Free Republic

Dodgers outfielder's antics are those of one young man's first taste of freedom Before you pile on atop irresponsible diva-punk-jerk Yasiel Puig, absorb a few random stories about the difficulties in his kind of transition: • Luis Castillo once set off a fire alarm in an American hotel, thinking it was a shampoo dispenser... • Rene Arocha felt his knees give -- actually felt faint and almost passed out -- the first time he walked into a grocery store and saw so many aisles of food...

Is it too farfetched to connect the dots between a brilliant Wall Street Journal op-ed by Charles Koch, the chairman and CEO of Koch Industries, and the continued sluggish recovery in jobs, business investment, and the overall economy? I don’t think so. In his piece, Mr. Koch seems to make a plea for a big dose of free-market capitalism. He argues, “The central belief and fatal conceit of the current administration is that you are incapable of running your own life, but those in power are capable of running it for you. This is the essence of big government and...

Quite a find yesterday by Michigan Capitol Confidential, which is a publication of the free-market Mackinac Center for Public Policy. In Ferndale, Michigan, which is directly north of Detroit, the contract between the school district and the teachers union contains a clause that gives hiring preference to members of certain groups - mostly ethnic minorities. But the Ferndale school officials and their union have an interesting way of defining a minority, and if you're a Christian, you might want to look elsewhere for a teaching job: Should there be two (2) or more of these applicants with equal qualifications for...

As gun sales skyrocket across the country, an Oceanside shop that let’s you build your own guns says its business is booming too. Ares Armor offers gun enthusiasts a novel way to exercise their 2nd Amendment right to bear arms. “Under the Gun Control Act of 1968, an individual can make a weapon for personal use, but not for sale or distribution,” said Ares Armor owner Dimitrios Karras. It’s legal and his business is through the roof. “We are flooded with orders right now,” he said. Ares Armor allows customers to buy all the parts needed to build a weapon....

This is simply a gem of a movie based on Howard Fast's excellent 1962 novel,( which I still have), of the first day of hostilities between colonists and Britain. There may have been bigger blockbusters made about the American Revolution (The Patriot, Revolution etc) but to me this under- rated 1988 film is a true classic, capturing the quintessential decency of American colonial village life in Lexington and the developing tensions and conflict on that fateful day of 19th April 1775. I agree with the 2 previous reviewers that this film is a great teaching tool. It shows many things:...

As one of the first to chronicle and applaud its rise, I am not ready to pronounce the death of the tea party movement. But there are plenty of reasons to believe that what was a concerted and focused force in politics is becoming more that of a less focused and more diffused effort. Some who have created their political fortunes under the tea party mantel, particularly its "leaders" in various parts of the nation, refuse to accept that what remains a great overall philosophy is no longer a "party" with which vast numbers want to identify. That has been...

The constitutions or laws of many nations provide for what is called “religious liberty.” In practice, this liberty is under severe restrictions in numerous countries, if it exists at all. The fact is that no one can really talk about religious freedom without examining what the “religion” holds. Grace builds on nature but does not contradict it. No religion, without further discussion, can simply believe anything at all. Some minimum criterion of order and right is presupposed to this freedom to follow religion’s teachings or one’s conscience. Concern about “fanaticism” is legitimate, even when such fanaticism is rooted in...

In last weekend’s column about the built-in absurdity endemic in Obamacare, I stated my thesis that elements within the United States government are making a serious and concerted effort to bring about America’s downfall and that the only way to stop it is to stand in their path, united. But so far conservatives haven’t done this. That’s why we’re in trouble.

Summary of the week's conservative news/opinion at Reaganite Republican...

Ukraine's western region of Lviv has reportedly declared independence from the central government.Hours after protesters seized the prosecutor's office in central Lviv and forced a surrender by interior ministry police, the executive committee of the region council - also called the People's Rada – claimed control over the region. Reuters A portrait of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich burns near the destroyed building of the security service in Lviv "The regime has begun active military action against people. Dozens of people have been killed in Kiev and hundreds have been wounded. Fulfilling the will of society, the executive committee of the...

