Free Republic

In an official statement, White House Spokesman Scott McClellan stated that Hamas associates that deal with politics "may be members of organizations, but are not terrorists, versus terrorists, people who have blood on their hands."[1] Is this distinction enough to convince us that Hamas only makes wine and honey and provides social welfare? And does the Bush administration not know what Hamas really is?Hamas is the Arabic acronym for "The Islamic Resistance Movement" (Harakat al-Muqawamah al-Islamiyya) and connotes heat, zeal and passion for a cause, the cause here being the destruction of Israel. Hamas was legally registered in Israel in...

RealNetworks has released a security patch to fix a flaw in its RealPlayer software that could allow compromised code to be run on users computers. The flaw, which was rated "highly critical" by Secunia, is in the most recent versions of the software for both Windows and OS X. Also, Secunia said that some of the older Linux versions were at risk for the flaw. "RealNetworks has received no reports of machines compromised as a result of the now-remedied vulnerabilities," the company said on its website. "RealNetworks takes all security vulnerabilities very seriously."

LOS ANGELES — Former NFL defensive lineman Al Lucas (search) died Sunday from a presumed spinal cord injury sustained while trying to make a tackle for the Los Angeles Avengers (search) during an Arena Football League game, the team said. Lucas was taken to California Hospital (search) and all attempts to revive him were unsuccessful, team physician Dr. Luga Podesta said in a statement. A call to a California Hospital spokesman was not immediately returned. "It is with great sadness that we confirm the passing of Al Lucas. At this time, the thoughts and prayers of the entire Avenger organization...

New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) has long been rumored as desperately seeking the democratic nomination for president in 2008. And while many political observers fully expect the power hungry former First Lady to hit the campaign trail within only a few months of being re-elected as a US Senator in 2006, US News & World report claims to have a confirmation of sorts. From USNews.Com's Washington Whispers: Hillary's in… You don't have to take it from us about Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton 's desire to run for president. Her brothers, Hugh and Tony Rodham, say it's true. Friends...

Do the cameras tell us lies? Italian policemen, magistrates and soccer officials are examining images to determine whether Paolo Di Canio should face criminal charges for stirring old fascist leanings with his celebration of a victory for SS Lazio over AS Roma in the febrile Roman "derby" contest last Thursday. The so-called Roman salute - stiff right arm and flat palm - that this appears to be was not, according to Di Canio and his agents, at all a political gesture, and certainly not intended as incitement to the known neo-fascist faction of hard-core Lazio fanatics in the north stand...

Downloads malicious application when video files are runSecurity experts have intercepted two malicious Trojans hidden in video files that download and install spyware, diallers and computer viruses when played in Microsoft Windows Media player. PandaLabs warned that Trj/WmvDownloader.A and Trj/WmvDownloader.B, are spreading through P2P networks hidden in video files. These Trojans take advantage of technology incorporated in Microsoft Windows Media player called Windows Media Digital Rights Management (DRM), designed to protect the intellectual property rights of multimedia content. When a user tries to play a protected Windows media file, this technology demands a valid licence. If the license is...

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) - Yasser Arafat's wife Suha, long dismissed by Palestinians as a spoiled socialite, had not even seen her husband for years until he fell sick last month. But she has suddenly emerged as a major player in the succession struggle for Palestinian power. In a one-minute telephone call to the Arab satellite network Al-Jazeera, she set off a political storm Monday, accusing her husband's top aides of conspiring to replace the 75-year-old leader in a behind-the-scenes power grab. The 41-year-old Mrs. Arafat, who until now remained largely outside the political scene, said top officials aimed to...

USF player said issue was a distraction TAMPA, Fla. -- A University of South Florida women's basketball player who wanted to wear Islamic clothing on the court quit the team on Wednesday. Last week, USF had asked the NCAA for an exemption to its uniform policy to allow Muslim convert Andrea Armstrong, 22, to wear long pants, a top with long sleeves and a scarf during games. In a letter Wednesday to coach Jose Fernandez, Armstrong said she was leaving the team because she didn't want the uniform issue "to cause further distraction." Armstrong first said last week that she...

FYI... Just released is a newer version of Windows Media Player number 10. It is not yet available if you do a 'Windows Update'. Go to this MS web site and you can get info and download. http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/mp10/default.aspx

President George W. Bush is the very first President to hold a Masters Degree in Business Administration. Even better (or worse, depending on your perspective), his MBA is from Harvard Business School, where postgraduate management training was invented in the early part of the last century, and which to many stands as a symbol of the good, the bad, and the ugly faces of modern management. Harvard MBAs indisputably lead more major corporations, receive higher starting salaries fresh out of school, and carry with them more élan and glamour than the graduates of any rival business schools – facts which...

Minor-league Cubs player strikes out at osprey in nest Posted: April 23, 20035:40 p.m. Eastern © 2003 WorldNetDaily.com A minor-league pitcher in the Chicago Cubs organization has created a major flap after aiming for and knocking down an osprey from its perch with a baseball. Pitcher Jae-kuk Ryu South Korean Jae-kuk Ryu of the Daytona Cubs could face animal cruelty charges for striking out at the bird Monday night at Florida's Jackie Robinson Ballpark. "The bird's eye was gushing blood," Chad Efron, a trainer with the Port St. Lucie Mets told the Daytona Beach News-Journal. "I started yelling at [Ryu]. I got...

<p>RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif.(AP) - A former professional football player has filed a lawsuit against San Bernardino County, claiming he was injured inside a jail bathroom.</p> <p>Kevin McLain, a linebacker who played for the Los Angeles Rams from 1976 to 1979, filed the lawsuit Dec. 10 in West Valley Superior Court. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages.</p>

Typically software makers like Microsoft provide a simple means of uninstalling software--particularly software such as Media Player 9 Series that has yet to be officially released. The Redmond, Wash.-based company released the public beta version last week amid much fanfare in Hollywood. Windows Me and XP users must rely on a feature called "System Restore" to roll back their Windows installation to a time before they installed Media Player 9 Series if the want to uninstall it. The clunky alternative doesn't really remove all Windows Media Player 9 Series files and could potentially wipe out other system changes. David Caulton,...