Free Republic

Beware of the Brown Note. That's the word among some political activists as the Democratic National Convention nears. As legend has it, the Brown Note is an infrasonic frequency believed to resonate through human body parts and cause a loss of bowel control. Some protesters are convinced that Denver police will amplify such low frequencies to subdue them in August. "They'll bring out all the technologies they can get their hands on," says activist Ben Yager. "I wouldn't put anything past police in terms of crowd control." Sounds paranoid? Maybe. But Mayor John Hickenlooper's administration is only fueling conspiracy theories...

Mike Huckabee once advocated isolating AIDS patients from the general public, opposed increased federal funding in the search for a cure and said homosexuality could ``pose a dangerous public health risk.'' As a candidate for a U.S. Senate seat in 1992, Huckabee answered 229 questions submitted to him by The Associated Press. Besides a quarantine, Huckabee suggested that Hollywood celebrities fund AIDS research from their own pockets, rather than federal health agencies. ``If the federal government is truly serious about doing something with the AIDS virus, we need to take steps that would isolate the carriers of this plague,'' Huckabee...

Yesterday’s GOP presidential debate was won, as have all of them so far, by Ron Paul. No wonder his fund-raising is booming. His courage was shown by touching the supposed “third-rail” of modern politcics, Socialist Security. Everybody knows it’s going broke as the baby boomers begin retiring, but only Ron Paul had the guts — the heart, the brilliance — to say that young folks, who pay the bills but will get nothing from the system, should be allowed to opt out of the whole scam. Paul also said that Socialist Security’s problems will only get worse if inflation continues,...

Most respondents to a UPI-Zogby International poll want to repeal the law granting automatic citizenship to anyone born in the United States. More the half of the overall pool of 8,300 U.S. residents said if parents who are illegal aliens are deported, their children should go with them -- even if they are U.S. citizens

FAR-RIGHT extremists have adopted the tactics of Islamic jihadis by posting videos on the internet in which they threaten to behead British Muslims. The films show balaclava-clad white British men brandishing guns, knives and clubs, calling on all Muslims to leave Britain or be killed. One appears to be a soldier who has served in the Gulf. In one film, a man tells Muslims to "go home" or risk being burned alive. He threatens, "I'll cut your head off", and claims to have "comrades" across Britain who have "had enough". The videos were made after the arrests three weeks ago...

Two Asian students have revealed their shock and despair after being thrown off a plane because other passengers feared they were suicide bombers. • Mutiny as passengers refuse to fly until Asians are removed Manchester Umist students Sohail Ashraf and Khurram Zeb, both 22, said they sympathised with nervous travellers, but urged people not to be paranoid about Muslims. "We might be Asian, but we're two ordinary lads who wanted a bit of fun," Mr Ashraf told the Daily Mirror. "Just because we're Muslim does not mean we are suicide bombers." The pair were marched off the jet at gunpoint...

LAS VEGAS -- A battle is brewing over a new Las Vegas ordinance that bans providing food or meals to the indigent at city parks. The Las Vegas City Council unanimously passed a law, which went into effect Thursday, making it a crime to feed the homeless at city parks. It carries a maximum penalty of $1,000 and six months in jail. Video: Vegas: Don't Feed The Homeless The law bans giving away or selling food to anyone who could get assistance from official sources under state law, and officials said city marshals will get specialized training to enforce it....

The governor of Texas wants to turn all the world into a virtual posse. Rick Perry has announced a $5 million plan to install hundreds of night-vision cameras on private land along the Mexican border and put the live video on the Internet, so that anyone with a computer who spots illegal immigrants trying to slip across can report it on a toll-free hot line. "I look at this as not different from the neighborhood watches we have had in our communities for years and years," Perry said last week. Some say it is a dangerous idea and a waste...

OVERVIEW One reason the U.S. government provides tax credits is to promote consumer behavior that benefits the greater good. While not many would argue with a tax credit that allows teachers to recover unreimbursed costs of school supplies, for example, some tax credits demonstrate a failure of our national priorities. The tax break given to small business owners that allows the entire purchase price of a sport utility vehicle (SUV) to be deducted is one of the most glaring examples of a good idea going in the wrong direction.

US mosques checked for radiation The magazine says the targets were nearly all identified by the FBI US authorities have been secretly monitoring radiation levels at Muslim sites amid fears that terrorists might obtain nuclear weapons, it has emerged. Scores of mosques and private addresses have been checked for radiation, the US News and World Report says. A Justice Department spokesman said the programme was necessary in the fight against al-Qaeda. Last week, President George W Bush admitted allowing the wiretapping of Americans with suspected terror links. Mr Bush has defended the covert programme and vowed to continue the practice,...

