Free Republic

On strike: Item halting baseball coverageBy Tom Waddill/Sports EditorItem readers have spoken. Asked to strike or not to strike, 82 percent of you said, "Let's strike."So, The Huntsville Item is going on a pro baseball strike.For the next week, there will be no pro baseball coverage in the Item. There will be no stories about the Astros or Rangers, no game reports, no boxscores and no Major League Baseball standings.If a settlement is reached, the Item will start providing coverage again. Last week, Item editors asked residents how they felt about the looming baseball strike, which could start Friday if...

<p>The Supreme Court struck down a law banning virtual child pornography Tuesday, ruling that the First Amendment protects pornography or other images that only appear to depict real children engaged in sex.</p> <p>The 6-3 ruling is a victory for both pornographers and artists such as moviemakers, who argued that a broad ban on simulated child sex could make it a crime to depict a sex scene like those in the recent movies "Traffic" or "Lolita."</p>

Inspired by Bush's reaction to the Sept. 11 attacks, Smokey Wilson wrote the country song "Cowboy in the White House." Song pictures president as country's heroic cowboy By Andrea Ball American-Statesman Staff Wednesday, January 2, 2002 The events of Sept. 11, and President Bush's response, inspired Cuero songwriter Smokey Wilson to write 'Cowboy in the White House.' Want to hear the complete song? Click below. --> Listen to the song: mp3 | QuickTime Think George W. Bush. Famous smirk. Folksy style. Former governor. Tough cowboy. Tough cowboy? Absolutely, says Cuero songwriter Smokey Wilson. And the events of Sept. 11 ...

I have a friend in California who needs a faster/more reliable connection. Cable isn't available where she is. She was prepared to sign up with PacBell DSL until she learned that there could be a problem using AOL IM because PacBell DSL uses Prodigy network. She talked to the folks at PacBell, but they couldn't give her a definitive answer. Is there anyone out there who is on PacBell DSL who uses AOL IM? Can anyone suggest any alternatives?

...I know personal retirement accounts can work. Because I have one. I know a commission can design a better system. Because I was part of one. I know it’s possible to build public support for bold reform. Because I did it. I know it’s possible to change the heart of a skeptic. Because I was one. Twenty-one years ago, three Texas counties - Galveston, Brazoria and Matagorda, plus two cities and an appraisal district - developed an alternative to Social Security. Despite initial fear and anxiety, the details were explained and debated and workers approved the plan by a 3 ...

I stumbled upon this wonderful profile on the Texas FReepers page. I hope everyone enjoys it as I did. I'm a hispanic woman whose activism and views are a tribute to my Republican parents, who were conservative before it was cool for Texans OR hispanics. (Nixon and pre-Nixon). I am wealthy; one of "those" members of the GOP with a VERY rich INHERITANCE. But, HA HA, the democrats can't put estate taxes on this one. Let me tell you about it. I grew up in a poverty-level household, but never knew it until I was grown. My parents were migrant ...

Feds' use of computer surveillance at issue in mob case WASHINGTON (July 28, 2001 5:54 p.m. EDT) - By bugging a keyboard or installing special software, FBI agents can remotely capture a computer user's every keystroke. They have the ability to intercept e-mail from miles away. They can recreate the pictures on a computer screen by monitoring its electromagnetic emissions. The legal limits for these new investigative tools will get a test Monday when a federal court in New Jersey examines a mob case in which agents, without a wiretap order, recorded a suspect's computer keystrokes. Privacy experts are watching ...

Blue fights off gator to save his fallen owner FORT MYERS -- Bitten numerous times, a scrappy 35-pound cattle dog repeatedly fended off an alligator after his 85-year-old owner fell outside her home and lay immobilized with broken bones until her family returned. "Blue scared the gator off and kept it away from my mother-in-law. The dog got chewed up pretty bad," Albert Gibson said Thursday. Ruth Gay was in fair condition at Lee Memorial Hospital in Fort Myers on Thursday after surgery on one shoulder and manipulation of the other to reset a dislocation. Two-year-old Blue, an Australian blue ...

Founded in June 2000, Smartertimes.com is dedicated to the proposition that New York's dominant daily has grown complacent, slow and inaccurate. Even an ordinary semi-intelligent guy in Brooklyn who reads the newspaper carefully early each morning can regularly notice errors of fact and of logic. Smartertimes.com is dedicated to assembling a community of readers to support a new newspaper that would offer an alternative to the dominant daily. Smartertimes.com — "Smarter than the Times, and almost as arrogant, but with only a tiny fraction of the circulation." Edited by Ira Stoll at Brooklyn, N.Y. To reach the editor, e-mail editor@smartertimes.com. ...

