Free Republic

In an apparent rejection of the basic principles of the U.S. economy, a new poll shows that most young people do not support capitalism. The Harvard University survey, which polled young adults between ages 18 and 29, found that 51 percent of respondents do not support capitalism. Just 42 percent said they support it. It isn't clear that the young people in the poll would prefer some alternative system, though. Just 33 percent said they supported socialism. The survey had a margin of error of 2.4 percentage points. The results of the survey are difficult to interpret, pollsters noted. Capitalism...

In 2012, voters in California approved a measure to raise taxes on millionaires, bringing their top state income tax rate to 13.3 percent, the highest in the nation. Conservative economists predicted calamity, or at least a big slowdown in growth. Also that year, the governor of Kansas signed a series of changes to the state's tax code, including reducing income and sales tax rates. Conservative economists predicted a boom. Neither of those predictions came true. Not right away -- California grew just fine in the year the tax hikes took effect -- and especially not in the medium term, as...

Among many other topics, respondents were asked whether they were struggling economically — or whether they were comfortable and moving up. They were also asked whether they thought it was more of a problem that African-Americans and Latinos are "losing out because of preferences for whites" or whether whites are "losing out because of preferences for blacks and Hispanics." The survey asked this question in order to gauge the sentiment that racial and ethnic groups don't just feel they are facing difficulties in general, but that those losses are being caused by other group's gains.

Among those who said they did see celebrations in New Jersey firsthand were the following (minor edits have been made for punctuation, capitalization or spelling). Many describe the celebrants as Muslims, though it is not clear in all some how the poster would know that to be true: Tom Penicaro: "I worked for PSEG in Clifton on the Paterson boarder and I witnessed it firsthand. They were celebrating in the streets cheering and stomping on the flag. I am a Marine and I remember very very clearly because I was so passed I wanted to engage them with a bat...

In a rather bizarre twist on the latest controversy surrounding Donald Trump - the one about his claims of seeing New Jersey Muslims cheer the September 11, 2001, terror attacks on America's soil - the Washington Post's own factchecker on the story was forced to explain his Pinocchio characterization of the presidential candidate and clarify why he left out a crucial fact: that his very own newspaper actually reported on the alleged cheers. First, a run-down: Trump raised eyebrows this past week by claiming on several occasions to have seen thousands of Muslims on television cheering the 2001 terror attacks....

Like pretty much else in this race for the White House as it pertains to Donald Trump, this Muslims-celebrating-in-Jersey-after-9/11-story dominating the narrative for days is a fascinating study in media process. Before we continue, a little background from the author: I was in New York on 9/11. I lived in Jersey (still do) at the time. I, like the rest of the country, watched the news non-stop for days, weeks after the attacks. And while I do vividly remember images coming out of the Middle East of people openly celebrating the attacks (that one older woman with big glasses snapping...

There's a difference between a lie and an honest mistake. However slight, it's a crucial distinction in politics, and especially in the campaign of Donald Trump.On Saturday, the real-estate magnate insisted that after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, he watched news footage of "thousands of thousands of people" celebrating in northern New Jersey -- "where you have large Arab populations," in his words.Journalists have searched news archives for any evidence of such footage and turned up empty handed. Public officials and law enforcement in New Jersey say Trump's account is utterly false.But Trump's assertion might not be a...

It did happen, and I saw it. Donald Trump is telling the truth about Muslims celebrating in New Jersey on September 11, 2001. I drove with family members though Patterson, N.J. that morning, after the planes hit. It’s not the kind of thing you forget. We witnessed people in traditional Muslim garb dancing, jumping, shouting and celebrating like their team had won the Super Bowl, just as Trump said. Read more: http://www.bizpacreview.com/2015/11/23/live-jersey-trump-right-muslims-celebrate-911-nj-saw-277082#ixzz3sNmPOgma

Another "fact checker" facepalm. Hat tips here to Allahpundit and John Hindraker. You’ve probably heard today some variation the idea that “fact checkers are shredding Donald Trump’s story” about having seen people in New Jersey celebrating 9/11. This is one of these stories that liberals claim has been “debunked” because a conservative says it happened and they can’t independently confirm it. It must be a lie! Or, maybe, possibly, these liberal “fact checkers” are just not very good at their jobs. Powerline Blog’s Hindraker noted that after the dinosaur media announced their inability to confirm Trump’s tale, he thought he’d...

It did happen, and I saw it. Donald Trump is telling the truth about Muslims celebrating in New Jersey on September 11, 2001. I drove with family members though Patterson, N.J. that morning, after the planes hit. It's not the kind of thing you forget. We witnessed people in traditional Muslim garb dancing, jumping, shouting and celebrating like their team had won the Super Bowl, just as Trump said. "I watched when the World Trade Center came tumbling down," Trump said Saturday. "And I watched in Jersey City, N.J., where thousands and thousands of people were cheering as that building...

Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson backed up Donald Trump's claim that thousands of Muslims in New Jersey partied on September 11, 2001, telling a journalist that he had actually seen video of the incident. ABC News' Katherine Faulders tweeted out video of the exchange Monday afternoon.

It isn't just that Democrats and Republicans agree on less and less these days. It's that they hate each other's guts. In Congress and in state houses across the country, differences of opinion are widening when it comes to taxation, social issues and more. Beyond any specific disagreement about a particular bill or budget, though, negotiation has become trickier as legislators seek compromises with people whom their constituents simply detest. Ordinary Americans increasingly view members of the opposite party with contempt and scorn. They see them as less intelligent and more selfish, according to pollsters and political scientists. And parents...