Free Republic

Hello my dear FRiends ... First, I'd like to thank you so much for your prayers for my mom, who passed suddenly yesterday. I can't tell you how much it meant to me and my family. While I was talking with my sister, she mentioned that a friend of hers in the South will be undergoing serious surgery tomorrow morning ... and that her friend is caring for her young son by herself. Her name is Teresa, and I ask that you lift her and her son up in your prayers, and that her surgery is successful. God bless you...

11/24/2009 - SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AFNS) -- Capt. Marian Collins' third deployment to Afghanistan in October became her most rewarding one. Not because of any medal earned or battle fought, but because she reached out to an Afghan youth whose gratitude gave added meaning to her team's mission. Captain Collins, the assistant director of operations for the 571st Global Mobility Squadron at Travis Air Force Base, Calif., was deployed to Shindand, Afghanistan, to restore a 1960s-era airfield to accommodate air mobility operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. While deployed, her desire to help others inspired her to...

Is this any way to run a war? Critics are lambasting President Obama for hitting the pause button on the war in Afghanistan, making U.S. commanders seeking thousands more troops there wait for a decision as he tries to get the "strategy right first." "The commander in chief is the commander in chief, period," said retired Army Lt. Col. James Carafano, a senior fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation. "You can't fight a war from Washington D.C. There's only one way this works: You have trust and confidence in the leaders on the ground, or you don't." Some critics are...

Mullen, accompanied by Gen. David Petraeus and other top military officials, met at Ramstein Air Base in Germany with Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who is expected to ask for 30,000 to 40,000 additional troops. Mullen is now headed back to the U.S., FOX News has confirmed. Mullen asked McChrystal for the meeting earlier in the week following the leak of McChrystal's strategic assessment to hear directly from his commander what resources and how many troops he will need to succeed in Afghanistan, aides told FOX News. "He wanted to understand the request for himself before it arrives in Washington and he...

This is an email I received from a friend this morning. A young boy needs our prayers.

Hello all, Just a short update & a praise report. Granny is still in the hospital and doing much better. The doctor said that he expects her to go back to rehab in a couple of days. This is due to all you out there that has been so kind as to pray. Please continue to pray that Granny will continue to progress & that no more strokes will plauge her. Pray that God will put his hand on her heart & protect her. Pray also for my family that we will not give up hope. Praise God!!

Hello all, My Granny was moved to rehab on Friday & had another massive stroke on Saturday. She has been unresponsive since then, but will squeeze your hand. Please pray that if this is in God's time that she will so peacefully. If it is not her time to go, please pray that God will wake her up, heal her & restore her. Please pray for the family. Granny is the matriarch of our family, a strong cornerstone. If it her time to go, I pray that the family still clings together & holds on to each other. Pray for...

Just an update to the fine folks that are lifting prayers up for my Granny, Daphane Jenkins. They are moving her to the rehab place today to start helping her get on her feet. She has about 95% of her speech back & is getting stronger by the minute. She was quoting scripture last night. Please continue to pray that she will continue to get stronger & that she will be able to go back to her house real soon. Also pray for the nursing staff, the techs & the doctors that are seeing Granny. May God grant them the...

An update on how my Granny is doing. The Lord definitely works through prayer. Granny is talking, sitting up, watching t.v. (Fox News, thank you), and doing much better. She keeps saying she wants to go back to rehab so she can get stronger. Prayers answered. She is scheduled to go back today to rehab (which is outside the hospital). The doctors & nurses are flaberghasted at her recovery & of how much she has recovered. We tell them it is the Lord and prayer that is getting her through this. Imagine, a near death stroke has become a witnessing...

I JUST WANTED TO THANK YOU ALL WHO OFFERED UP PRAYERS & THOUGHTS FOR MY GRANNY. LAST AFTERNOON AFTER WORK I WENT TO THE HOSPITAL AND WE THOUGHT ALL WAS LOST. SHE COULDN'T TALK, SHE COULDN'T MOVE HER LEGS OR ARMS (INCLUDING HER FINGERS). ALL SHE WOULD DO IS MOVE HER EYES TOWARD YOU WHEN YOU TALKED TO HER. THEN, AFTER GRABBING A BITE TO EAT (ABOUT NINE O'CLOCK), WE WERE SHOCKED TO SEE HER MOVE BOTH HER ARMS & LEGS, TRY TO SPEAK NORE CLEARLY, CLAP HER HANDS, LAUGH, AND MOST SHOCKING, WE ASKED HE IF SHE COULD WRITE...

I am struggling with a very selfish grief. I am loosing it really. Everybody seems to be going on. But I am still in the middle of my grief. It is just a month ago. But I miss my mother so much. I know she would want me to be happy . But I am not there yet. I am in this selfish grief of why why why. I cant accept it. I miss her so much. I am sitting on her grave every day. I am crying and I am grieving. I talk to her. I look at her...