Robber Lifted Mask to Greet Passers-By DUBLIN (Reuters) - A knife-wielding robber gave himself away by lifting his mask to greet passers-by as he went to raid a shop next door to his childhood home, Irish newspapers reported on Thursday. Displaying what his defense lawyer called a "sheer lack of criminal professionalism" Paul Fulham lifted his stocking mask to reveal his face to people he recognized, and was so drunk he couldn't find his way out of the shop after the bungled raid. "He was going through Christmas in an alcoholic haze and went to the only shop in town ...

The ACLU's religion purge is in high gear http://www.jewishworldreview.com -- THE American Civil Liberties Union is on a mission -- but not from the Creator. It's goal: to obliterate evidence of America's religious heritage. Last week, the ACLU filed a suit to have a Ten Commandments monument removed from the courthouse lawn in Vincennes, Ind. Such displays are a breach of the mythical wall separating church and state, according to our judicial law-givers. In May, the Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of a ruling holding a similar monument in Elkhart, Ind., unconstitutional. This statue has stood in front ...

Just returning tax dollars to their rightful owners By REP. TOM DELAY LATER this summer, married couples paying taxes will get $600 of their money back. Single taxpayers will get $300 checks. The legislation President Bush signed Thursday gives refunds to all who were overcharged, eliminates the death tax, offers relief from the marriage penalty and reduces tax rates across-the-board. This year, the first $6,000 of an individual's taxable income or the first $12,000 of a married couple's taxable income will be taxed at a new, lower rate of 10 percent. This marks a one-third reduction from the current 15 ...

Once upon a time the government had a vast scrap yard in the middle of a desert. Congress said someone may steal from it at night, so they created a night watchman position (GS-4) and hired a person for the job. Then Congress said, "How does the watchman do his job without instruction?" So they created a planning position and hired two people: one person to write the instructions (GS-12) and one person to do time studies (GS-11). Then Congress said, "How will we know the night watchman is doing the tasks correctly?" So they created a Q. C. position ...

MEMO FROM: Pat Lewis, Human Resources Director RE: Christmas Party DATE: December 1 I'm happy to inform you that the company Christmas Party will take place on December 23, starting at noon in the banquet room at Lou's Open Pit Barbecue. No host bar, but plenty of eggnog! We'll have a small band playing traditional carols. Feel free to sing along, and don't be surprised if our CEO shows up dressed as Santa Claus! ********************* MEMO FROM: Pat Lewis, Human Resources Director DATE: December 2 RE: Christmas Party In no way was yesterday's memo intended to exclude our Jewish employees. ...

This poll needs our help!!Was the U.S. Supreme Court's move to stop recounts fair?Yes - 29%No - 71%

I need help. Actually, my aunt needs help. She received this email from her liberal daughter-in-law. I told her I'd run this by FReepers who will jump on it like a dog on a bone, replacing the spin with facts. Consider it a bit of red meat!! A Zimbabwe politician was quoted as saying that children should study current events in the U. S. closely, for they show that election fraud is not only a third world phenomena. 1. Imagine that we read of an election occurring anywhere in the third world in which the self-declared winner was the son ...

I stumbled upon this wonderful profile on the Texas FReepers page. I hope everyone enjoys it as I did. I'm a hispanic woman whose activism and views are a tribute to my Republican parents, who were conservative before it was cool for Texans OR hispanics. (Nixon and pre-Nixon). I am wealthy; one of "those" members of the GOP with a VERY rich INHERITANCE. But, HA HA, the democrats can't put estate taxes on this one. Let me tell you about it. I grew up in a poverty-level household, but never knew it until I was grown. My parents were migrant ...

I just received this from a conservative friend who received it from a liberal family member. Here's what the enemies are saying about the "rabid Republican mobs." May this serve to further our resolve. BTW, you FReepers in Florida ROCK!!!FYI - From: (Rabid Liberal's name and email removed from this field) Subject: "BLACK-SHIRT COUP IN FL" (THREAT TACTICS TO STEAL ELECTION WORKED) From indymedia.org In a move resembling the uprising of the fascist mobs which brought Mussolini to power in 1922, pro-Bush mobs stormed the offices of the Dade County Canvassing Board earlier today. Shouting "Let us in, " "No ...

BUMPER STICKER: ONLY A FOOL BELIEVES THE BIASED LIBERAL MEDIAFormer Texas Senator and respected conservative radio talk show host Mike Richards is offering bumper stickers to get the message out that the liberal media cannot be trusted. If you are interested in obtaining some of these stickers, please send an S.A.S.E. to:Mike Richards11767 Katy Freeway Suite 690Houston, TX 77079Include $ .50 for each bumper sticker you want.

Walter Williams November 8, 2000My new entitlement By appearance alone, no one would ever guess that next year I'll celebrate my 65th birthday. Going by this year's presidential campaign promises, simply by surviving 65 years I acquire the right to have my prescription drugs paid by younger Americans. That's even if that younger person has less wealth and income than I. Does simply surviving 65 years guarantee me the right to live at the expense of young people? Not quite, according to vice presidential candidate Sen. Joe Lieberman. Lieberman knows his Bible. He said that paying prescription drugs for older ...