Free Republic

(CHICAGO) The activists who are agitating for a $15 minimum wage are rejecting Mayor Rahm Emanuel's $13 an hour proposal. The Raise Chicago Coalition organized by the Service Employees Union says $13 is a good start, but they still want $15. In any case, the coalition’s Adeline Bracey says the current minimum wage cannot stand. “I can’t survive on $8.25,” Bracey said. “My community cannot thrive on $8.25! We are barely alive on $8.25. And in the words of the rapper, this ain’t no jive, this $8.25!”

The federal government is continuing to dole out billions of dollars to people who shouldn't get them. A government watchdog agency said an estimated $106 billion in payments were made in error last year: meaning they were the wrong amount, went to the wrong person or lacked sufficient documentation. These payments include tax refunds, unemployment benefits, Social Security benefits, and Medicare and Medicaid coverage. The improper payments could be even higher since not all agencies reported to the Government Accountability Office. The White House acknowledged that "the loss to the Federal Government is significant," but it pointed to a declining...

United Nations: Arab nations are calling for an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council and immediate action to end what they say is Israel's "outrageous onslaught" against Palestinians, especially in Gaza. Palestinian UN envoy Riyad Mansour and ambassadors representing Arab, Islamic and non-aligned nations say that they expect an urgent council meeting to be held very soon. They spoke to reporters after meeting the Security Council president. "We want the Security Council to shoulder its responsibility and stop this aggression against our people," Mansour said.

Salma and Zahra Halane were among the top 20 students at their girls’ school in Manchester but slipped out of their bedrooms and have fled abroad to become 'jihadi brides'. The 16-year-olds, who disappeared two weeks ago, have telephoned their parents to tell them they have reached the war-torn country and warned them 'we're not coming back'. Their mother told the Daily Mail last night: ‘I’m just so shocked.’ The 44-year-old, who wears a hijab, then broke down in tears at her semi-detached home in a leafy suburb of Chorlton, Manchester.  Police said today that the twins 'potentially pose a...

Too young to purchase alcohol, Logan Brown, 18, and Christopher Ramos, 20, elected to pair their marijuana with the popular cereal Froot Loops on July 3 — after they broke into the Challenger K-8 School, a Hernando County Sheriff’s Office report said. The pot-puffing pair was busted after a Hernando detective posted images from the school’s surveillance video on the sheriff’s office Facebook page and distributed the images by a Community Alert Bulletin, the report said. Inside the school, Brown and Ramos wandered the halls and looked inside classrooms until they found an open room, went inside and stole the...

Friday. July 11: Free small Slurpee drink Saturday, July 12: Free Big Gulp soft drink Sunday, July 13: Free M&M's Birthday Cake Flavor candies Monday, July 14: Free Grandma's Cookies Tuesday, July 15: Free Hostess Twinkies Wednesday, July 16: Free Snickers or Twix brand ice cream bar Thursday, July 17: Free Quaker Chewy Yogurt snack bar Friday, July 18: Free Pillsbury cookie Saturday, July 19: Another free small Slurpee drink

Ever wake up somedays and wonder why you work and put in the effort for others to leech off your hard work, especially those who are not even citizens. Ever just think about just throwing your arms up in the air and saying to hell with it and quitting your job or shutting down your business and becomming a deadbeat like the other people that some of your hard earned tax money goes to. Ever just wonder if we will never wake up again as country if you keep working hard to prop stuff up. Realizing that the only way...

According to Coin ATM Radar, there are only 132 Bitcoin ATMs in the entire world. Here in the U.S., there are about a dozen Bitcoin ATMs, the first of which was launched in Texas. These are not like ordinary ATMs, either. It's a longer process that involves scanning your palm and entering an email address, among other hoops. Bitcoin currency has exploded in popularity in part because of its anonymous nature, though its rapid rise in value has attracted a larger audience as well. Consider that the price of a Bitcoin in February 2011 was a single dollar, versus upwards...