I am a new member to FR but have been a lurker for years. I would ask if you could lift up your prayers for my Granny, Daphane Jenkins. A couple of weeks ago she had a pacemaker put in. Then a couple of days later she had a stroke. For the past week she had been in rehab progressing very good & then yesterday she had another stroke. She's 86 years old & so full of life. Please lift up your prayers that God will heal her. Thank you & God bless you all.

Hi everyone, I'd like to ask for a strong, ongoing prayer for my friend's son, about to turn 18, and a new Marine. He will likely be heading to Afghanistan in a couple of months as a rifleman. His family and friends are incredibly proud of this wonderful young man, whom I've known since he was 2. Please keep him, his family and his unit in your prayers. Thank you.

Interpol says it is studying a request from Iran for 25 Israeli officials to be placed on its most-wanted list over Israel's offensive in Gaza. The international police agency says it took the unusual step of confirming the request publicly, as Iranian government officials have made their request public. Interpol says in a statement released Tuesday that its legal team is studying the Iranian request for the issuance of 25 red notices, the highest-level alert Interpol issues

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKAo9qgkz3Y In the above video's comment section, I was confronted by "romeomoon2", who claims 29 years of military service, yet when I asked for his MOS (mine is 19E), he did not do so, and in fact posted a FAKE mos "1369". I was unsure who to contact, so I sent this to you. If this is not in your perview, plz forward to the appropriate department. Thanks in advance, James Paul vonHelton aka Irvin Eugene Helton Jr 1/7th CAV, 1CD Ft Hood, Tx (inactive)

Folks, I'm asking for prayers for my wife. She has a growth in her throat and the doc thinks it might be cancerous. She is going in on Tuesday to have the growth removed and tested. She is the lead singer for our small church and this is all very frightening. Please add my wife to your prayer requests.

Friends,our little Grandson, Noah Stone Jackson was born January 28,2009. He has several medical problems. He has a thick covering of skin over his right eye, may be blind in his left eye, no rectum, club feet, an undeveloped trachea and other issues. We just returned home today from Fresno and Valley Children's Hospital.His parents (my son and daughter-in-law) are devastated. They lost their first born son to Potter's Syndrome (born without kidneys). They were able to hold him for 12 minutes before he died.Please pray for our grandson Noah and his parents Casey and Rebecca. He is facing many...

I just got home from visiting with my friend, Darrell, and found out that his wife (Margaret Phillips) has become very ill. About 2 weeks ago, she had immense pain in her shoulders & neck. The doctors initially diagnosed it as a muscle spasm without running any tests. As the pain increased in intensity over time, she started having trouble breathing, and was life flighted to another hospital where they ran a large series of tests on her. What was causing it was an abscess on the stem of her brain...surgery was done, but she is now unable to move...

Please pray for my sister in law

Hello: I am asking fellow freepers for a prayer request. Your help is much appreciated. I met this woman recently that I feel very strongly about. I haven't felt this way for someone in a long time. I thought of giving up on women completely a few years ago. The problem is...She's a bit reserved and defense. After several months of knowing, I decided to ask her out. While she said no, she didn't completely shut the door on me. She gave me her phone #, so there might be hope. I don't know exactly what happened in her past....

The Texas Department of Transportation's request for a 30-day extension of the public comment period for the Interstate-69/Trans-Texas Corridor Tier One Draft Environmental Impact Statement has been granted. The request was approved by the Federal Highway Administration which oversees the environmental review process for transportation projects. TxDOT has held over 500 meetings on the Trans-Texas Corridor including 254 county meetings, 95 environmental meetings and hearings on I-69/TTC, 171 environmental meetings and hearings on TTC-35, and 12 town hall meetings. The public comment period opened in December, and an extension through April 18th allows more citizens the opportunity to express their...

Hello, Not sure how to really start this. But request is for sister in law that has back surgery complications. Asking for prayer for recovery. Thank you all.

Greetings FReeper prayer warriors; Over the last many years, I have on several occasions posted a prayer request for one of Lake Havasu's Finest, Clint Campbell. It seems that the Lord, every 18 months to 2 years, sends Clint another challenge to overcome. I talked to Clint earlier this evening, and found out that he had a medical procedure the other day, and they did a biopsy on a growth on his kidney. He managed to overcome his other bouts with cancer, and if this biopsy comes back positive I am confident, that with your prayers, and God's grace and...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26, 2007 – The additional budget request for the war on terror that Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates will present to Congress today reflects troop-level recommendations made by the senior U.S. commander in Iraq, a Pentagon spokesman said today. (Video) Gates will present a $42.3 billion addition to the 2008 global war on terror supplemental request when he testifies before the Senate Appropriations Committee today, Geoff Morrell, Pentagon press secretary, told reporters. This brings the overall request to just under $190 billion, after a $5.3 billion procurement request for armored vehicles was added to the $141.7 billion...

As many of you know Maria Bush's husband has been fighting terminal cancer. It now appears death is eminent. He is in the hospital in a hospice ward and Maria and her children are with him. If he should pass today it would be most appropriate as he is and has always been a great patriot and lover of freedom and the USA. Please keep the family in your prayers, they are couragously dealing with this but are still devastated by the pending loss of their husband and father.

