Free Republic

Demanding a Refund [Mark Krikorian] Michelle Malkin has a great idea — people who've donated (however small the amount) to the GOP campaign committees or to any of the Ted Kennedy Republicans should call and demand a refund. I understand it's party policy to provide refunds to those who ask, though I don't know if that's true. Anyone who has details on this, let me know — also if you've demanded a refund, what happened? Mickey Kaus is skeptical, saying that organizing primary or general election challenges, or recalls, is what will really get a Senator's attention. That's true, but...

The "Palestinian" Contributions to Humanity 1) Commit the crimes on your own kids (human bombs, human shields) and always blame the Zionist victim. 2) How to united the Arab world, bring about "Dead Arab kids", Hezbollah picked up on that very fast. 3) The bastion of (fake) excuse for Islamists' crimes against humanity. 4) The phenomenon of "brown" Arabs Kissing up to "white" Hitler, Hitlerists, never mind what one wishes the other. 5) Inventing big drama words, such as "apartheid", "racism" for those daring to stand up against Racist, Fascist terrorists. 6) The lucky invention of the 1960's, One of the 21...

Not really sure where to put this. Would like to post it for any comments, additions, subtractions, other FReepers might have. Suggestion: How about programming some stars that go with your handle on posts as a vanity tag. So you'd get one star attached to your handle per $10/month you are currently giving to FR on auto deduction plan. (or per $20/month.) Would like to hear what other FReepers think about the idea, even if they disagree! What do you think? Would it be cool, or not? **1-Eagle <--- wahoo! I gots two stars! (well, and 1/2, grin)

SOUTHWEST ASIA, April 30, 2006 – Participants in the Joint Civilian Orientation Course began the last leg of their whirlwind trip through the U.S. Central Command area of operations yesterday by learning about the vast mission the Air Force carries out in support of troops on the ground. JCOC participants armed with paintball rounds practice a drill with Air Force security force members. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Larry Chambers, USGC  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Military officials asked that the visit's exact location not be released. Air Force Lt. Gen. Gary North, commander of U.S. Central...

WASHINGTON, April 20, 2006 – Iraqi security forces continue to play an increasingly larger role in the fight against terrorism, with many units taking responsibility for their own areas and making connections with citizens, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad said today. In a marked improvement over last year's three battalions, the Iraqi army now has two divisions, 16 brigades and 58 battalions that have the lead in counterinsurgency operations in their areas, Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, Multinational Force Iraq spokesman, said at a news conference. Also, at least 25 percent of daily company-level and above operations are independent...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has failed to report that American Media Inc. -- publisher of the National Enquirer and top body-building magazines - - gave $250,000 this year to one of his pet charities in a move critics charge may be a violation of state ethics law. The hefty donation to the nonprofit California Governor's Council on Physical Fitness came to light Friday after American Media filed new documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission describing the end of its business relationship with the governor. --snip-- But no record of the donation is on file with the Fair Political Practices Commission,...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - A business group raising money to back Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's package of constitutional amendments for an upcoming special election has sued to overturn a cap on contributions to committees controlled by elected officials. The suit, served Wednesday on the California Fair Political Practices Commission, targets a regulation that officials from the Citizens to Save California and the governor's office have said does not apply to them because Schwarzenegger does not play a controlling role in the group. Critics have charged that Citizens to Save California is violating the regulation by raising unlimited amounts of money for campaign...

In his address last week, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger called for a 401(k) style defined-contribution pension system for state workers. In a January 24 hearing on pension issues, state legislators should consider the evidence for why such a system is necessary. Lucrative disability pensions are becoming the rule rather than the exception in some counties. A disability pension is 50-percent tax free and provides half the employee's salary for life and up to 100 percent for the employee's spouse if the employee dies. In L.A. County alone, according to a January 3 Los Angeles Daily News report, about 1,200 former county...

U.S. military now has 16,500 working in South Asia on tsunami relief effort By Fred Zimmerman, Stars and Stripes Pacific edition, Monday, January 10, 2005 (Click here for a map with details of the U.S. military's relief effort in Asia.) http://www.stripes.com/05/jan05/milrelief.html UTAPAO, Thailand — The U.S. military’s support of humanitarian relief efforts in South Asia continues to grow, with more than 16,500 troops converging on the region to lend a hand. More than 10,800 are on the ships of the Navy’s Expeditionary Strike Group 5 and Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group, which is carrying the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit. The...

By Gene J. Koprowski Published 1/5/2005 11:57 AM CHICAGO, Jan. 4 (UPI) -- The Internet is proving integral to the tsunami relief effort for major American charities, from Episcopal Relief and Development to the United Jewish Fund. Empathetic donors are wielding debit and credit cards to contribute cash instantly, rather than sending a check that could take days to arrive, development directors told United Press International. The tragedy that last week killed upwards of 150,000 people in Southeast Asia and East Africa is, in its own way, reshaping the way non-profits raise funds, just as former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean's...

