Free Republic

"The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger, and strive with might and main for mischief through the land is: execution, or crucifixion, or the cutting off of hands and feet from opposite sides, or exile from the land: that is their disgrace in this world, and a heavy punishment is theirs in the Hereafter." -- Qur'an 5:33 It looks as if these brothers' apparent support for the Christian Gbagbo over the Muslim Ouattara constituted "waging war against Allah and His Messenger." "Brothers crucified by Ouattara forces in Ivory Coast," from Barnabas Aid, June 8 (thanks...

In the 1970s, Kenya had about six times as many elephants as Zimbabwe, and today Zimbabwe has three times more elephants than Kenya (see chart).  What happened that caused the dramatic reversal in elephant populations in the two African countries?  Terry Anderson and Shawn Regan of the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) explain in their excellent article "Shoot an Elephant, Save a Community": "Anti-hunting groups succeeded in getting Kenya to ban all hunting in 1977. Since then, its population of large wild animals has declined between 60 and 70 percent. The country’s elephant population declined from 167,000 in...

FORCES loyal to president-elect Alassane Ouattara have advanced into Ivory Coast's commercial capital Abidjan, as aid agencies said at least 800 people were killed in a massacre outside the city. The Republican Forces control more than 90 per cent of Abidjan, said militia spokesman Meite Sindou yesterday. Gunfire continued in the Plateau district, the site of the presidential palace. The Red Cross said the massacre took place in the western town of Duekoue as Mr Ouattara's troops moved towards Abidjan to try to oust incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo. Advertisement: Story continues below The massacre occurred on March 29 and is...

South Africa has held the world's biggest legal sale of ivory for almost 20 years. The auction in Pretoria of more than 51 tonnes of elephant tusks was sanctioned by the UN body which oversees trade in endangered species. The tusks sold for $142 per kilo, netting the government $6.7m (£4.2m) -less than expected. The South African government has been condemned by conservation groups and other African countries for the sale.

KINSHASA (Reuters) - Poachers in Congo have killed a fifth of the elephants in Africa's oldest national park this year as China buys more ivory, the park's director said on Friday. Rwandan rebels have killed seven Savannah elephants in the past 10 days alone in the Virunga National Park, along Congo's eastern border with Rwanda and Uganda, Emmanuel de Merode told Reuters

3,000-year-old ivory carving depicts whaling scene From ANI London, April 1: Archaeologists working in the Russian Arctic have unearthed a remarkably detailed 3,000-year-old ivory carving that depicts groups of hunters engaged in whaling, which pushes back direct evidence for whaling by about 1,000 years. According to a report in Nature News, the ancient picture implies that northern hunters may have been killing whales 3,000 years ago and commemorating their bravery with pictures carved in ivory. Among the picture which depicts hunters sticking harpoons into whales, the site also yielded heavy stone blades that had been broken as if by some...

NOVY URENGOI, Russia: As Viktor Seliverstov works in his makeshift studio in this hardscrabble Siberian town he is enveloped in a cloud of ivory dust. His electric carving tool whirrs over the milky surface of teeth and tusks, as he whittles them into key fobs, knife handles and scrimshaw figurines. But these are not whale bones or walrus tusks he is working on. The ivory in this part of the world comes from the remains of extinct woolly mammoths, as they emerge from the tundra where they have been frozen for thousands of years. It is a traditional Russian business...

<p>LONDON - A pair of British twin boys has been born with different skin color, a rare genetic occurrence according to experts.</p> <p>In an interview with Britain's Sky News program, mother Kerry Richardson said that the boys were both born white but as they've gotten older one of the boys got darker and the other lighter.</p>

Birders excited about woodpecker sightings Tuesday, September 26, 2006 By BILL FINCH Environment Editor Auburn University researchers published evidence today of what some are describing as an ivory-bill woodpecker "Shangri-La" in the Florida Panhandle, a couple of hours east of Mobile. Researchers said they've had 13 sightings of the ivory bill, long thought to be extinct, and have recorded some 300 distinctive calls and sounds associated with the giant woodpecker, the largest in the United States and a virtual Holy Grail for many birders. The last clear photographs of the bird -- and uncontested proof of its existence -- date...

Click on URL above or here http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/08/060830-elephant-video.html and watch video. Very disturbing. Makes me sick at what people do.

