Free Republic

I was almost overcome by government insanity overload the other evening and writing this was the cure . . . In 2010 we have to turn the House around big time and get the Senate going that way to. I don't want to ever vote for another politician. I only want to vote for people who know, value and act on the principles that created our great country and are selfless enough to help this country get on track by serving up to two terms. Cut the federal government to 1/3 its present size. Stoke the engines of wealth creation...

If you've spent any time at all on Internet message boards or in college debate class you'll have seen the rafters vibrate with righteous condemnation against the "slippery slope argument." It is claimed that a worst case, ultimate extrapolation of a thing is a bad argument because it isn't necessarily a truism. Supporters of the Second Amendment, for instance, are scolded by liberals when the supporter says that any new gun law is "one more step to banning guns." The gun restricter says that the gun supporter is employing a "slippery slope" argument and that it is idiotic to claim...

This week the 1,600 or so members of Harvard's Class of 2009 will leave campus with a coveted Ivy degree. Of this number, seven will leave with something else: the gold bars of a second lieutenant. At a time when institutions from our banks and auto makers to our churches and public schools seem to have trouble honoring their most basic promises, these young officers enter a life where words have meaning, meaning has consequences, and those consequences can include a flag-draped coffin. Tomorrow on Harvard Yard, Gen. David Petraeus will address these young men and women -- four Army,...

Based upon our observations of American soldiers and their officers captured in this war, the following facts are evidenced," a foreign intelligence officer wrote. "There is little knowledge or understanding, even among United States university graduates, of American political history and philosophy ... of safeguards to freedom; and of how these things supposedly operate within their own system." Believe it or not, those words weren't written by an al Qaeda operative. They were written during the Korean War (1950-53) by the chief intelligence officer of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army in North Korea. In a 1957 response to those remarks,...

The goal must be to challenge liberal premises. Liberal premises necessarily lead to liberal policies. ----snip---- These are softballs lobbed up to the plate that should be swung at with Ruthian clouts and smacked out of the park with ease. Dispute the liberal premise, offer the conservative alternative and let the listener complete the logic for himself. ----snip---- But there are three pre-requisites for all the above: Belief, patience and courage. Belief, in that far too many GOP higher-ups don't really believe in conservatism. One only diligently goes to the mat for that which one truly and fully believes in...

I started thinking several months ago about possible ways to get the party of Lincoln and Reagan back on track. Following the 1994 Contract with America, there was a period of time when the representatives were directly serving the will of the people. We unified under an agreement about specific reforms we all agreed were needed. They promised to act on them, and they did for the most part. We promised to elect them, and we did. We need to bring about the same kind of unity within the Republican Party (based on a conservative foundation) and with like-minded citizens...

I have felt like conservatives need a set of rules to counter the "Rules for Radicals" written by Saul Alinsky. This is my first draft. Comments and ideas are solicited.

Glenn Beck warns about falling for 'Wizard of Oz lie' Talk show dynamo Glenn Beck is warning Americans not to fall for the "Wizard of Oz lie" – the one that says just because a big government voice is large and intimidating it is right. Remember that "once you pull the curtain away you realize that there are only a few people pressing the buttons, and their voices are weak," he writes on his website promoting Friday's "We Surround Them" special program. It airs at 5 p.m. Eastern Time on the Fox News Channel. But is there hope yet for...

Don't Hold It Against Conservatives Who Voted Against McCain March 10, 2009 RUSH: I want to answer one question that was asked of me by Susan from Grosse Pointe, Michigan, about conservatives who voted for McCain, and I want to say up front here that this explanation that you are about to hear is one of these that will be ripe for taking out of context by my friends on the right to once again smear my meaning. Here goes. I said just before the previous hour concluded, I don't hold it against any conservative who voted against McCain....

Looking back on his eight years in the White House, President George W. Bush pinpointed incorrect intelligence that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction as "biggest regret of all the presidency." President sits down with ABC's Charles Gibson for an exit interview."I think I was unprepared for war," Bush told ABC News' Charlie Gibson in an interview airing today on "World News." Despite failed intelligence and accusations of mismanaging the war, Bush said his decision not to prematurely . . .