Dear Donor, Thank you very much for your donation to the victims of the Beslan terror act. We would like to ask you for several minutes of your time to update you on the status of our project, let you know how else you can assist the children in Beslan, and provide you with other important information. This message is divided into 5 sections: A. Status report B. Appeal to donors from the Board of Trustees C. New projects for the children of Beslan D. Conference call to be held for donors and supporters E. Receipt for your donation F....

John Kerry's stated purpose for being in Philadelphia Thursday was to speak to delegates at the NAACP's annual convention. But the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee also managed to leave town with more than $500,000 in his pocket, largely courtesy of the city's trial lawyers, large firm lawyers and their clients.... Though event organizers played down the role of trial lawyers, they did say that more than half of the funds raised for the event -- an hour-long meet-and-greet session for contributors held at Philadelphia International Airport Thursday afternoon -- came from trial lawyers.

Take a look at the campaign contributions made by these three lovlies:Sam WaksalPeter BacanovicMartha Stewart Gee...I wonder what they have in common?

SPARTANBURG, SC (Talon News) -- Liberal online political group MoveOn.org as well as two major Democrat candidates for president are in the midst of a brewing scandal over potentially improper online contributions received from European citizens who have been encouraged to send money to the group to help defeat President George W. Bush in next year's elections. In an article posted last week in the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, the headline read, "Now you have the chance to leave your mark on Bush." The story tells Europeans that they have "a chance to defeat [Bush] -- even if you are not...

SACRAMENTO – A consumer group has called on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to return a $50,000 contribution from a technology company that does business with the state, saying it violates the governor's pledge not to take money from special interests. Schwarzenegger opened his campaign saying he didn't need to take money from "special interests." He later narrowed his ban on contributions to those from parties he would have to negotiate with, namely Indian tribes and labor unions. Critics called the governor's policy murky, since it allowed him to take money from car dealers, developers and other businesses that have interests in...

<p>I and a number of other wealthy Americans are contributing millions of dollars to grass-roots organizations engaged in the 2004 presidential election. We are deeply concerned with the direction in which the Bush administration is taking the United States and the world.</p>

<p>The Best and Brightest Charles Murray tries to quantify "Human Achievement."</p> <p>BY GARY ROSEN Thursday, October 23, 2003 12:01 a.m.</p> <p>In our age of overused superlatives, none stands in greater need of rehabilitation than "genius," a title that Leonardo now shares with such eminences as Warren Buffett and Eminem. Charles Murray's rough-and-ready test is whether an individual's work makes us ask, in wonder, "How can a human being have done that?" But he doesn't stop there. Incorrigible social scientist that he is, Mr. Murray wants to prove that supreme excellence actually exists in the arts and sciences. The result is "Human Accomplishment," a systematic effort to rate and rank the likes of Aristotle, Mozart and Einstein and to describe the conditions that have allowed them to flourish. Much of this brick of a book is devoted to explaining, in tiresome detail, just how Mr. Murray goes about quantifying the seemingly unquantifiable. His trick is to consult the experts--or, rather, to distill usable numbers from their encyclopedias, anthologies, general histories and biographical dictionaries. An individual making an appearance in at least 50% of the selected sources for a given field wins the label "significant figure." By Mr. Murray's reckoning, there have been 4,002 such "people who matter" in the period 800 B.C. to 1950. Each member of this Pantheon gets an "index score" on a 100-point scale, based on how much attention--pages, column inches, etc.--he receives in the specialist literature.</p>

Fonda leads contributors to political groups with $13 million PETE YOST Associated Press WASHINGTON - Atlanta-based actress and political activist Jane Fonda was the largest individual contributor to a political fund-raising group in the last three years, donating $13.1 million to pro-choice causes, a new study shows. Political fund-raising groups known as 527s have spent more than $400 million in the past three years, and Democrats are relying more heavily on their support than Republicans, according to the study by the Center for Public Integrity. Fonda's Atlanta spokesman did not respond to calls seeking comment from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. But...

In recent days, Tom McClintock, the "other Republican" in California's recall race, has accepted a million dollars spent on his behalf by a left-wing special interest group. He has claimed that a Democrat victory in the recall election would be desirable, as it would better his chances in 2006. And he has joined with Democrat Cruz Bustamante in a boycott against fellow Republican, Arnold Schwarzenegger. This is the man we're supposed to believe represents the conscience of conservatism? At the end of the day, Tom McClintock's Faustian Pact with the Left has made one thing clear - it's all about...

American Indians who are supporting Democrat front-runner Cruz Bustamante in California are also promoting Republican state Sen. Tom McClintock, and GOP front-runner Arnold Schwarzenegger is furious. "I think that as far as Tom McClintock is concerned, I think the question I have for him is, what side is he on?" Schwarzenegger said Thursday. "Is he on the side of the Republicans? Does he represent the Republicans, or does he represent Bustamante?" Schwarzenegger suggested that the tribes were abetting Bustamante by trying to split the Republican vote. "They are financing his commercials and TV spots and all that," said Schwarzenegger, who...