Free Republic

Missing Soldier's Uncle Criticizes U.S. By LYNN BREZOSKY BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) - As the families of two missing soldiers waited to hear if two bodies found Tuesday were their loved ones, the uncle of one lashed out at the government, saying it didn't do enough to bring the men home safe. ``Because the U.S. government did not have a plan in place, my nephew has paid for it with his life,'' Ken MacKenzie, uncle of Army Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, told NBC's ``Today'' show. U.S. Maj. Gen. William Caldwell said the military has recovered what are believed to be the remains...

President George W. Bush took office to the sustained applause of America’s conservative movement. In 2000, he defeated the liberal environmentalist Al Gore, abruptly terminated the legacy of the even more hated Bill Clinton, and gave Republicans control of both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue. A few cynics were suspicious of Bush’s understanding of and commitment to conservative principles, but most on the Right welcomed his inauguration. Five years later, the traditional conservative agenda lies in ruins. Government is bigger, spending is higher, and Washington is more powerful. The national government has intruded further into state and local concerns. Federal officials...

The Senate will return March 27 to debate proposals to add tens of millions of permanent foreign workers and their dependents over the next decade. The newest proposal by Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) (S. 2454) was touted as a more limited proposal than the giant amnesties being promoted in the Senate Judiciary Committee. But Sen. Frist's bill would allow 20 million more permanent immigrants to settle over the next 10 years. That compares to 25 million minimum additions under the McCain/Kennedy amnesty bill (S. 1033) and 30 million permanent foreign additions under the Specter amnesty bill (no bill number)....

Senator Joseph Biden (D-DE) failed today to address rumors that Nevada Senator Harry Reid will step down next month as Senate Minority Leader. Reid has been stung by revelations that his political action committee (PAC) accepted more than $60,000 in contributions from Indian tribes linked to convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Appearing on CNN's Late Edition, Biden avoided discussing either the Reid situation or any upcoming changes in Senate Democratic leadership. Reid is no stranger to scandal, having been the subject of a 1979 Justice Department probe into allegations that Reid — then Nevada Gaming Commission chairman — had received bribes...

Public opinion turns against Republican control of CongressWASHINGTON - Dissatisfied with the nation's direction, Americans are leaning toward wanting a change in which political party leads Congress - preferring that Democrats take control, an AP-Ipsos poll found. Democrats are favored over Republicans 49 percent to 36 percent.The polling came as disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff pleaded guilty to tax evasion, fraud and corruption charges and agreed to aid a federal investigation of members of Congress and other government officials.

As the Fed continues its inflation campaign, most have yet to come to grips with the reality of America’s uniquely precarious situation. In an act of prestidigitation that would impress Harry Houdini, the Fed is now attempting to hide evidence of the most inflationary monetary policy in its history by no longer publishing data on the growth of M3, while mystifying the public with phony CPI statistics. However, the relentless rise in the price of gold is evidence that fewer people are being fooled by the Fed’s slight of hand. Gold’s recent rise to just under $500 per ounce, gaining...

A letter to the editor - August 3, 2005 Dear Editor: Nearly two years ago George Bush Jr.'s top adviser, Karl "The Hatchet" Rove, outed a CIA operative by blabbing to newsman Robert Novak. It was a vintage Rove maneuver: slander, discredit, smear and out, if necessary, anyone who dared to challenge Bush about his real motives during his march to war. And Valerie Plame's husband had done just that by telling a differing version of the Bush truth. Bush immediately told the nation that "anyone having anything to do with the outing of Plame will not be a part...

THE U.S. military values some lives more than others. That’s the only conclusion you could draw from the trials of two U.S. soldiers--one accused of killing two American officers, the other of executing two Iraqi civilians. Last week, Sgt. Hasan Akbar was sentenced to death for using grenades and his rifle at a base camp in Kuwait to kill two officers and injure 14 other soldiers shortly after the March 2003 invasion of Iraq. The chief prosecutor at the military trial, Lt. Col. Michael Mulligan, said that “[Akbar] is a hate-filled, ideologically driven murderer.” But Akbar’s military attorney never presented...

Is America going broke? Record deficits, colossal debt and no clear plan for digging itself out. If the U.S. sinks, it will take Canada down with it. STEVE MAICH David Walker can see the future, and it scares the hell out of him. That wouldn't be terribly unusual if he were one of the thousands of lobbyists, legislators and activists crawling all over Washington on any given day, pontificating about the urgency of their pet issues. There is a thriving industry here built on pushing policy prescriptions for every ailment, real or imagined. But Walker isn't a lobbyist or an...

Alvin Plantinga - Department of Philosophy - Decio Hall - University of Notre Dame Methodological Naturalism? Abstract The philosophical doctrine of methodological naturalism holds that, for any study of the world to qualify as "scientific," it cannot refer to God's creative activity (or any sort of divine activity). The methods of science, it is claimed, "give us no purchase" on theological propositions--even if the latter are true--and theology therefore cannot influence scientific explanation or theory justification. Thus, science is said to be religiously neutral, if only because science and religion are, by their very natures, epistemically distinct. However, the actual...