<p>First Amendment: The FCC has cooked up a plan to place "researchers" in U.S. newsrooms, supposedly to learn all about how editorial decisions are made. Any questions as to why the U.S. is falling in the free press rankings?</p> <p>As if illegal seizures of Associated Press phone records and the shadowy tailing of the mother of a Fox News reporter weren't menacing enough, the Obama administration is going out of its way to institute a new intrusive surveillance of the press, as if the press wasn't supine enough.</p>

News Release: February 18, 2014 GRASSROOTS GROUPS TO "RALLY FOR LIBERTY" Several grassroots groups are set to gather on a large scale to "Rally for Liberty" against what is seen as growing Tyranny in America. On Sunday, February 23, Day of Resistance Tulsa will host the Rally at the Green Country Event Center, 12000 E. 31st St., Tulsa, 1:00-4:00pm. For generations politicians, Republicans and Democrats, and unelected bureaucrats have been passing unconstitutional laws, but the last few decades these laws have become increasingly intrusive on our personal freedoms. We are now spied on in our homes, on the internet, on...

The world teeters on the precipice of entering either a lasting era of darkness, or an era of jubilant rebirth and renewal. If just one more voice is required to fuel the flames of freedom, which I believe is the path to the latter, I offer my voice for that cause. Just like so many of you across this once and still great nation, I am jaded by the lack of representation, despite an ever burdening sea of regulation and taxation, as well as a cultural assault which seeks to undermine our traditions and drive a wedge between every demographic...

Ted Cruz seems to be becoming something of a Republican bogeyman. One can imagine Republican lawmakers trudging home and telling their recalcitrant kids that if they don’t brush their teeth and go to bed, Ted Cruz is going to bring a mob of torch-bearing tea partiers over to take them away. But they should remember that Ted Cruz is a particularly irritating symptom, not the problem. [snip] But make no mistake: He’s riding a wave of sentiment, not causing it. If there was no Ted Cruz someone else would fill that role; it might be someone in the Congress, like...

No man thinks more highly than I do of the patriotism, as well as abilities, of the very worthy gentlemen who have just addressed the House. But different men often see the same subject in different lights; and, therefore, I hope that it will not be thought disrespectful to those gentlemen, if, entertaining as I do opinions of a character very opposite to theirs, I shall speak forth my sentiments freely and without reserve. This is no time for ceremony. The question before the House is one of awful moment to this country. For my own part I consider it...

FR is pro-God, pro-Life, pro-family, pro-constitution, pro-limited government and will remain that way. Regardless of any consequences!! You're either with us on this or against us. Moderation is not the solution, it is the problem!! We do not surrender, we do not retreat, we do not negotiate or compromise on our unalienable rights to Life and Liberty or our sovereignty!! Karl Rove and the GOP-e moderates and all like them can KMA!! You cannot moderate evil, you fight it!!

We are reminded as we pass the 41st anniversary of Roe v Wade of where the immoral godless extremism of the liberal/progressive movement leads. Roe is responsible for the slaughter of more than 55 million babies in our country - more than 1.3 million a year. Life has been the standard for all civilized societies throughout the history of mankind. With few exceptions, only in godless totalitarian societies run by ruthless kings or dictators would you find governments wantonly slaughtering millions of its own citizens. In modern times that would be leftist/fascist dictators such as Lennon, Stalin, Hitler, Mao, Pol...

It should be clear that modern church marketers cannot look to the apostle Paul for approval of their methodology or claim him as the father of their philosophy. Although he ministered to the vilest pagans throughout the Roman world, Paul never adapted the church to secular society’s tastes. He would not think of altering either the message or the nature of the church. Each of the churches he founded had its own unique personality and set of problems, but Paul’s teaching, his strategy, and above all his message remained the same throughout his ministry. His means of ministry was always...

In 1 Corinthians 9, Paul models self-sacrificing love toward unbelievers. He explains his willingness to forfeit personal liberties and accommodate himself for the sake of the gospel. He’s already mentioned two groups of people in the first section of this chapter—Jews and Gentiles. Paul was willing to forego his apostolic freedoms in order to reach both races. But racial application was only the beginning. In verse 22, Paul mentions a third group: “To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak.” Who are the weak? In Pauline theology this expression refers to overscrupulous Christians—immature believers who don’t...