UAE mulls punishment against dozens arrested at mass gay wedding ___ DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - More than two dozen gay Arab men ¡ª arrested at what police called a mass homosexual wedding ¡ª could face government-ordered hormone treatments, five years in jail and a lashing, authorities said Saturday. The Interior Ministry said police raided a hotel chalet earlier this month and arrested 22 men from the Emirates as they celebrated the wedding ceremony, one of a string of recent group arrests of homosexuals here. The men are likely to be tried under Muslim law on charges related to adultery...

RENO, Nevada (AP) -- The mayor of Las Vegas has suggested that people who deface freeways with graffiti should have their thumbs cut off on television. "In the old days in France, they had beheadings of people who commit heinous crimes," Mayor Oscar Goodman said Wednesday on the TV show "Nevada Newsmakers." Goodman said the city has a beautiful highway landscaping project and "these punks come along and deface it." "I'm saying maybe you put them on TV and cut off a thumb," the mayor said. "That may be the right thing to do." Goodman also suggested whippings should be...

WASHINGTON (AP) - The White House on Friday criticized former Education Secretary William Bennett for remarks linking the crime rate and the abortion of black babies. "The president believes the comments were not appropriate," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said.Bennett, on his radio show, "Morning in America," was answering a caller's question when he took issue with the hypothesis put forth in a recent book that one reason crime is down is that abortion is up. "But I do know that it's true that if you wanted to reduce crime, you could, if that were your sole purpose, you...

8:40 a.m. HOUSTON -- At least 25,000 of Hurricane Katrina's refugees, a majority of them at the New Orleans Superdome, will travel in a bus convoy to Houston starting today. They will be sheltered at the 40-year-old Astrodome, which hasn't been used for professional sporting events in years. Rusty Cornelius, administrative coordinator for the Harris County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said the refugees would be bused to Houston. He said specifics of the transport and housing for the refugees were still being worked out with the Red Cross and state government officials. Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco has...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Islamic leaders and peace groups are criticizing the California National Guard (search) for a flier posted in its headquarters suggesting the United States execute Islamic terrorists with bullets dipped in pig's blood to deny them entry to heaven.

There are a few things that the average teenager absolutely must have in 21st century America - a license to drive is one, a cell phone is another. But police officers, parents, and, increasingly, lawmakers are coming to the conclusion that those essentials are a dangerous mix when combined with inexperience on the road. A growing number of states are creating legal barriers to keep young drivers from using cell phones, even as few ban adults from talking - at least handsfree - while driving. "It's not a silver bullet solution, but it's one piece of a puzzle we need...

One overlooked development coming out of the 2005 Session of Georgia's Legislature was the creation of a study committee to examine the potential benefits of enacting a Taxpayer's Bill of Rights(TABOR)(view the bill by clicking here). Proposed by State Representative Donna Sheldon (R-105), the study committee would examine TABOR as implemented and proposed in other States to determine if a similar measure would benefit Georgia. TABOR has been in place in Colorado since 1992 with tremendous positive effect. Dr. Barry Poulson of Americans For Prosperity gives TABOR a strong endorsement:Since TABOR was put in place, Colorado has returned more than...

States Mull Taxing Drivers By Mile CORVALLIS, Ore., Feb. 14, 2005 (CBS) College student Jayson Just commutes an odometer-spinning 2,000 miles a month. As CBS News Correspondent Sandra Hughes reports, his monthly gas bill once topped his car payment. "I was paying about $500 a month," says Just. So Just bought a fuel efficient hybrid and said goodbye to his gas-guzzling BMW. And what kind of mileage does he get? "The EPA estimate is 60 in the city, 51 on the highway," says Just. And that saves him almost $300 a month in gas. It's great for Just but bad...

States Mull Taxing Drivers By Mile CORVALLIS, Ore., Feb. 14, 2005 (CBS) College student Jayson Just commutes an odometer-spinning 2,000 miles a month. As CBS News Correspondent Sandra Hughes reports, his monthly gas bill once topped his car payment. "I was paying about $500 a month," says Just. So Just bought a fuel efficient hybrid and said goodbye to his gas-guzzling BMW. And what kind of mileage does he get? "The EPA estimate is 60 in the city, 51 on the highway," says Just. And that saves him almost $300 a month in gas. It's great for Just but bad...

FALLUJAH, November 10 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - US troops are reportedly using chemical weapons and poisonous gas in its large-scale offensive on the Iraqi resistance bastion of Fallujah, a grim reminder of Saddam Hussein’s alleged gassing of the Kurds in 1988. “The US occupation troops are gassing resistance fighters and confronting them with internationally-banned chemical weapons,” resistance sources told Al-Quds Press Wednesday, November 10. The fatal weapons led to the deaths of tens of innocent civilians, whose bodies litter sidewalks and streets, they added. “They use chemical weapons out of despair and helplessness in the face of the steadfast...