Free Republic

WASHINGTON, July 28, 2008 – Individuals and organizations around the globe are planning special commemorations to mark the quickly approaching seventh anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. So far, nearly 185 America Supports You Freedom Walks are scheduled to take place on and around Sept. 11. Of those walks, eight are scheduled overseas, in Heidelberg, Germany; Santa Rita, Guam; Baghdad; Vicenza, Italy; Iwakuni, Japan; Moron, Spain; and Seoul and Daegu, South Korea. America Supports You is a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad. “The America Supports...

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - The federal government will open up nearly 46,000 square miles off Alaska's northwest coast to petroleum leases next month, a decision condemned by enviromental groups that contend the industrial activity will harm northern marine mammals. The Minerals Management Agency planned the sale in the Chukchi Sea without taking into account changes in the Arctic brought on by global warming and proposed insufficient protections for polar bears, walrus, whales and other species that could be harmed by drilling rigs or spills, according to the groups. The lease sale in an area slightly smaller than the state of Pennsylvania...

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The Pentagon plans to train and equip an expanded paramilitary force in Pakistan's tribal areas in a major effort to counter the growing strength of Al-Qaeda and Taliban forces, officials said Monday. US Army troops will be used to train the Pakistani Frontier Corps at a new center in the tribal areas that border Afghanistan, said Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell. The efforts come amid political instability in nuclear-armed Pakistan under President Pervez Musharraf and mounting US concerns over the spread of Islamic militancy. It was unclear how many military trainers will be required, but any increase...

PARIS (Reuters) - Petitions in London, protests in Cologne, a court case in Marseille and a violent clash in Berlin -- Muslims in Europe are meeting resistance to plans for mosques that befit Islam's status as the continent's second religion. Across Europe, Muslims who have long prayed in garages and old factories now face skepticism and concern for wanting to build stately mosques to give proud testimony to the faith and solidity of their Islamic communities. Some critics reject them as signs of "Islamisation." Others say minarets would scar their city's skyline. Given the role some mosques have played as...

WASHINGTON - Detailed plans for the new U.S. Embassy under construction in Baghdad appeared online Thursday in a breach of the tight security surrounding the sensitive project. Computer-generated projections of the soon-to-be completed, heavily fortified compound were posted on the Web site of the Kansas City, Mo.-based architectural firm that was contracted to design the massive facility in the Iraqi capital. The images were removed by Berger Devine Yaeger Inc. shortly after the company was contacted by the State Department. "We work very hard to ensure the safety and security of our employees overseas," said Gonzalo Gallegos, a department spokesman....

President Bush said Thursday he wished the execution of Saddam Hussein "had gone in a more dignified way." Bush also said he will make a speech next week announcing his long-awaited decisions about how to proceed in the unpopular war in Iraq. Considering more troops to deal with the rising violence in Baghdad, Bush said, "One thing is for certain: I will want to make sure the mission is clear and specific and can be accomplished." Senior generals have cautioned against sending additional troops unless their role is defined. Bush and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki spoke on a secure video...

Speaker-designate Nancy Pelosi said Thursday that she will create a new congressional panel to examine the administration's intelligence budget and to make sure the money is being spent properly. Creating the panel, Pelosi said at a news conference, "makes oversight stronger and makes the American people safer." Democrats have been highly critical of the conduct of intelligence agencies in the days before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and the lead- up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Pelosi, D-Calif., also said that one of the first tasks of the Democratic-controlled House she will lead beginning in January will be...

Before the fall of the Soviet Union, “Kremlinologists” got paid to sift through the lies and decipher goings-on in Moscow. We’ll need similar skills to see through the Democratic Congress’ smoke screen. Again and again during the congressional campaigns, Democrats insisted they were not the party of cut-and-run in Iraq. But now that they’ve won both the House and Senate, the leaders of the incoming Congress are abandoning all pretense. Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., who will be Armed Services chairman, told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday: “We need to begin a phased redeployment of forces from Iraq in four to...

