Free Republic

TEHRAN, Iran — A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck western Iran near its border with Iraq on Sunday night, injuring more than 500 people and sending fearful residents running into the streets, authorities said.

There is a world of advice out there for President-elect Barack Obama. Within minutes of his election, the calls from foreign governments began, Obama aides said, and they have not stopped. While the first telephone exchanges between Mr. Obama and foreign leaders were limited to pledges of future cooperation and invitations to visit, those leaders and their aides have also been contacting Mr. Obama’s advisers and their surrogates with suggestions on how an Obama administration should conduct, and change, American foreign policy.

MOUNT Etna has erupted sparking fear across Sicily as Europe's biggest and most powerful volcano sends an ash cloud across the holiday isle in Italy. Italy’s Mount Etna has started spewing lava in what is its second eruption of the year. Giant fountains of lava could be seen sprouting from the volcano, located on the isle of Sicily, as far away as Catania, around 30 kilometres away, and the resort town of Taormina.

Are you a LOW INFORMATION VOTER ? Think not ? When you go to vote tomorrow, can you name ANYONE ELSE who is up for election and will be on the ballot ? Can you name any of the other propositions that will be on your state ballot ? IF NOT, then the remedy is in your hands right now. Just GOOGLE "NOV 8 BALLOT FOR (your state here)". Go through it and use GOOGLE(or whatever search engine your prefer) to get info on the candidates for each office, or position (usually Judgeships). Read about each of the propositions and...

The FRANKLIN SCANDAL is the story of a nationwide pedophile ring that pandered children to a cabal of the rich and powerful. The ring’s pimps were a pair of political powerbrokers who had access to the highest levels of our government. Nebraska legislators attempted to expose the network in 1989 and 1990, but the legislators' efforts were followed by a rash of mysterious deaths and the overpowering responses of federal and local law enforcement, including the FBI and Justice Department, which effected an immaculate cover-up of the trafficking network. (the link provided is to the website for the book. Just...

A gas leak deep under Los Angeles has been spewing 1.6 million lbs. of methane each day, with no immediate end in sight. The months-long leak in Porter Ranch is already the worst in California's history, and environmental advocates fear it could have a long-term impact on the climate. While methane does not stay in the atmosphere for as long as carbon dioxide, it traps radiation more effectively, making it a significant contributor to global warming.

NASA has released the first images taken during New Horizons’ historic flyby of dwarf planet Pluto.(This is an excerpt).

Brandon Bostian, the engineer driving the Amtrak train that derailed in Philadelphia Tuesday night, has no recollection of the crash itself, his attorney told ABC News.

I found a link to this INTERACTIVE VIEW of the Curiosity Rover on Mars on the ASTRONOMY PICTURE OF THE DAY ARCHIVE. It is one of the most amazing uses of this technology I have seen. It is like standing beside the Rover on Mars and using a pair of binoculars. Give it a try. It is really fun.

High above the the flood plains of the Missouri River, 28 men, women, and children gathered to participate in one of today's fastest growing sports. Disc Golf. The occasion was part of the LEGACY Tournament, put on by Patrick Smith, a local player and a heck of a great guy. These tournaments are scheduled about 2-3 weeks apart, and are held at various courses around our local area. Patrick is sponsoring these mini-tournaments in an effort to provide funds to the courses for improvements. The Course in this video doesn't yet have Flags on the Holes. If you aren't aware...

Was that the space shuttle that just went by? Garnering attention that could make even a movie star blush, thousands of people watched in awe as a quintessential icon of the space age was towed through the streets of Los Angeles. After landing at LAX airport late last month, the shuttle Endeavour was carefully loaded onto rolling trailers and maneuvered down roads and across bridges to the California Science Center, 20 kilometers away. To many, there was a majesty to the voyage that was beyond description, inspiring people to line the LA streets and wait at windows and balconies to...

Things have changed at the site of the BP Spill. The CAP they put on has been removed from the top of the BOP. Go to the link, to see for yourself.

Someone provided this link earlier, and I have lost the name of the Freeper who provided it. Whomever it was, THANK YOU.

Help support President Obama's initiative to reduce the national debt by bidding on this fine assortment of historic White House collectibles.

I was in need of a California road trip real bad, so after provisioning with ten bucks worth of beef jerky, Triscuits, a can of aerosol cheese, a case of beer, guns and tools we shoved off and headed away from town. Ended up at Giant Rock about dusk and discovered that Giant Rock is now Giant Rocks. Seems a couple of days earlier some religious freaks with no outdoors sense built a fire under the Integretron facing side of the rock. The fire blazed all night and stressed the rock internally until it fractured and sent an apartment sized...

ELDORADO, Texas — When a grand jury meets here later this month, criminal indictments could be handed down against more members of the Fundamentalist LDS Church. .... Some of that evidence has been used in child-custody cases over the hundreds of FLDS children taken into state protective custody during the raid. Texas Child Protective Services has said it has evidence of at least 10 underage marriages. A CPS caseworker testified during a court hearing last week that an investigation revealed "48 percent of the men at the ranch were involved in underage marriage practices." ..... "Sheriff Doran advised affiant that...

DENVER - A Colorado Springs woman considered a person of interest in an investigation of phone calls that may have sparked a raid on a Texas polygamist group is on a list of possible witnesses to testify against the sect. .... An Oct. 1 hearing is scheduled challenging the search warrant on the sect.

A Texas judge has ordered a 14-year-old FLDS girl -- apparently married to the sect's leader at age 12 -- back into state custody, saying the girl's mother has been unable to provide assurances the girl would be safe in her care. .... Walther ordered Merril Jessop to have no contact with the children and to submit a DNA sample to the state. The parents were also ordred to pay $180 a month each in child support for the time their daughter remains in state care. .... State attorney Jeff Schmidt argued officials had shown the couple condones underage marriage...

A spokesman for the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was in state court Thursday to ask a judge if members can ultimately own their homes, now held by a state-managed church trust. ...... Judge Denise Lindberg on Thursday told Willie Jessop that under the newly revised trust managed by accountant Bruce Wisan, members can own their own homes, with some restrictions. She also sought to assure him there is no bias against the church in the management of the trust. ....... Until now the FLDS have operated on a directive from imprisoned church leader Warren Jeffs...

Texas child welfare officials on Tuesday asked a court to order foster care for eight children at a polygamous compound, saying their mothers have refused to limit the children's contact with men suspected of being involved in underage marriages. ... "In the cases of the eight children listed in today's court filing, the mothers have refused to sign the safety plans," according to the statement, which said the cases include six girls and two boys who range in age from 5 to 17 years old. A hearing to determine whether to put the eight children in foster care was scheduled...