The aftermath of the 2008 General Election has evoked both soul-searching and recrimination in an attempt to understand its result. The former is useful, that is, to reflect on what has and has not worked for both the party and the conservative movement in general. The latter is useless, as all it serves to do is delay our recovery.In this election, we spent a considerable amount of time exploring unanswered questions about, and the limitations of, the opposition candidate. Given the failure of the media to fulfill its duty to the nation, that's completely appropriate. I'm not a conspiracy theorist,...

All of the frenzied recriminations and strategizing you are seeing are for naught. Before the conservative movement can even think about regaining political power, it must reform itself. Not by abandoning conservatism, but by reestablishing its principles.What is it we as conservatives believe? Until we can answer that question clearly and convincingly, we will largely be on the sidelines.We need not try to find candidates for the next electoral cycle at this time, because we have to discuss our principles first, and come to an agreement on them that the various factions within conservatism can agree on. If I were...

    'National Review' Allows Diverse Opinions, Former Staffer Says By S. T. Karnick (http://stkarnick.com)       A former associate editor of National Review magazine says Christopher Buckley's departure from his back-page column was not a firing, and the magazine embraces diverse viewpoints within conservatism. But that's the real problem with the contemporary right: it lacks a set of coherent principles.   Recently a well-publicized conflict at National Review magazine created a stir on the right and much schadenfreude on the left. Christopher Buckley, the son of the magazine's late founder-editor and a highly respected writer himself, announced...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President George W. Bush, who will host a global summit on the financial crisis next month, said on Saturday that agreeing on common principles to reform regulators would be essential to preventing another disaster. His comments came one day after a worldwide sell-off in stock markets amid growing fears of a global recession. Friday's session was the lowest closing level for all three major U.S. stock indexes since the spring of 2003. "In recent weeks, concerns about the availability of credit, the safety of financial assets, and the volatility of the stock market have made many families...

Once upon a time, there was a country called the United States of America. This fairy tale land was founded by giants. But these giants were unlike those mean giants who grind men’s bones to make their bread. These giants respected all men’s bones, no matter how very small they were. In fact, these giants went to war against a wicked King who lived across an ocean, a King who was stealing the money of the little men to pay for things he wanted. When the good giants won the war, the little men were so grateful that they offered...

"When you call the Iraq War a mistake, you disrespect the service and the sacrifice of everyone who has died promoting freedom". I haven't seen this posted on FR before, but even if it has been, it is such a powerful and moving message it's worth re-posting. It will bring tears in your eyes and a lump in your throat, guaranteed.

Every once in a while, there is a news story that so perfectly illustrates one of today's political absurdities, no made-up illustration could ever be so effective. According to Michael Graham's article, "Bank unduly scapegoated": "activists for the newest civil right - the right to skip your mortgage payments - have taken to the streets of Roxbury." The protest is over the fact that a bank that loaned a certain Paula Taylor, $260,000 to buy a condo, now, "actually want her to pay it back!" If you think this is absurd, the politicians are on the side of Paula Taylor...

What Is Modern Conservatism? Part 1: A Comparison There's been a lot of talk recently about the conservative movement being "adrift." People asking where the movement "goes from here" and so forth.Blather. Conservatism is just fine. Conservatives may feel a bit unmoored lately. The GOP may have strayed from conservative principles in recent years. But the principles themselves are the same as they've always been. The same can be said of the left. Their principles remain the same too, and the contrast between our two ideologies is quite stark indeed. To wit: Never forget what you stand for. Never forget...

Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., has reluctantly come to the conclusion that he will have to vote for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., whose immigration reform bill Tancredo blasted as amnesty. "Sometimes I say to myself, 'Can I really do this?'" Tancredo said of voting for McCain, according to the Rocky Mountain News. "And then you listen to Obama or Hillary and say, 'Yeah, I have to.'" At a debate last October Tancredo sounded less sure of such an idea. "You know, I've said I don't know how many times, that I am absolutely tired and sick and tired of being forced...

Many in the great state of Texas have a lot to say about a proposed network of toll roads and railway lines known as the Trans-Texas Corridor. The Texas Department of Transportation received more than 27,000 public comments during a three-month comment period on a proposed corridor project called the TTC-69, said TxDOT spokesman Mark Cross. Transportation officials had 47 public hearings in February and March and accepted written comments through April 18 on the environmental and social impact of the corridor. Comments ranged from flat-out opposition to the corridor to suggestions about how to lessen its impact, Cross told...