Free Republic

You cannot criticize me ever, but I can criticize you. Even though you’re up for reelection, you have no power, but I am the final say on all matters, even though I am unelected. I can disobey higher courts but you can’t push back even against a lower court. If you don’t like it, then you are a member of the KKK. Who am I? Well, a federal judge, of course. Last week, a radical federal judge went on a tirade against President Trump, ironically, criticizing him for criticizing outlandish rulings by federal judges. Carlton Reeves, an Obama-appointed judge in...

Fiat has a new ad out (ignore the advertising crap at the end, I couldn't find a clean version). Actually, I found two versions of the same ad. In the version I saw on TV, it ends with a girl saying "This is going to be so much better than the Tea Party".When I went looking for it, I found a different version that ends with the girl saying "This is going to start a revolution".

The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA) reported first-quarter net income of $0.5 billion, or $0.70 per share, and revenue of $15.2 billion. Current period results reflect solid performance across core businesses and a previously disclosed $0.20 charge on health care legislation, while the year-ago quarter was reduced by $0.31 per share on a charge due to poor market conditions in commercial airplanes (Table 1). < snip > Earnings guidance for 2010 has been revised to $3.50 to $3.80 per share, incorporating the previously announced charge of $0.20 per share.

CHICAGO, March 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Boeing (NYSE: BA) today announced that it expects to recognize an income tax charge of approximately $150 million as a result of the recently enacted Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as modified by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act. Beginning in 2013, Boeing will no longer be able to claim an income tax deduction related to prescription drug benefits provided to retirees and reimbursed under the Medicare Part D retiree drug subsidy. Although this tax increase does not take effect until 2013, accounting standards require that a deferred income tax asset be written...

Last Thursday, the State Supreme Court unanimously ruled that I-960's policies, approved by voters in 2007, will remain in effect. Remember, last year Democrat Senator Lisa Brown completely choreographed a tax bill (raising liquor taxes) for her lawsuit. It was set up perfectly, with pre-prepared speeches and statements by her and Lt. Gov. Brad Owen to help 'grease the wheels' for a successful challenge. But even with all their careful planning, a 9-0 ruling last week left I-960's policies in effect. On Saturday, two days after I-960's court affirmation, the Democrats moved a tax bill and this time, it was...

The wise ones knew it. Those that were observing with open eyes and reading between the lines, were predicting what would happen. We were all cognizant of the treachery that lay behind the polished veneer and the orchestrated, contrived oratory. We were aware of the backgrounds of his radical and corrupt associations and the influence these associations would have on his thought processes and decisions. We questioned the validity of his natural birth and were deeply concerned about his total lack of executive experience. This "candidate", rising up out of the shadows of Chicago corruption, was being groomed for plenary...

The month of June has been one that EADS will be hoping ends quickly. Starting with the arrest of Noel Forgeard, former co-CEO, the stock being branded a liability; by Joe Campbell and then just this week the arrest of another executive, the news that the US GAO had sided with Boeing in its protest of the KC-X tanker award will have left the European aerospace company reeling. You can read the GAO press release by clicking right here. From the very outset of the annoucement back in February 2008, Boeing’s view and position surrounding the protest had such conviction...

Lawyers acting for Kuwait Airways are warning that any aircraft that Iraqi Airways acquires face being impounded to settle the drawn-out $1 billion compensation case brought by the Kuwaiti flag-carrier following the Iraqi invasion of 1990. Iraq’s Government is in discussions with Boeing and Bombardier and has indicated plans to acquire more than 40 aircraft for Iraqi Airways. Both airframers have confirmed they are in talks over fleet requirements. << snip >> UK law firm Howard Kennedy partner Christopher Gooding, representing Kuwait Airways, says: “Kuwait Airways holds judgements against Iraqi Airways in excess of $1 billion. All appeal procedures have...

PARIS (AP) -- A lengthy probe by France's stock market authority points to "massive insider trading" at Airbus parent EADS, findings that have been forwarded to prosecutors, judicial officials said Wednesday. < snip > Judicial officials said the preliminary report indicated "massive" insider trading by 21 top managers at European Aeronautic Defense & Space between November 2005 and March 2006. The officials said the report was in the hands of investigating magistrate Xaviere Simeoni, who could file preliminary charges in the next few months. < snip > The AMF has been investigating how much executives and board members knew about...

This is a repost from 2001. Here is the original (locked) threadSad to say, the march of anti-constitutional laws continues to quicken the pace. Today tens of thousands of law abiding citizens face becoming "armchair felons" because they are not gullible enough to comply with mandatory registration and licensing of long owned firearms. Collectors have been raided on bogus pretexts, then arrested for "paper violations", and had their assets seized. It's a shame, but in many jurisdictions your AR-15 or SKS is an "outlaw rifle", and you are at risk every day that you keep it in your house. It...