A federal judge on Wednesday denied a former Republican congressional candidate’s request for a restraining order barring President Bush or Vice President Richard Cheney from bombing Iran or Syria. Mary Maxwell, 59, of 179 Loudon Road, Apt. 10, Concord, filed a lawsuit Monday against Bush, Cheney and other “unnamed defendants actively engaging in acts of war against Iran and Syria in the guise of the war against terrorism.” Maxwell’s suit seeks a ruling that the administration lacks legal authority to pre-emptively attack either Iran or Syria without a Congressional declaration of war, and that radioactive fallout from the use of...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 31, 2006 – Atlanta will join communities across America to host a Freedom Walk Sept. 11, the fifth anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks against the United States. The Freedom walk is being sponsored by Checkers restaurants, and presented by Operation Homefront. “We wanted to reflect on the events that happened on 9/11 at the Pentagon and the twin towers in New York City, and in Pennsylvania,” said Vicki Sarracino, president of the Georgia chapter of Operation Homefront. “And we also wanted to renew our commitment to freedom and the values of our country, and to honor the...

America Supports You: Indiana Town Plans Freedom WalkBy Samantha L. QuigleyAmerican Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Aug. 25, 2006 – Residents of Crawfordsville, Ind., will gather Sept. 11 to participate in a Freedom Walk, joining an ever-growing number of Americans who will pay similar tribute to the victims of 9/11 and the nation’s past and present veterans. Defense Department officials said this morning that so far, 75 communities in 36 states have registered similar events on the department’s Freedom Walk Web site. “We have gotten the message out to the local churches, so they’re going to put the (announcement) in...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 24, 2006 – San Diego will honor its military heritage with a Freedom Walk planned to coincide with the fifth anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks. “The walk begins and ends at the Veterans Museum and Memorial Center,” said Beth Steinke, president of Operation Homefront-San Diego, the nonprofit group organizing the walk. “It’s a leisurely two-mile stroll through the park.” The walk, presented by DefenseWeb, a software company, will begin with opening ceremonies at 9 a.m. in Balboa Park, she said. A color guard and a chaplain are scheduled to participate in the opening ceremonies. “We’re hoping...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 21, 2006 – A veteran Utah Army National Guardsman from Salt Lake City is coordinating efforts to hold the municipality’s first Freedom Walk. Salt Lake City’s Freedom Walk is slated for the fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States, Chief Warrant Officer Paul Holton, an Army interrogator, said. “It’s important for people to remember how we felt that day,” Holton said. It’s also important to honor military veterans, especially those who’ve given their lives safeguarding freedom, he added. Holton is working to get sponsors and publicity for his city’s Freedom Walk....

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18, 2006 -- In conjunction with similar events across the country, up to 1,000 people are expected to walk the streets of downtown San Antonio Sept. 11 to pay tribute to those who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001, and to thank America’s veterans, past and present. Operation Homefront, a national nonprofit group that provides emergency support and assistance to servicemembers and their families, is sponsoring the San Antonio Freedom Walk, which will start at the Alamodome and end at North Plaza, in downtown San Antonio. The overall route will be a little more than two...

Rebel MPs wreck Australia's tough immigration plans By Nick Squires in Sydney (Filed: 15/08/2006) A revolt by backbench MPs forced the Australian government to abandon a controversial immigration law yesterday. The legislation would have meant that asylum seekers were sent to a detention centre on the remote South Pacific island of Nauru while their applications were processed. Opponents said that asylum seekers, including women and children, would be kept behind razor wire for months or years in a refugee equivalent of Guantanamo Bay. John Howard, the prime minister, had to take the humiliating step of withdrawing the legislation, knowing that...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 9, 2006 – The city whose native son helped turn the United States into a nation of motorists will shun Henry Ford’s invention for a time on Sept. 11. Michael A. Guido, mayor of Dearborn, Mich., shows Allison Barber, deputy assistant secretary of defense for internal communications and public affairs, a flag that flew over Ground Zero after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. New York firefighters presented the flag to the city in 2002 in appreciation for the $125,000 the city raised for the families of fallen firefighters. Courtesy photo  '(Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “We...

SACRAMENTO Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger used his health care affordability summit Monday to unveil a plan to expand health access for California children as he met with noted business, labor and medical leaders to discuss reforms to the overburdened health care system. Across campus at the University of California, Los Angeles, state Treasurer and Democratic nominee Phil Angelides staged his own "town hall" event with the associate director of the university's Center for Heath Policy Research and a handful of senior citizens and university students. Angelides pledged to sponsor legislation to expand the state's Healthy Families Program and force all companies...