Ivory emperor emerges from Forum 'Unique' find probably Marcus Aurelius or Septimius Severus (ANSA) - Rome, November 16 - Italian archaeologists have unveiled the latest major find to emerge from the Roman forum - an ivory statue of an emperor, probably Marcus Aurelius or Septimius Severus . The bust is unique - there are no other examples of statues like this made in ivory . Very few ancient Roman ivory objects have survived to the present day because ivory is a biodegradable material . Those that have not withered away over the last 2,000 years are mostly tomb decorations and...

Once in danger of being wiped out by poachers, elephants have overrun a Kenyan coastal preserve. They've raided nearby farms and even attacked villagers, forcing wildlife authorities there to move about 400 of them to a bigger game park farther inland in Africa's largest-ever elephant relocation. A family of five elephants was the first to be relocated Friday from the coastal Shimba Hills National Reserve to the much larger Tsavo East park about 150 kilometers farther inland. About 400 more pachyderms will be sent packing by Kenyan wildlife rangers. Kenyan wildlife officials say it's the world's largest-ever elephant relocation. About...

Chinese elephants are evolving into an increasingly tuskless breed because poaching is changing the gene pool, a newspaper reported on Sunday. Five to 10 percent of Asian elephants in China now had a gene that prevented the development of tusks, up from the usual 2 to 5 percent, the China Daily said, quoting research from Beijing Normal University. "The larger tusks the male elephant has, the more likely it will be shot by poachers," said researcher Zhang Li, an associate professor of zoology. "Therefore, the ones without tusks survive, preserving the tuskless gene in the species." Since only male elephants...

/begin my translation The Ivory Sculpture of Kim Il-sung's Birth Home [2005-07-04 11:59] The Birth Home of Kim Il-sung(the former ruler of N. Korea) Carved in Ivory: On July 1st,  the N. Korean Central TV showed 'Man-gyong-dae Home' on display at the International Friendship Museum, Hyang-san County, N. Pyong-an Province. Carved in ivory, this gift was given by Chinese Communist Party for Kim Il-sung's 65th birthday. It took a whole year for 96-man team to make it, according to the broadcast.<Yonhap (News)> /end my translation

BRINKLEY, Ark., April 28 - The ivory-billed woodpecker, a magnificent bird long given up for extinct, has been sighted in the cypress and tupelo swamp of the Cache River National Wildlife Refuge here in Arkansas, scientists announced Thursday. Bird experts, government agencies and conservation organizations involved kept the discovery secret for more than a year, while they worked to confirm the discovery and protect the bird's territory. Their announcement on Thursday brought rejoicing among birdwatchers, for whom the ivory bill has long been a holy grail - a creature that has been called the Lord God bird, apparently because that...

Maize reveals traces of old breeding project Emma Marris Gene suggests ancient culture selected patterns in its corn. Teosinte grass (left) compared to "reconstructed" primitive maize, created by crossing teosinte with Argentine pop corn. © The Doebley Lab The people of Mesoamerica are largely responsible for the golden corn we grow today, having domesticated tough teosinte grass thousands of years ago and bred it into modern maize. Researchers have now located the gene responsible for some of the traits that the Mesoamericans were selecting. The discovery should help scientists understand how plants develop, and reveals just how strict the ancient...

It’s an interview in French, made on Swiss TV the 14th November. With [the first] link you see the little reportage made by swiss journalists. Swiss journalists says “we heard A LOT of witnesses. All are Swiss, no Ivory. All say the same thing: French army did shoot the crowd.” It’s a little bit weird that this interview wasn’t aired in USA, France, or anywhere... When an American soldier shoot someone, it’s on the whole planet in a few minutes.

FRENCH SOLIDERS OPEN FIRE ON INNOCENT CIVILAINS ON THE IVORY COAST (WARNING VERY GRAPHIC VIDEO)

French citizens have queued at Ivory Coast's main airport to flee their former West African colony as violent anti-French protesters massed for a fifth day in support of President Laurent Gbagbo. "I don't have a job anymore or a house ... . They took the bath, the furniture and electrical wires, everything," Bruno Regis, a teacher from a French school that was razed, said on Wednesday. "The way it ended here, I wouldn't come back here even if they offered me a new job," he said at the airport, where he was waiting for a flight with his wife and...