President Barack Obama will spend Wednesday afternoon discussing the immigration crisis with faith leaders, politicians, and Texas Governor Rick Perry in Dallas. But the issues surrounding immigration extend beyond Texas. People across the country are coming together as part of a National Day of Action for immigration reform. At the Texas Association of Business and similar locales in 19 other states, community leaders are stressing the need for immigration reform, and they are urging Congress to take action now. Leaders in business, manufacturing, agriculture and religion say Congress and the Obama administration need to work together to help end the...

Fugitive national security contractor Edward Snowden has filed the paperwork to extend his refuge in Russia as the July 31 expiration of his asylum grant approaches, his lawyer told Russian media on Wednesday. Snowden has indicated in interviews during his yearlong stay in Russia that he would like to move on elsewhere or even come home to the United States if he could be assured of getting a fair trial on the espionage charges the U.S. Justice Department has filed against him.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: You lie! (Boos.) THE PRESIDENT: It's not true. And one more misunderstanding I want to clear up -- under our plan, no federal dollars will be used to fund abortions, and federal conscience laws will remain in place. (Applause.)

The U.S. Treasury is expected to put pressure on China over recent weakness in its currency during high-level meetings in Beijing this week.

y and isn’t a term thrown around casually by many elected officials or political pundits simply because a president takes an opposite position on a give political issue. While a good number of pro-life Americans probably want to see President Barack Obama impeached because of his lengthy pro-abortion record, impeachment as an actuality in the way President Bill Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives hasn’t been a serious subject. palin13Until now. Former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, in an executive article written for Breitbart News, is calling for Obama’s impeachment.Although Palin is pro-life and diametrically opposed to Obama’s...

Former U.S. president George W. Bush recently opened the doors to his gorgeous Texas ranch to reveal rooms where he once hosted world leaders and where he now bides his time painting them. Bush gave a tour of the Crawford home he completed just after becoming the nation's 43rd president in 2001 to Architectural Digest for the magazine's August cover story. It's a rare glimpse at the sprawling property where Vladimir Putin once rode shotgun in Bush's pickup and where the younger of W.'s twins, Jenna, held her intimate 2008 wedding. George and Laura Bush have retired to Dallas, Texas...

Quinn and Rose are off the air, and we await word that they are returning soon. (Stand by) Meanwhile, our friendly group of dedicated FReeper Q&R fans will meet in our usual spot - same time, same station - as we always have! So grab your coffee - or whatever you choose to start your day - and drop in for some political chit-chat, or just to shoot the breeze! We are all coming from - or going to - work, but we all stop in to say ‘hi!’ Feel free to join us!

SHOULD REPUBLICANS IMPEACH OBAMA? YES NO NOT NOW

Barry Maguire Eve of Destruction Barry Soetaro Edge of Oblivion Enjoy.

NPR’s education team sent out a curious tweet Wednesday that prompted an online backlash. “I reach out to diverse sources on deadline,” the tweet from @npr_ed said. “Only the white guys get back to me.” The tweet seemed uncharacteristic for NPR, an outlet that fired analyst Juan Williams after he made remarks about feeling “nervous” if he sees people dressed in “Muslim garb” on an airplane.Kamenetz said she had mistakenly sent the tweet from the NPR education account instead of her own and that she regretted it.

I normally can't stand a sport where kicking a ball around results in a zero score and people cheer about that lame-oh Kurr-Rapp. However, Brazil sucks and is being trounced right now 7-1. I think Germany felt sorry and just allowed a score as a sign of sportsmanship. Normally (Hah!) I'd never watch woccer/soccer but, I just had a giant plate of ribs and I like seeing these chumps get trounced. Stoopit ball. Stoopit net. Stoopit country. Stoopit game.... stoopitest

Is it common for property reassessments to include an interior inspection by a contracted agency? I guess it's no big deal, but what actual right do they have to enter my home? I have not broken any laws, nor am I asking for some zoning permission where I need approval. Just wondering if anyone else's town/city has done this?