LONDON, Oct 27 (Reuters) - The biggest buyer of the world's biggest airliner, Dubai-based carrier Emirates [EMAIR.UL], said on Friday the Airbus A380 was 5.5 tonnes overweight in addition to two years behind schedule. However, it has not yet started negotiations with the plane maker regarding these issues, Emirates President Tim Clark told reporters while visiting a new lounge at London's Heathrow Airport designed to handle Emirates' A380s. ... The airline's first A380 is now expected to be delivered in August 2008, which will force it to lease other aircraft in the interim. ... "It would be foolish to say...

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Virgin Atlantic on Thursday said it's agreed to push back deliveries of the troubled Airbus A380 superjumbo until 2013, a move it said would give Airbus the ability to focus on getting first versions of the planes to key customers. The privately held airline said by then, the A380 will have proved its "innovative design" over several years in customer service. Virgin had previously anticipating delivery of its first A380 in 2009. The deferral will allow Airbus to prioritize production and deliveries for launch customers such as Singapore Airlines, Virgin said, adding it's extended the leases of...

Arnold Schwarzenegger has ditched his beloved $950,000 fleet of Hummer cars in a bid to save the environment. The actor-turned-California governor is devoted to the sport-utility vehicles for their "precision." He was the first person to own one of them in 1992 after persuading manufacturers to make them for non-army purposes. But Hummers emit three times more carbon dioxide than a regular car - and after the State of California announced it was suing carmakers Toyota, Nissan, Ford, Honda, Chrysler and General Motors over greenhouse gas emissions, Schwarzenegger felt it was prudent to make the change. Eco-aware campaigner Al Gore...

Alaska Airlines Inc., the ninth-largest U.S. airline, was sued by a flight attendant who claimed her stress disorder makes it impossible for her to go through airport security checkpoints. Cheryl Gunderson said she was groped and fondled in a sexual manner while going through a checkpoint in 2003 and can't go through them anymore without suffering debilitating stress, according to a complaint filed Sept. 15 in U.S. District Court in Seattle. "The plaintiff is unable to even enter into close proximity to the screening area of an airport without becoming symptomatic of her post-traumatic stress disorder," her lawyer, Robert Van...

A first flight is always something to see. It’s the “moment of truth” in an airplane’s early life. It says, “Yeah, we designed this thing, and now we’ll show you that it can actually take to the air.” We’ve had two opportunities to experience such a moment this month. Just a few days ago the Boeing Large Cargo Freighter (LCF) took flight for the first time over Taiwan. It was a flight of just over two hours. The first of what we think will be about 250 flight test hours for this unique freighter, a modified 747-400. We’ve put together...

The sophisti-yokels are at the gates, C-13 and C-24 to be exact. The other day, on a flight over the Midwest, a sophisti-yokel – one of those smooth young alpha dogs with semi-expensive suits and implanted iPod ear-buds. Like sophisti-yokels everywhere, he exuded a sense of entitlement, assumed superiority and apparently his mama never taught him manners. “You call this legroom?” he said, jamming his knees into the seat in front of him. He whipped out a tissue and blew his nose. “This is what I paid 15 bucks extra for?” Reaching forward, he jammed the used tissue into the...

AIRBUS was delighted with the results of an evacuation test for its double-deck A380 on March 26th. Although one person broke a leg and others suffered minor injuries, 853 passengers were evacuated in the dark with half the doors blocked in 90 seconds--fast enough to satisfy safety regulators. Otherwise the aircraft would have faced further delays to its entry into service, already pushed back six months to the end of this year, because of problems wiring the in-flight entertainment system. The real test looming, however, will come from the market. Orders for the giant A380 have slowed to a trickle....

Just when things were going so well for the European plane maker, two major customers demand costly redesigns. The likely winner: Boeing Airbus, struggling to gain altitude against a couple of archrival Boeing's (BA) hot-selling models, has hit two major patches of turbulence in the past few days. On Mar. 28, the European planemaker's biggest customer, the International Lease Finance Corp., a Los Angeles-based subsidiary of American International Group (AIG), called for a top-to-bottom redesign of the A350, the plane Airbus plans to launch as a rival to Boeing's 787 Dreamliner. FUEL FACTOR. Then, on Mar. 30, Airbus acknowledged...

Airbus is celebrating today after receiving the thumbs-up from both the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the US Federal Aviation Administration for the evacuation trial it performed in Hamburg over the weekend (pictured below).

7 Min Time lapse video showing the production process involved in building an Airbus A380.