ABIDJAN (Reuters) - French troops have fired into the air to disperse protesters gathering to protect President Laurent Gbagbo, as unrest swept Ivory Coast's main city Abidjan after weekend clashes between French and Ivorian forces. Ivory Coast's army chief of staff General Mathias Doue was meeting French troops at an Abidjan hotel, witnesses said. State media said they were in talks to end the crisis in the world's top cocoa grower and would make a joint declaration shortly. Protesters threatened to form a "human shield" round Gbagbo's home in a plush residential district in case French soldiers, who have taken...

9 French troops and a U.S. citizen were killed when Ivory Coast fighter planes bombed a rebel position in the north of that country. The French have hit back, destroying 5 Ivorian helicopters and 2 bombers near the capital city of Yamoussoukro. Ivorians aren’t happy with France’s reprisals. Angry mobs are rioting, looting French properties, and yelling “Everybody get your Frenchman!” and “French go home!” Well, well, well, isn’t France’s criticism of the U.S. Coalition presence in Iraq a bit like the pot calling the kettle black? Listen to the French government’s words, as reported by the BBC: President Jacques...

WWE wrestlers going to the Republican National Convention --The WWE will be sending John Layfield, Shawn Michaels, Ric Flair, Big Show, Mark Henry, Ivory, Chris Nowinski and Linda McMahon to the Republican convention. I guess they didn't get any pub sending Stacy Keibler, but there were some mentions of Big Show in papers at the Democratic convention so they decided to send two 400 pound monsters this time. The convention is in New York starting Thursday. Wrestling Observer ... Professional Wrestling Industry 101 - Penn State is now offering a class on pro-wrestling. Here is an excerpt from their course...

An hour ago on C-SPAN's "Book TV" uber-puke Eric Alterman went on a semi-coherent tirade about Free Republic.While in the process of flacking his book..."The Myth of Liberal Bias" (or sumpin like that), he claimed that, during the Florida recount, the saint-like members of this forum posted the phone numbers and home addresses of the Florida Supremes for the expressed purpose of harassment and/or "whatever". The "whatever" was obviously the suggestion of violence.He also said Free Republic was repsonsible for the flood of Republican activists who descended on the state and therefore was responsible for the Bush presidency.This is one...

Ivory Coast rebels seek backing for war threat By Alex Duval Smith in Paris 17 February 2003 Rebels controlling the north of Ivory Coast yesterday shuttled between West African capitals to rally support for their midnight ultimatum to launch all-out war today unless they are given seats in the government. An offensive by the rebels to capture the government-held south of the country would place France, the former colonial power, in an untenable position. France has deployed 3,000 troops to Ivory Coast and their role so far has been to push back the rebels threatening the government of President Laurent...

June 7, 2001 -- Fred Ross, Chairman of the Art Renewal Center, addressed a crowd of over 700 portrait artists, gallery owners and members of the press today at America's premier institution of art, the Metropolitan Museum in New York, at the American Society of Portrait Artists (ASOPA) Conference. Mr Ross was interrupted at least 10 times to thunderous applause or peals of laughter, as he blasted Modernism and its chief icons, Picasso, Mattisse and DeKooning, with some of the most biting, yet truthful satire that has ever been heard in those sanctified halls. Thank you Arnold, Allan, Richard...

French citizens flee Ivory Coast as mobs attack soldiers By Philip Delves Broughton in Paris (Filed: 01/02/2003) Hundreds of French citizens sought to flee the Ivory Coast yesterday as violent mobs attacked French soldiers in Abidjan and President Jacques Chirac called an emergency meeting to discuss the deepening crisis in France's former colony. The French foreign ministry advised its 16,000 citizens in the country to leave unless their presence there was essential. The airport in Abidjan has been besieged for the past two days by people trying to get out on the few flights leaving the country. Two French soldiers...

French troops on alert for Ivory Coast evacuation By John Lichfield in Paris 30 January 2003 France said yesterday it was ready to rescue its 16,000 citizens from Ivory Coast if anti-French riots in the former West African colony spread. After a series of alarmed headlines in French newspapers, and interviews with long-term French residents who fear for their lives, Dominique de Villepin, the Foreign Minister, said Paris was ready to save the French community "at any time". Michèle Alliott-Marie, the Defence Minister, said there were no immediate plans for evacuation but the 2,500 French troops in Ivory Coast would...

France entangled in Ivory Coast war after Legionnaires kill rebels By John Lichfield in Paris 23 December 2002 France appears finally to have become entangled in the civil war in Ivory Coast after a fierce battle between rebels and the French Foreign Legion in the west of the country. A force of Legionnaires, including light tanks, put to flight a rebel group that was pursuing routed government forces near the town of Duekoue. Up to seven rebels were said to have been killed in the fighting on Saturday, which included shelling by at least two French tanks. French officers said...