NASA needs to rethink its Mars exploration plans after 2010 given new understandings about the red planet and likely funding levels in the coming years, according to a report just out from a panel of outside experts. By adding to a reworked mix of future missions-for example, a geophysical/meteorological network as well as a sample return mission-the space agency would garner a greater scientific impact at Mars, the panel concludes. Moreover, the space agency must fortify its ability to analyze the data streaming in from Mars. That research can help flesh out a safe and scientifically productive role for humans...

Counting on victory in November, Democrats outline plansHomeland security, a boost to the minimum wage and White House investigations top legislative agenda By Jonathan Weisman WASHINGTON POST Posted on Sun, May. 07, 2006 WASHINGTON - Democratic leaders, increasingly confident they will seize control of the House in November, are laying plans for a legislative blitz during their first week in power that would raise the minimum wage, roll back parts of the Republican prescription drug law, implement homeland security measures and reinstate lapsed budget deficit controls. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, said last week that a Democratic House...

WASHINGTON, May 3, 2006 – Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Fukushiro Nukaga, Japan's minister of state for defense, met at the Pentagon today to continue discussions about realigning U.S. forces in Japan, including moving 8,000 Marines from Okinawa. Today's session followed the U.S.-Japan Security Consultative Committee meeting session May 1 at the State Department. At that meeting, informally known as the "two-plus-two" session, Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with Nukaga and Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Taro Aso to discuss the two countries' alliance and ongoing efforts to update it for the 21st century. During a press...

WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney looked ahead Tuesday to a three-nation, six-day trip designed to nurture democracy and advance U.S. interests in lands where political change doesn't always come easily. Administration officials said a speech in Lithuania on Thursday to leaders of the Baltic and Black Sea regions would be the centerpiece of the journey, which also includes an unusual high-level visit to Kazakhstan. The final stop was Croatia, where Cheney arranged meetings with leaders of three members of the Adriatic Charter, an organization founded by countries eager for admission to NATO. While officials hoped Cheney's trip would advance...

Chertoff: U.S. Still Plans Passport Rule Wednesday April 19, 2006 1:31 AM By LARA JAKES JORDAN Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - The Bush administration said Tuesday it still plans to require passports from all foreigners entering the United States by the end of next year, despite calls for a delay by some Republicans worried about strained relations with Canada. At issue is a 2004 law, being phased in over three years, to tighten U.S. borders against suspected terrorists and other criminals. But critics on both sides of the nation's northern border fear the passport requirement will hamper commerce and...

Plans for US-Mexico border fence draw fireBy Tim Gaynor Posted on: Wednesday, 29 March 2006, 08:07 CST TIJUANA, Mexico (Reuters) - Hurling himself over a steel fence into the no-man's-land between Mexico and California, an undocumented migrant sprints across a narrow strip lit by harsh arc lights and watched over by video cameras on tall posts. Before he can shin up a second barrier of tall concrete pillars topped with seismic sensors and a layer of steel mesh more than an arm's-length wide, U.S. Border Patrol agents close in fast and arrest him . That scene is repeated dozens of...

Alamance dealer plans to sell 13th Amendment originalThe Associated Press BURLINGTON, N.C. Published on Tuesday, March 21, 2006 An Alamance County dealer plans to auction one of 13 known original versions of the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery in the United States, at the end of the month. The document will be displayed at the Times-News building this week and will be in an online auction March 30, according to Raynors Historical Collectible Auctions. Bob Raynor, president of the company, said the document has a potential value of $750,000 to $1 million. The amendment was approved Feb. 1, 1865, by...

Two days of Capitol Hill hearings on the current and future roles and missions of the National Guard and Reserves have launched a comprehensive, year-long assessment of the use of the nation’s Guard and Reserve Components at home and abroad. The hearings, which concluded today [9 March], were conducted by the independent Commission on the National Guard and Reserves. The 13-member Commission has been charged by Congress to recommend changes in the laws and policies under which the Guard and Reserves operate, to ensure that they are tasked, organized, trained, equipped, compensated, and supported to best meet the nation’s security...

