http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/children/ en-us Thu, 3 Jul 2008 23:46:56 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2040498/posts An Iraqi Army Soldier speaks with a father and son from the city of Nadeem, northwest of Baghdad, June 26, about the dangers of al-Qaida recruiting children to join their forces. Photo by Pfc. Lyndsey Dransfield. CAMP TAJI — Children, at times, are easy targets for criminals and terrorists. Not only are they the victims of attacks, they are now the victims of recruitment into dangerous organizations. Since the liberation of Iraq in 2003, there have been several incidents of al-Qaida using children to conduct their terrorist activities.Soldiers from 4th Platoon, Company C, 1st Battalion 14th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker... Multi-National Force - Iraq http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2040498/posts#comment Thu, 3 Jul 2008 23:46:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039839/posts "Below you will find a list of activities children 12 and under can do to get involved. To start, print out our Logo Coloring Sheet, color it in and display at your house or in your school. Write a letter or editorial to your local news paper, expressing "Why Barack Obama should become the next US President". ...Take an adult (voting age) to the polls on Election Day and encourage them to vote for you, by voting for Senator Obama. ...Host a Senator Barack Obama House Party or sleep-over. Contribute to the Kids for Obama Blog . Kids for Obama http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039839/posts#comment Wed, 2 Jul 2008 18:34:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2039353/posts Patriots live, breathe, and exude patriotism because it is part of their fiber. It becomes part of your fiber when you are taught, beginning as a child, that the root of America’s greatness is our freedom. You learn that America has freed millions of people from the grip of tyranny and oppression over our long and storied history. You learn that American freedom still serves as a beacon of hope for billions of people around the world. And while some people may not be proud of our country, Patriots are proud. Video. Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the U.S.A. (Proud to... The Patriot Room http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2039353/posts#comment Tue, 1 Jul 2008 20:04:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2039319/posts Patriots live, breathe, and exude patriotism because it is part of their fiber. It becomes part of your fiber when you are taught, beginning as a child, that the root of America’s greatness is our freedom. You learn that America has freed millions of people from the grip of tyranny and oppression over our long and storied history. You learn that American freedom still serves as a beacon of hope for billions of people around the world. And while some people may not be proud of our country, Patriots are proud. Video. Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the U.S.A. (Proud to... The Patriot Room http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2039319/posts#comment Tue, 1 Jul 2008 18:47:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039251/posts GULFPORT --A small group of youngsters in sailboats made it safely back to shore Monday after one of them capsized in the Mississippi Sound during an afternoon thunderstorm, authorities said. "The storm came up on them and they were trying to get everybody back when it happened," said Fire Chief Pat Sullivan. ------ SNIP ------ "The most heroic job, in my opinion, was the boy that brought his boat back in by himself," Clark said. "It was incredible. He looked to be 11 or 12 years old, out there battling against God and nature in a little-bitty sailboat." Sun Herald http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039251/posts#comment Tue, 1 Jul 2008 16:53:51 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2038871/posts Ali Abu Nebid, the Saydiyah Support Council Chairman, rides a merry-go-round with children after the opening of a playground on June 23 in the Saydiyah neighborhood of Baghdad's Rashid District. "I think the children will really enjoy this, and I am honored to be here at the official opening," said Maj. Peter Sicoli, the executive officer for the 4th Battalion, 64th Armor Regiment, attached to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Multi-National Division - Baghdad. Photo by Capt. Mark Miller. BAGHDAD — As daylights last remaining hours set over the horizon, and the summertime heat of Baghdad’s Rashid... Multi-National Force - Iraq http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2038871/posts#comment Mon, 30 Jun 2008 23:48:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2038365/posts French marines shoot children in bungled hostage display By Our Foreign Staff Last Updated: 11:39PM BST 29/06/2008 Seventeen people have been injured, including a child left in a critical condition, after French soldiers fired live bullets instead of blanks during an open day display. Troops stand outside the barracks near Carcassone Fifteen civilians and two soldiers were injured in the incident which involved a demonstration by members of a marines parachute regiment of hostage liberation exercises. Four of the 17 were seriously injured, with two described as critical, following "incomprehensible" scenes at the barracks near Carcassone, in the country's south-west.... The Telegraph (UK) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2038365/posts#comment Mon, 30 Jun 2008 01:21:58 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037022/posts WASHINGTON, June 26, 2008 – Sunny days will be just around the corner when Elmo and his friends bring “The Sesame Street Experience” to 43 military installations to help children trying to cope with parents’ deployments. Jillian Kules, 13 months, shows Leslye Arsht, deputy under secretary of defense for military community and family policy the new DVD she got June 26, 2008, at the launch of Sesame Workshop's "The Sesame Street Experience." Both the DVD and the live show were developed with the support of Arsht's office to help young military children cope with parents' deployments. Defense Dept. photo... America Supports You http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037022/posts#comment