French Drive Back Rebels in Ivory Coast Sunday December 22, 2002 1:50 AM DUEKOUE, Ivory Coast (AP) - French forces firing tank-mounted cannons drove back Ivory Coast rebels Saturday, stalling the insurgents' advance toward Abidjan, the West African nation's prized commercial center. Fighting around the western city of Duekoue was one of the French force's heaviest engagement yet in the three-month-old rebellion splitting their former West African colony, the world's largest cocoa producer and the region's economic powerhouse. The battle highlighted how the stepped-up French deployment may be decisive in stopping the rebel campaign to drive out President Laurent Gbagbo...

    Scientists exposed as sloppy reporters   09:30 14 December 02 Hazel Muir   A cunning statistical study has exposed scientists as sloppy reporters. When they write up their work and cite other people's papers, most do not bother to read the original. The discovery was made by Mikhail Simkin and Vwani Roychowdhury of the University of California, Los Angeles, who study the way information spreads around different kinds of networks. They noticed in a citation database that misprints in references are fairly common, and that a lot of the mistakes are identical. This suggests that many scientists take short cuts,...

<p>The Democrats will do well, particularly in gubernatorial contests unaffected by talk Of War, but they may not claim the Majority toward which they have been Moving, by fits and starts, since 1996. It won't be long, however Before the decade is over, the Democrats Will complete this journey, and the country will move from conservative Republican majority to a progressive Democratic one.</p>

US forces join French troops in Ivory Coast US troops have landed in West Africa to help French forces protect westerners in the former colony. The US soldiers have been told to make 100 trapped American school children their priority. French troops have moved closer to Bouake to rescue their nationals and other Westerners. There are fears they could be caught in cross fire between government troops and renegade forces who launched the coup attempt on Thursday. "This is a very welcome development," said a relieved James Forlines, director of Free Will Baptist Foreign Missions. The Nashville, Tennessee-based church group...

Tuesday, 24 September, 2002, 14:52 GMT 15:52 UKUS sends troops to Ivory Coast The French are keen to encourage negotiations The United States is sending troops to Ivory Coast to help protect US nationals there following days of hostilities between government troops and mutinous soldiers. The deployment - at the request of the US ambassador - comes as Ivorian army troops try to recapture the city of Bouake, which was seized by the rebels last week. Heavy shooting has been reported close to a Christian school housing some 160, mainly American, schoolchildren. A US Navy spokesman said the troops would...

<p>NEW DELHI, India -- India's most infamous bandit, Veerappan, has threatened to behead his hostage -- a former state minister nabbed on Sunday.</p> <p>In a taped message, Veerappan -- who goes by one name -- said his demands would be presented soon and unless they were met, he would kill H. Nagappa, a former minister of agriculture in the southern state of Karnataka.</p>

The American Flag – in Poor Taste We're still tracking down the details of the story about the Hope Lodge and Emory University. Hope Lodge is a residence for cancer patients near the Emory Hospital. We're told that the people who run the Hope Lodge wanted to fly an American flag. They were evidently told by university officials that they could not because the flag might "offend" foreign students on the campus. I've heard more from some of the people involved. Could it be that the director of the Hope Lodge really has a document from the Emory folks telling...

June 11, 2002 The End of an Uncivil WarBy NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF AMBRIDGE, Mass. — The historical mutual sneering between America's soldiers and its universities is coming to an end. One of the scars from Vietnam was this reciprocal contempt, leading each side to despise a caricature of the other: redneck, baby-killing, misogynous storm troopers with the ethical sensitivity of Nazis; and arrogant, long-haired America-hating rebels, all wimps and probably mostly gay feminist Communists as well. Here in Ivy Central — dazzling this time of year with new Harvard graduates and pot-bellied fogeys oozing false modesty at reunions ("I...

<p>"Are you an American first, or are you a journalist?"</p> <p>Unfortunately, that question -- posed to a journalists' meeting in Salt Lake City in April by distinguished newsman Bill Kovach -- is necessary after Sept. 11, as the few who dared critique the rush to war were attacked for being insufficiently patriotic. Too many journalists responded to the post-9/11 hyper-nationalism by waving the flag, literally and figuratively.</p>