SCHOOL LIFE THREATENING TO GAYS? HATE CRIME HOAX! Homosexual Activists Create a Crisis for Political Gain SAFE ZONES It is high time the moral framework of our society squarely confronts the deceptive propaganda that is being spread throughout our community regarding school safety for gay teens. The implication that an epidemic of crime is being perpetrated against people because of their sexual "orientation" is simply a ploy to gain sympathy and political momentum for the gay right movement. The facts are that there is NO epidemic of crime going on or a need for so-called school "safe zones" for fanatical...

US Democratic Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, who had hoped to replace George W. Bush as president yesterday, instead sat in the cold and clapped as the Republican began a second four-year term. Iowa Democratic Senator Tom Harkin patted Senator Kerry on the back shortly before the inauguration Senator Kerry had hoped would be his. As Mr Bush delivered his inaugural address, Senator Kerry, about 10m away on the steps of the US Capitol, joined other lawmakers and the crowd in repeated applause. Senator Kerry looked relaxed, at times wistful. He frequently smiled, able to hide any disappointment over what...

Excerpt from CBS press release: ----------------- This brings us to two senior figures at CBS News whose performance is discussed in some depth in the Panel's report. Based on the findings of that report, we believe the following is appropriate: The Panel found that Dan Rather was pushed to the limit in the week before the September 8th broadcast. He was finishing up the anchoring job at the 2004 Republican Convention and was covering Hurricane Frances in Florida. He asked the right questions initially, but then made the same errors of credulity and over-enthusiasm that beset many of his colleagues...

Biodynamic food is grown out of a spiritual understanding of nature A bakery is fighting plans for a phone mast because it claims radio waves will ruin its "cosmic bread". Artisan Bread say emissions from the antenna will disrupt "subtle forces" which help to make the loaves. The bakery plots planetary movements and uses a special calendar to work out the best time to make the bread. But it is claimed the shop in Whitstable, Kent, would lose its special licence because the mast is too close to the premises. Bakery owner Ingrid Greenfield, who supplies exclusive shops including...

This is rich. I just started laughing the instant I read it. From http://www.moveon.org/fox/ "From Unfair and Unbalanced A free and independent press is vital to democracy. Political partisans cannot be allowed to falsely represent themselves as journalists. That's why we believe: "The Federal Trade Commission and Congress must act to prevent Fox News from using the deceptive and misleading trademark 'Fair and Balanced.'" You can now ask the FTC to order Fox News to stop misleading consumers. The FTC's job is to protect consumers from deceptive advertising on the part of big media companies. Please enter your name, email...

Hostettler mounting campaign to change the name of Interstate 69            By August Wayne, THG NewsJohn Hostettler, the Congressman representing the 8th district of Indiana, has been convinced by local religious groups to introduce legislation in the House that would change the name of an Interstate 69 extension to a more moral sounding number.There are plans to extend the interstate from Indianapolis through southwestern Indiana all the way through Texas into Mexico in the coming years.  While most believe this highway will be good for the state’s economy, religious conservatives believe “I-69” sounds too risqué and want to change the...

A better way to elect a president Published November 7, 2004 American elections all have one basic thing in common: The people cast their ballots, and the candidate getting the most votes wins. That practice holds in just about every race, from the U.S. Senate down to local school boards. There is, however, one notable exception: the presidency. It's an exception that may have made sense 215 years ago, when the Constitution was ratified, but it's one that has outlived its time....

Americans United today asked the Internal Revenue Service to investigate events that appeared to be efforts to boost the candidacy of Sen. John F. Kerry at two churches in "swing states" on Oct. 24.

The U.S. government's fiscal ills have spun wildly out of control and no longer are containable within the existing system. As detailed in this article, the actual annual shortfall in U.S. government operations for fiscal year 2003 (September 30) was $3.7 trillion. Put in perspective, that means if the U.S. Treasury had seized all wages and salaries in 2003 with a 100% income tax, there still would have been a deficit! The outlook for fiscal 2004 numbers is even worse. Considering that the popularly reported 2003 budget deficit was $374 billion, one-tenth the number cited above, this installment on government...

DEMOCRATS hit out at "dirty tricks" yesterday after a right-wing website proclaimed the impending implosion of John Kerry's presidential campaign due to a personal scandal. The Drudge Report, an online gossip and news site, claimed a woman had recently fled the US, prompted by the Massachusetts senator. It alleged that Mr Kerry was fighting off claims of “recent alleged infidelity”. Even though there was no evidence for the claims, and key parts were denied, the report prompted feverish speculation among Washington insiders and highlighted the influence of unconventional internet sites in modern US politics. The website claimed that it had...