Thu, 26 Jun 2008 23:47:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036950/posts Italy to fingerprint all Roma gipsy children By Malcolm Moore in Rome Last Updated: 9:20PM BST 26/06/2008 Around 80,000 gipsy children are to be fingerprinted by the Italian authorities under a new scheme that has drawn comparisons to the policies of Benito Mussolini. Unicef said it was 'shocked and deeply worried' by Italy's plans to fingerprint all Roma children The Italian government has blamed immigrants, and particularly Roma gipsies, for the country's crime problems. Since Silvio Berlusconi became prime minister in April, gypsy camps in the south and north of the country have been burned by vigilante mobs. The home... The Telegraph (UK) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036950/posts#comment Thu, 26 Jun 2008 21:02:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036702/posts "The removal of anonymity from sperm and egg donors has provoked a crisis in fertility treatment that is denying couples the chance to try for a baby. Infertility therapy with donated sperm has collapsed to the lowest levels since records began, according to the first official figures, seen by The Times, since the Government banned anonymous donation in 2005. The number of women treated with donated sperm fell by about 20 per cent, from 2,727 in 2005 to 2,107 in 2006, the first full year after the change. The number of donor insemination treatment cycles fell by 30 per cent... TimesOnline http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036702/posts#comment Thu, 26 Jun 2008 14:04:12 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036431/posts Several years ago my husband borrowed a Shania Twain CD from the library. When my then 5-year-old daughter saw me roll my eyes at the barely dressed singer's provocative poses on the liner notes, she was smitten. She played the CD over and over, tossing her hair and wiggling her hips in imitation of those photos, oblivious to the innuendo but aware that she was doing something daring and rebellious. What, I thought, am I going to do when she's 13? Reading The Lolita Effect five years later, I wonder why that episode even stands out in my memory. To... The Washington Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036431/posts#comment Wed, 25 Jun 2008 23:09:13 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036052/posts As the Massachusetts State Legislature debates "Jessica's Law" -- named after Jessica Lunsford who was raped and murdered in Florida by a repeat sex offender -- one representative who is against the law expressed his displeasure on the floor of the House. Really expressed his displeasure. The representative, one James Fagan, said he'd “rip apart” 6-year-old victims on the witness stand and “make sure the rest of their life is ruined.” In a fiery soliloquy on the House floor, Fagan said he’d grill victims so that, “when they’re 8 years old they throw up; when they’re 12 years old, they... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036052/posts#comment Wed, 25 Jun 2008 08:44:14 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2035374/posts WASHINGTON, June 23, 2008 – Losing a parent or sibling who served in the military can be devastating to children, but they don’t have to cope alone. Monica Williams, 4, of Honolulu, was delighted to see her 2007 Good Grief Camp mentor, Javaris Warthen, when she came back to camp this year. For children attending the camp, a relationship with a mentor helps them cope with the loss of a loved one who served in the military. Monica's father, Sgt. Eugene Williams, died in Iraq in 2003. Photo courtesy of TAPS  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Thanks to... America Supports You http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2035374/posts#comment Tue, 24 Jun 2008 00:59:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2035075/posts Americans hate child molesters. Right? We mock them when they’re ensnared by Chris Hanson on To Catch a Predator. We watch Bill O’Reilly and Nancy Grace scream with outrage when they’re let out of jail and we howl with (understandable) anger about pedophile priests. In a culture in which just about any crime, short of murder, can be forgiven if enough time passes, child molestation appears to be one of the few crimes that most people just plain can’t let slide. So why is R. Kelly still a huge star? And why do so many in America clamor for the... North Star Writers Group http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2035075/posts#comment Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:46:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034750/posts Lance Cpl. Nick Folse (left), an intelligence analyst with 2nd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment poses for a photo with local Iraqi children while Cpl. Marco Vallejo passes out school supplies to the kids. School supplies were donated by teachers and students of the Oswego, Ill., Public School District #308 to give to the children. Photo by Pfc. Jerry Murphy. HAWAS — When a child thinks of school supplies, one thing comes to mind: the end of summer. No more going to the pool on hot summer afternoons. No more trips to the lake; just another year of sitting in a... Multi-National Force - Iraq http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034750/posts#comment Sun, 22 Jun 2008 16:34:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2034377/posts In a dramatic report, the New York Times has uncovered a conspiracy by the United States military to conscript children. Posing as male nannies, bow-tie wearing Republicans wisk away infants as their single mothers fulfill their dreams in exciting careers away from the drudgery of traditional home-based chores. They then force these babies into combat zones and cover up their misdeeds with the complicity of the right-wing hate media. This conspiracy came to light in today's Times. Buried deep inside a front page story detailing how George W. Bush has personally foreclosed on millions of American homeowners in order to... Give N' Go http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2034377/posts#comment Sat, 21 Jun 2008 16:10:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032502/posts 18 June 2008) The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran published a list of 114 child