Free Republic

For decades, the Corner House stood as a silent reminder of Russian oppression. Now, the former KGB headquarters are open and exposing the horrors committed against the people of Riga. It’s like the plot of one of those dystopian young adult novels. There’s a sudden rapping at the door in the middle of the night. A stoic man in a trim suit hands you a warrant. Before you can open the crisp envelope you’re escorted to an imposing structure in the center of town. You’re led inside, and you disappear—never to be heard from again. For years, this was the...

President Obama announced his fiscal 2015 budget on Tuesday morning at Powell Elementary in the District’s Petworth neighborhood, highlighting the school’s early childhood education program as a model for the nation.

Details emerged yesterday about the seven interrogation techniques the CIA is seeking to be allowed to apply to terror suspects. Newsweek magazine reported that a New York lawyer, Scott Horton, who has acted as an adviser to the US senate on interrogation methods, had acquired a list of the techniques. The details were corroborated by information obtained by the charity Human Rights Watch. The techniques sought by the CIA are: induced hypothermia; forcing suspects to stand for prolonged periods; sleep deprivation; a technique called "the attention grab" where a suspect's shirt is forcefully seized; the "attention slap" or open hand...

The House of Representatives on Wednesday threw its weight behind a Senate-approved ban on the use of cruel, inhuman and degrading interrogation techniques - a major defeat for President Bush that raises pressure on the White House to reach a compromise on the measure. Democrats were joined by 107 Republicans in the 308-122 vote, which instructed House members to adopt the Senate ban during conference committee negotiations over a Defense Department spending bill. Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., who has recently clashed with the White House over Iraq policy, proposed the instruction. Only one Democrat, Jim Marshall of Georgia, voted against...

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan will discipline the former director of the oil-for-food program for Iraq and another official named in a investigation into the operation, his chief of staff said today. Benon Sevan, who was in charge of the program, was accused in a report from Paul Volcker, the former head of the US Federal Reserve, of using his position to solicit and receive oil allocations for a trading firm. Another official, Joseph Stephanides, was said to intervene in selecting contractors in the program. But Mark Malloch Brown, Mr Annan's new chief of staff, acknowledged that there was limited action...

<p>LOS ANGELES (AP) - A former police officer trying to prove her innocence in a 20-year-old murder case sued the "Dr. Phil" show, claiming false imprisonment before the taping of a show led to injuries and the amputation of her leg. The suit filed Monday in Superior Court claims Laurie Bembenek was hurt in 2002 when she tried to escape from an apartment where she was taken and kept by producers.</p>

Now that winter weather is approaching, you might find yourself stuck in the TV room. Fear not! The following is one man’s guide to what’s on. Feel free to add your own. This excludes pay-cable (like HBO, Cinemax, etc.) And you have to allow for regional variations (e.g., differences in time, football game coverage, affiliates, etc.) Includes selected talk shows. All times Eastern.Sunday 9:00AM TVLand – Burns & Allen - Cameo by Ronald Reagan.9:00AM CBS - Sunday Morning.Retrospective on the Pope’s 25th Anniv. 9:15AM AMC – To Catch a Thief – Too bad AMC added commercials, though10:00AM TOON – Scooby-Doo...

After the bombs in Bali and Kenya, and the attempt to use a missile to shoot down a passenger airliner, there is a growing sense that it is merely a matter of time before America suffers a new attack: one that could be even more destructive than what happened on September 11, 2001. Is there anything which can be done to prevent an impending catastrophe? It seems that there is. Only last week, the Intelligence Committee of the US Congress concluded that, had the FBI and the CIA actually responded effectively and efficiently to the information in their possession, they...