WASHINGTON, March 9, 2006 – The United States always has planned to transfer authority for all detention facilities in Iraq to the Iraqis, but announcements regarding the imminent closure at the Abu Ghraib prison are premature, defense officials said today. News reports that the U.S. military intends to close Abu Ghraib within the next few months and to transfer its prisoners to other jails are inaccurate, officials said. There's no specific timetable for that transfer or for closure of the Baghdad prison, they said. Decisions regarding Abu Ghraib and other detention facilities in Iraq will be based largely on two...

Republican Rep. Bill Thomas, chairman of the influential House Ways and Means Committee, was set to announce Monday whether he would retire from Congress or seek a 15th term. Thomas, 64, scheduled a morning news conference in his hometown of Bakersfield, Calif., amid speculation that he would leave the House of Representatives. Because of House Republicans' self-imposed term limits for committee chairmen, the mercurial but brainy former college professor is serving his last year as head of the powerful committee that writes tax laws. GOP officials are working under the assumption that Thomas will retire, according to a Republican election...

Mugabe plans a lavish party as nation suffers By Peta Thornycroft in Harare (Filed: 22/02/2006) Zimbabwe's leader Robert Mugabe turned 82 yesterday in robust health, in contrast to the state of his country. Life expectancy for Zimbabweans is plunging, three quarters of the population is short of food and inflation is 613 per cent. However, President Mugabe is as healthy as a man his age could be. He recently told the state press that a doctor said his "bones were not exactly as a boy of 26, but certainly someone of 30". A shortage of bread has pushed the price...

With just 17 or so flights left on the shuttle manifest before the program is terminated in 2010, NASA's three remaining orbiters can only expect to fly about five missions each. As it turns out, NASA now plans to retire Atlantis in 2008, after five flights, rather than put it through a required overhaul and to "fly out" the remaining half-dozen missions on the manifest with Discovery and Endeavour. But shuttle program manager Wayne Hale told Kennedy Space Center employees today that Atlantis will not be given to a museum, at least not right away. Instead, the space shuttle will...

Trailing in the polls and facing friction inside his own Republican Party, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has set a fundraising goal of more than $120 million for the November election. The sum rivals the amount raised and spent by the entire field of candidates in the 2002 governor's race. If Schwarzenegger succeeds, the money raised — along with tens of millions of dollars that Democrats are likely to spend — would shatter state and national campaign finance records. --snip-- Asked if the governor's ambitious fundraising goal this year might not fuel further attacks, Stutzman replied: "Whether you like it or not,...

Bush plans huge propaganda campaign in Iran · Congress asked for $75m to fund programme · Rice to visit Gulf states as nuclear crisis deepens Ewen MacAskill and Julian Borger in Washington Thursday February 16, 2006 The Guardian (UK) The Bush administration made an emergency request to Congress yesterday for a seven-fold increase in funding to mount the biggest ever propaganda campaign against the Tehran government, in a further sign of the worsening crisis between Iran and the west. Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, said the $75m (£43m) in extra funds, on top of $10m already allocated for...

NEW ORLEANS - The Rev. Jesse Jackson is planning a march this spring to protest post-hurricane policies he fears will marginalize the black community, the civil rights leader said Monday as he toured one of the city's hardest-hit areas. The march on April 1 will cross the Crescent City Connection, a major Mississippi River bridge that was blocked to keep people trying to flee flooded New Orleans from going into cities that weren't as heavily damaged, Jackson said. Officials across the river in Gretna said they blocked the bridge because they had no more room for evacuees. As he squatted...

US plans to 'fight the net' revealed By Adam Brookes BBC Pentagon correspondent A newly declassified document gives a fascinating glimpse into the US military's plans for "information operations" - from psychological operations, to attacks on hostile computer networks. The document says information is "critical to military success" Bloggers beware. As the world turns networked, the Pentagon is calculating the military opportunities that computer networks, wireless technologies and the modern media offer. From influencing public opinion through new media to designing "computer network attack" weapons, the US military is learning to fight an electronic war. The declassified document is called...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday that he isn't worried about losing the Republican Party's support as punishment for hiring a Democratic activist as his chief of staff, and he added that he doesn't know what all the fuss is about. Schwarzenegger has come under fire from some conservative Republicans ever since he hired Democrat Susan Kennedy in the wake of his failed special election. Some Republicans plan to propose at their annual convention in San Jose next month that the party pull its endorsement of Schwarzenegger in the 2006 gubernatorial election. The governor told a meeting of...

CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq, Dec. 23, 2005 – The United States has not discussed basing American troops in Iraq, and would do so only following negotiations with the new Iraqi government, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said here today. "At the moment, there are no plans for long-term bases in the country," Rumsfeld told a Marine during a question and answer session here today. The secretary said the subject has not been discussed because until the most recent election, there was no one to speak with. He said the United States has been working with successive transitional governments in Iraq about...

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The head of NASA said on Tuesday that the U.S. space agency has had to scale back its plans even since he took the job in April because of "daunting fiscal realities." In early 2004, U.S. President George W. Bush outlined a vision of returning humans back to the moon by 2020 and eventually to Mars. Some had hoped such a program would reignite public interest in the space program that has waned since the 1960s and early 1970s. "We must also acknowledge the plain fact that we cannot do everything that was on our plate...

CRAWFORD, Texas - The fallen soldier's mother who drew thousands to her 26-day war protest near President Bush's Crawford ranch this summer plans to return for Thanksgiving next week, despite new county ordinances banning roadside camping. Cindy Sheehan, of Vacaville, Calif., and at least a dozen supporters are prepared to be arrested as they return to the makeshift campsite along the road leading to Bush's ranch, where he is expected to spend the holiday. "It's significant that we do not let up on this administration," said Hadi Jawad, co-founder of the Crawford Peace House, which supported the protesters during their...

The company on Tuesday is set to announce the next version of its business software, Microsoft Dynamics GP 9.0. Due out Dec. 19, the release marks the first wave of a broader strategy to embrace Web services — software that runs all sorts of business tasks over the Internet. Though Microsoft's Windows and Office software is nearly ubiquitous, the company hasn't had as large a role in more complex corporate software — the realm of SAP (SAP) and Oracle. (ORCL) But as businesses shift more of their computing online, Microsoft sees a chance to grab a bigger piece of the...

Vermont may sue to stop tire burn November 6, 2005 By Darren M Allen Staff Writer MONTPELIER — If New York environmental officials choose to disregard Vermont's opposition to plans by International Paper Co. to burn up to 72 tons of shredded tires at its Ticonderoga, N.Y., paper mill for a two-week test, Vermont will likely take the matter to court. Gov. James Douglas and his administration, in cooperation with the Vermont Attorney General's Office, are prepared to exercise every legal avenue at their disposal, the governor's press secretary said last week. "Gov. Douglas has asked the Agency of Administration...

Congress Plans to Raise Budget for Census By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press Writer 32 minutes ago WASHINGTON - The census always been about more than just counting people and divvying up seats in Congress. The first one, in 1790, was used to find out how many "free white males" were available for military service. The 1870 census documented freed slaves who had been denied the right to vote. In 1940, it assessed housing conditions following the Great Depression. Times change and so does the census, evolving over two centuries to reflect America's shifting economy and values. Today, it is on...

DES MOINES, Iowa - Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist says a federal investigation into his sale of stock in a family-owned hospital chain will affect his decision on whether he will seek the presidency in 2008. Frist, R-Tenn., said Saturday during a visit to Iowa — site of the nation's first presidential caucuses — that he has not lost the public's trust and wants people to "wait for the facts before passing judgment." Before speaking at the Iowa GOP's annual fundraising dinner, Frist told reporters that his visit does not confirm any presidential aspirations. "I've been to Iowa many times,"...

NEW YORK (Oct. 20, 2005) -- Two Marines will consecrate their love for one another by taking the vows of marriage in front of the Soldiers’, Sailors’, Marines’, and Airmen’s Club (SSMAC) here, October 27. Cpl. Kelly Orman and his future wife, former PFC. Rachel Cole, will join as one at the very spot they were engaged earlier this summer. Following the service, the newlyweds will have a champagne toast and bouquet toss inside the club. The USO Troupe of Metropolitan New York will also perform a musical tribute to the couple following the ceremony, honoring the young couple as...