offenders awaiting execution in Iran today, the first time such a list has been made available detailing the practice, which has been banned in all but a handful of countries. The list is the result of comprehensive primary research by prominent Iranian human rights defender Emad Baghi. It forms part of his thus-far unpublished book “Right to Life II,” which demonstrates that such executions are not sanctioned by Islamic law as argued by Iranian authorities. The Iranian censors have not permitted the book... The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032502/posts#comment Tue, 17 Jun 2008 23:05:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2032250/posts From the natural disasters that have devastated thousands of lives around the globe to the bleak financial reports we’re hearing in our own country, it’s apparent we’re living in some serious times. We are an informed bunch with news alerts sent to us by email, text messaging, and the old standby—the TV screen. News seems to travel at the speed of light. But how much of this information is just too much? Cross Action News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2032250/posts#comment Tue, 17 Jun 2008 13:53:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031841/posts A Smithfield man this morning filed a federal lawsuit against Fayette County Children and Youth Services alleging that the agency removed his children from him -- and has forbidden contact with them for nearly a year -- even though there were no allegations of any kind of abuse against them. Filed on his behalf by the American Civil Liberties Foundation of Pennsylvania, the lawsuit seeks a temporary restraining order that would prohibit CYS from placing -- or threatening to place -- his children, who are staying with his parents, in foster care. The plaintiff is listed as "John Doe" in... Pittsburgh Post-Gazette http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031841/posts#comment Mon, 16 Jun 2008 17:12:12 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031593/posts A woman was shot 13 times by the father of her two young boys today, and the man then took the children and fled, authorities said. The shooting occurred about 10:40 a.m. at a home in the 10000 block of McBroom Street, near the 210 Freeway just west of Sunland. The woman, who was not identified, is in serious condition at a local hospital, police said. The father, Jose Luis Ortega, 27, and the woman got into an argument after she dropped the boys off at the house, said Los Angeles police Officer Julianne Sohn. Ortega then pulled out a... Daily News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031593/posts#comment Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:03:25 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031509/posts I have been told by a social worker that 1 in 4 children will be sexually abused by the time they are 18 years old. She is offering no proof to back up her numbers other than one advocacy website. I simply do NOT believe these numbers. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031509/posts#comment Sun, 15 Jun 2008 19:32:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031450/posts An Iraqi foreman goes over issues with the construction on the site of the Basra Children's Hospital in Basra, Iraq. The hospital will have more than 90 beds and serve primarily as a pediatric cancer treatment facility. Photo by Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Sheely. BASRA — The new Basra Children’s Hospital, a 94-bed pediatric cancer treatment facility, is currently under construction and is scheduled to open for patients in February 2009. The Gulf Region South Corps of Engineers Basra Area Office is responsible for over 40 reconstruction sites the city. Site surveys are an integral part of the process to... Multi-National Force - Iraq http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031450/posts#comment Sun, 15 Jun 2008 16:08:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031441/posts Staff Sgt. Andy Graves, a Paragould, Ark., native, takes a moment from his deployment to go on a mental vacation with his three daughters on June 13. Graves is a sergeant of the guard for the 1123rd Transportation Company, an Arkansas National Guard unit, 1/152nd Cavalry Regiment, an Indiana National Guard unit, 1st Sustainment Brigade, in support of Multi-National Division-Baghdad. Photo by 1st Lt. George Fowler. CAMP TAJI — Alone with his thoughts, Staff Sgt. Andy Graves, a Paragould, Ark., native, sits quietly in the “Snack Shack” during his guard shift reminiscing. Presently Graves is a squad leader for the... Multi-National Force - Iraq http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031441/posts#comment Sun, 15 Jun 2008 15:55:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031109/posts School children of the al-Menahay Primary School pose for a photo at their makeshift school north of Joint Security Site W-1. A house with five rooms near the destroyed school was used for classes until their school could be rebuilt. Photo by 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division Public Affairs. FOB KALSU — For school children in the south Baghdad area, getting an education has become a difficult, even dangerous prospect in recent years. In some cases, supplies were short and facilities were in disrepair. Sometimes the teachers weren’t there. In a few cases, the schools themselves were all... Multi-National Force - Iraq http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031109/posts#comment Sat, 14 Jun 2008 17:36:22 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031106/posts Staff Sgt. Joseph Reinsburrow, 64th Military Police Company and native of Towanda, Pa., holds an Iraqi child June 12 in Hurriyah, while Iraqi Police and Coalition forces hand out toys and school supplies to the local children. Photo by Sgt. Daniel Blottenberger, Multi-National Division Baghdad. CAMP VICTORY — When Iraqi Police (IP) and Coalition forces arrived at the Zainab Girls School in Hurriyah June 12, they were met by the smiling faces of more than 50 children and their caretakers in the Baghdad community. “This makes it all worth while,” said 1st Sgt. Thomas Gray, 64th MP Co., 18th Military... Multi-National Force - Iraq http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031106/posts#comment Sat, 14 Jun 2008 17:29:56 GMT