Free Republic

Evening folks. There's a line by a character in a very popular movie of the last generation: "In my experience, there's no such thing as luck...." And as a mote of dust adrift upon The Sea of Singular Uncertainty, certain things one just awaits with baited breath to be shown the way. How else would your eternal correspondent come up with these little vignettes that I hope tickle your fancies every other day? My friends, this is a linear, improvisational thing that we have created together. The thing that I love the most about this, this thing, it's like jazz,...

Evening folks. "Tis a foolish man who builds his house upon the sand." (If anyone knows the chapter and verse this biblical quote comes from, let me know...I heard it in that galactically nonsensical Hollywood boondoggle, "Volcano"...) Folks, for the first time in at least 30 years, the ground moved by itself at or around 5:00 AM this morning in the South. A 4.9 temblor gently shook Lady Horsie, myself, and our faithfull canine companion awake. In the Cereal State, or as it is also called, The Land of Fruits, Nuts, and Flakes, they call it "a foot massage". Down...

Last night I had a dream. I saw myself as the young man I once was, when every possibility was hanging like heavy ripened fruit from the Tree of my Life, a-swing and begging me only to pluck it and sink my teeth into it, letting the juice run down my chin in rivers. It was Spring, and I was auditioning for a play with thousands of other hopeful souls, and every face I cast my gaze upon looked into eyes as bright and gulieless as my own. The parts were few. And all of of us wanted more than...

I'm in the middle of an argumentAny helpo/links would be appreciated

You Jackass. Who signs your check? You give the word "impotent" a whole new meaning. You are more pathetic in your stupidity than my congressman. I have seen some pathetic displays of hackery in my time, but you, sir, are the worst. Abdicate from the human race now while you have some self respect. You certainly have NONE in my eyes. May your harddrive crash and burn. I hope that at some point, you are struck by a genetic dwarfism that rivals your galactic inconsequentilism on this board. You are nothing. You are as ineffectual and as irrelevant as the...

A member of my immediate family has been attacked. Repeatedly.The police are unable to take the action my heart demands. I need to know my rights if I decide to exact satisfaction. Hypothetically.

I'm not a wealthy man. I work 50 hours a week. I'm not in IT, I don't have an office, but I have a 12 foot long table where I help my employer make millions of dollars. I deal in volume. I make things happen. Me and 3 other dedicated people who are over worked but highly appreciated. I pay for my own healthcare, comes right off the top of my paycheck. My employer recognizes assets, and rewards them handsomely. Maybe not twice a month when my palm is crossed with pieces of gold and silver, but I know. I...

Six months after two terrorists died in the World Trade Center attack, the Florida flight school where they trained has received their student visa approval forms from the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Huffman Aviation received the paperwork Monday acknowledging the INS approvals for Mohamed Atta, 33, of Egypt, and Marwan Al-Shehhi, 23, of the United Arab Emirates. Atta and Al-Shehhi trained at Huffman in Venice, Fla., in 2000 and early 2001, and were aboard the separate flights that struck the World Trade Center towers. The two initially entered the United States on visitor's visas but applied for an M-1 student...

The Political Compass Just a few propositions to start with, concerning - no less - how you see the country and the world..Take the testlt;/a hrefgt;

It appears Pete Rose wasn't the only person from baseball involved with gambling in 1989. Major League Baseball's front office secretly conducted a gambling investigation centered on umpires amid the Rose gambling probe 13 years ago, the New York Daily News reported Friday. According to documents obtained by the newspaper, the investigation produced a written report by Rose investigator John Dowd and two years' probation for two of baseball's most highly regarded umpires Frank Pulli of the National League and Rich Garcia of the American League. The report stated the umps were disciplined for "associating and doing business with ...

Fox 5 in Atlanta is reporting that state inspectors successfully ignited the burner in the Tri- State Crematory. Ray Brent Marsh had told investigators that a 160.00$ dollar part on the starter motor was the reason he had been burying bodies on the property.Developing....

TO VETO OR NOT TO VETO: BUSH, AIDES IN HEATED DEBATE OVER SOFT MONEY BAN **Exclusive** A heated debated has developed inside of President Bush's inner circle over whether to veto a congressional bill which would limit forms of campaign cash to parties by companies, unions and individuals. Majority Leader Daschle [D-SD] vowed swift action in the Senate on a House measure, which would also outlaw advertising by groups that target candidates just before an election. "We can't let this stand!" argued one of Bush's senior advisers on Thursday, according to a well-placed source. "We ran against this issue during ...

The sound of the ax is heard now throughout the land, and depending on where you sit on the political continuum, you may perceive the sound as one of righteous sharpening or one of endless grinding. But there is no doubt as to the targeted necks: Bill and Hillary Clinton are first in line, followed closely by Big Media, political correctness and the '60s in general, or at least the revolutionary and self-indulgent portions. In one of those strange alignments that happens every so often, three of the top 10 New York Times nonfiction best sellers are attacks on what ...

I keep getting "currently disabled"... Help.

I like this show in spite of it's political bent.FWIW.

Bud Selig seems to have no sweat glands, his unwavering delivery constituting that car-dealer's charm that his fellow owners find so endearing. For that precise reason, the moment most favored by many during his Dec. 6 hearing before the House Judiciary Committee came when Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) had heard enough poor-mouthing and yelled to remind him that he was under oath. The commissioner grinned about the exchange after the hearing. But Selig has seen nothing yet. He has to go back to the Hill next month to face the Senate Judiciary Committee about the same challenges to Major League ...

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Elton John, No Doubt and the Eagles are among a group of musicians who will perform at five benefit concerts the night before the Grammy Awards telecast to raise money for a legislative fight against the record industry. The Recording Artists Coalition, a trade group representing more than 100 entertainers, has booked several sites in Los Angeles for the Feb. 26 concerts. Money raised from the concerts will help fund an offensive against the major record labels for allegedly denying musicians a share of royalty earnings. Courtney Love and the Dixie Chicks are embroiled in their ...

Northrop Grumman Pitches 30,000-Pound Guided Bomb To Air Force Fri Dec 14 2001 10:40:25 ET Northrop Grumman has briefed Air Force officials on a concept to field a 30,000-pound guided weapon, called 'Big BLU,' that could be used as a penetrator to destroy hardened targets that may house enemy leaders or weapons of mass destruction, DEFENSE DAILY reported on Friday. The proposal may gain favor with the Pentagon as the military tries to kill Al-Qaeda leaders holed up in Afghan caves. An Air Force official said, however, that the weapon will have significant cost and schedule hurdles associated with aircraft ...

L/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S.-backed Afghan tribal fighters closed in on Osama bin Laden's forces in the Tora Bora mountains on Tuesday as President Bush branded the militant leader a murderer with no conscience and no soul. Elsewhere in Afghanistan, calm returned as aid began to flow, bickering warlords patched up their differences and Britain agreed to lead an international security force to keep order in the war-ravaged country. Conscious of the fragile peace, U.N. special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi arrives in the Afghan capital on Tuesday to discuss the transfer of power ahead of the installation of an interim government on ...

It takes more than a little motorcycle crash to keep a good Terminator down. Arnold Schwarzenegger was admitted to St. Johns Hospital in Santa Monica after fracturing several ribs in a motorcycle accident Sunday morning. But his publicist says the 54-year-old last action hero is resting comfortably and is scheduled to be released later today. "[Arnold's] in good spirits, feeling sore, but otherwise fine," reports publicist Jill Eisenstadt. No details were released about the nature of the accident but apparently it wasn't serious enough to keep Schwarzenegger off the slopes. Says Schwarzenegger in a statement: "Don't worry. This won't affect ...