CNSNews.com) - The House is expected to vote Wednesday on a bill that would restrict lawsuits against gun makers and gun sellers for the criminal misuse of their products. But even before the voting begins, a gun control group announced it would challenge the measure on constitutional grounds. The Senate passed the "Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act" in July, and the House is expected to follow suit. The National Rifle Association says the bill will stop "meritless, reckless lawsuits" that are filed with the goal of bankrupting the gun industry. But lawyers at the Brady Center to Prevent...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, concerned that the decline in President Bush's popularity will pull down his special election measures, is not expected to appear with the president when he visits California next week. Bush is scheduled to attend a fundraiser in Los Angeles for the Republican National Committee on Thursday and help cut the ribbon Friday at the opening of the new Air Force One exhibit at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley. Although the governor's staff will not confirm his schedule this far in advance, sources said Schwarzenegger is not planning to attend either event. He is tentatively...

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A California assemblywoman who suspects pollution contributed to the cancer she was diagnosed with last year announced plans Wednesday to seek an air cleanup bond that could cost the state between $2 billion and $5 billion dollars. The announcement by Assemblywoman Jenny Oropeza, D-Long Beach, followed a hearing in which lawmakers heard nearly three hours of testimony linking air pollution from California's ports, trucks and other shipping sources to deaths, childhood illnesses and even poor fetal development. The state Air Resources Board released a study earlier this month that found diesel emissions from the Los Angeles...

Katrina sends quake-leery California scrambling to revise emergency plans Wed Sep 28,11:38 AM ET LOS ANGELES (AFP) - The humanitarian debacle spawned by Hurricane Katrina one month ago has badly shaken Californians and sent their leaders scrambling to update plans to cope with a long-feared catastrophic earthquake. Seismic experts warn there is a 62 percent chance of the "big one," measuring at least 6.7 on the Richter Scale, hitting San Francisco and a 70 percent chance of Los Angeles being brought to its knees by a quake with a magnitude of at least 7.2 in the next 30 years. Such...

WASHINGTON (AP) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Friday he has documentary evidence that the United States plans to invade his country. Chavez, interviewed on ABC's "Nightline," said the plan is called "Balboa" and involves aircraft carriers and planes. A transcript of the interview was made available by "Nightline." He said U.S. soldiers recently went to Curacao, an island off Venezuela's northwest coast. He described as a "lie" the official U.S. explanation that they visited Curacao for rest and recreation. "They were doing movements. They were doing maneuvers," Chavez said, speaking through a translator. He added: "We are coming up...

BISBEE - Marilyn Jones was tired of sitting at home and crying about what was happening on the Gulf Coast in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Jones, who has been involved with the Bisbee Animal Shelter, was to leave for Houston today to put her animal skills to work. The Houston chapter of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has reported more than 1,000 cases of pets being separated from their owners. Jones said she will first travel to Houston, and, if possible, then go to Louisiana to care for pets. "I think my particular skill will...

NEW YORK - The Rev. Al Sharpton plans to join peace activist Cindy Sheehan, known as the Peace Mom, on Sunday near President Bush's Texas ranch. Sharpton's office said Thursday he would participate in a prayer vigil Sunday with Sheehan in Crawford, Texas. Sheehan returned on Wednesday to Camp Casey, named after her 24-year-old son, Army Spc. Casey Sheehan, who was killed last year in Iraq. Sheehan began her vigil on the road leading to Bush's ranch Aug. 6, vowing to stay through his monthlong vacation unless he met with her. She left last week to visit her 74-year-old mother,...

FORT MONROE, Va. (8/23/2005) — Most local headlines in Charleston, S.C., probably won’t grab national attention: a road is closed for construction, local officials debate a proposed law, a man is shot in a small town outside Charleston. But how about this for a headline: “Run for Your Lives: Charleston will blow up this week.” A military training exercise, Sudden Response 2005, is using Charleston as the setting of a nuclear disaster to improve the United States’ readiness if such an event should occur. At Fort Monroe, Joint Task Force Civil Support, a unit composed of servicemembers from all branches...