready to defend yourself any place, any time. That may be what Missouri lawmakers intended when they overrode Gov. Bob Holden's veto of a concealed weapons bill on Thursday, but there will be all sorts of instances in which carriers will have to disarm. Driving into Kansas? Pull over and put the gun away or risk arrest, because concealed weapons are prohibited there. Same goes for Missouri border states...

<p>JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- In a historic rebuff of a Missouri governor, lawmakers overrode a third veto of Democratic Gov. Bob Holden -- this time, declaring it illegal for governments to sue the gun industry over the social costs of gun violence.</p>

<p>Do you think Missourians will be safer because concealed weapons will be legal?</p>

<p>Women seeking an abortion in Missouri will now have to wait.</p> <p>The Missouri Senate voted 23-8 Thursday to override Gov. Bob Holden's veto of a bill requiring a 24-hour waiting period for all abortions.</p> <p>The Missouri House overrode the measure on Wednesday by a substantial margin.</p>

<p>Missouri Sen. Jon Dolan, R-Lake Saint Louis, talks to reporters shortly after arriving in the State Capitol from his military assignment in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in Jefferson City, Mo.</p> <p>The Missouri Senate voted Thursday in favor of concealed weapons, meaning Missourians will be able to start carrying hidden guns.</p>

The Missouri Senate has JUST NOW OVERRIDDEN GOV. BOB HOLDEN'S VETO OF LICENSE-TO-CARRY, by the narrow margin of 23 to 11! 23 votes were required to override, and we barely made it -- but we made it. We were helped out in key swing votes by Senator Jon Dolan, who flew in from military duty in Cuba for this and the abortion override vote, and also by Senator Michael Gibbons, who voted against the original bill. No one knew until today how Senator Gibbons would cast his vote. These are certainly not the only Senators who deserve to be thanked....

(KSDK) -- Thursday, Missouri lawmakers could make it legal for citizens to carry concealed weapons. All it needs is a veto override. Members of the state House voted to override Governor Bob Holden's veto on Wednesday. Now, the final vote will come from members of the state Senate. Michael Meyer with the Gateway Civil Liberties Alliance supports the bill, but he says handgun advocates expect a very close vote on the issue. Critics of the bill include Mickey Rosen, a member of the Missourians Against Handgun Violence organization. Rosen says the more guns there are in circulation, the greater the...

The Missour State Senate is almost certain to vote TODAY on whether to override Governor Bob Holden's veto of Missouri's Right-to-be-Licensed-to-Carry bill. The House has already overridden the veto. All that now stands between us and License to Carry in the State of Missouri is a vote by the Missouri Senate.It's going to be close. Very, very close. 23 "yea" votes, out of 34, are required to override Gov. Holden's veto and pass License-To-Carry into law. Senator Jon Dolan, away from the Senate on active military duty, has been considered to be a crucial vote, if not, very possibly, the...

OK, folks, someone on another thread sparked this thought, and I just can't shake it. I think we ought to have a beautiful and inspiring FreeRepublic collection of War on Terror haiku. Osama Bin Laden, the loony one-eyed mullah, Kim Mentally Il, 9/11, Arafat, Uday, the French, and the despicable anti-Americans are all fair game. Here's my offering: Osama flaps lips Never forget, whack them all -- Peace comes with soft rain.

THE COMING JOB BOOM Judy Reed is a buyer in a buyer's market, and frankly, that has its advantages. The vice president for human resources at Stratus Technologies, a Maynard, Mass., maker of high-reliability servers, Reed never lacks for attention at parties and dinners in this employment-starved economy. When she does post a job, she gets four times the volume of responses she got three years ago, and some job seekers even follow up with Christmas cards. If she wanted to, she could fill every opening at a salary 15 percent below the going rate -- as, in fact, many...