LOS ANGELES - Divorced dad Alec Baldwin, caught yelling at his daughter on a voicemail message, said Wednesday he asked NBC to let him out of his "30 Rock" contract so he can devote his time to the issue of "parental alienation." "If I never acted again I couldn't care less," Baldwin said in a pre-taped appearance for ABC's "The View," scheduled to air Friday. The actor, in a transcript provided to The Associated Press by "The View," said that he also wanted to quit "30 Rock" so the sitcom and the hundreds who work on it wouldn't "be hurt...

I have a play -- a very loose (EXTREMELY LOOSE) adaptation of Shakespeare -- and I'm trying to get it produced. Does anyone know where I can find companies that do Shakespeare parodies and actors to perform it?

Freeper Volunteer needs prayers for his wife and her family. Volunteer is on a business trip and just got word his mother-in-law, Nita Harris, of Cookeville, TN has passed away. His wife, Jennifer, is back at their house in Illinois alone. I can't get back until tomorrow. Jennifer's Father passed away 2 months ago. Thursday was the 2 month mark. It's been a lot to deal with in so short a time.

I would like to request prayers for a wonderful lady that I work with... Her name is Margie. She had a heart attack on Thursday. They have made her comfortable at the local hospital in Waterville, but due to recent storms are only transporting her to the cardiac unit in Bangor today to have a stent put in. She is a warm and wonderful woman that cares deeply about everyone she works with and everything that she does. If it matters, I think she is either Evangelist or Born Again. Thank you all.

I know that I don't post here that much, but I know there are many people of faith here, and I want to ask you for your prayers. A friend (who is also a friend of my family) had a stroke a few days ago, and he is currently in the hospital, paralyzed from the neck down. His name is George, and he is from Germany but lives in California. I just heard today that his condition has gotten a bit worse, apparently he has a lung infection and a fever, and is partially on a respirator. The good thing...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 5, 2007 – The defense budget requests President Bush submitted to Congress today will “make the necessary strategic investments to modernize and recapitalize key capabilities in the armed forces,” Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said at a Pentagon news conference. Gates said the fiscal 2008 defense budget request and the 2007 emergency supplemental request for funding the global war on terror will help sustain the all-volunteer military by reducing stress on the force and improving quality of life for U.S. troops and their families. The $481.4 billion budget request will improve readiness through additional training and maintenance...

My FRiends, I would be very grateful for your prayers in behalf of my Dad whose health has taken a turn for the worse right after Thanksgiving, and even more so in the past few days. Dad is 81, a veteran of World War II in the Pacific Theatre, he served as a munitions expert, Browning Automatic rifleman, and finally as a medical corpsman before being wounded and sent home. He continued to serve our Nation in the Department of the Army his entire working career. He has been the finest Dad I could ask for and my life has...

Can anyone post here the "Merry Christmas Legal Disclaimer" that has been posted many times before. Something on the order of "Wish does not imply fullfillment, merely good intention, blah, blah..."

If you're posting an article from a website that requires membership to view the rest of the article, please note that somehow -- whether in your comments or in the headline. Also, does anyone think it is a good idea to create a box you can check when posting the article, like the "This is an excerpt" box that will give that article some sort of lable indicating it is from a subscribers-only source? Let's be honest, it's pretty annoying to start reading an interesting article only to find out that you have to register to read the rest.

Dear FReepers, I received a call from my daughter in the Philippines, advising me that my 1 year old grandson, Jorge, has been ill for several days with a high fever, and he is unable to keep down his food. She took him to a doctor and got medicine for him, but it is apparently not working. Therefore, once again I am requesting prayers from the FReeper Prayer Warriors. Please pray for God's healing power for my grandson, Jorge. Thank you in advance.

TO ALL, long-time FReeper, MamaB, sent me the following tragic news, and asked me to start a prayer thread. So I post this in loving memory of Mr. MamaB, and in hopes it will provide some measure of comfort to his wife and family now suffering through his loss. I just wanted to let you know that my hubby died last night at 7:30. We are all heartbroken. Will you start a thread for me and I will give more details when we get back from the funeral home. Have to be there at 11.

Hey, I need to batch convert quite a lot of .tif graphics for work. I need to rotate them 90 degrees and save them out, either overwriting the old files or putting the new files, same names, in a new directory. The problem is, I know that some graphics programs I have used will balloon the file size by tenfold when this is done for some reason. (WideImage will, Kodak Imaging won't.) Can anyone recommend a graphics program which will allow me to do this?

WASHINGTON - Democrats sought to get embattled Rep. William Jefferson (news, bio, voting record) to resign his seat on the House's most prestigious committee. "In the interest of upholding the high ethical standard of the House Democratic Caucus, I am writing to request your immediate resignation from the Ways and Means Committee," wrote House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi in the one-sentence correspondence. The Louisiana Democrat was defiant. "With respect, I decline to do so," he wrote back to Pelosi."I will not give up a committee assignment that is so vital to New Orleans at this crucial time for any uncertain,...

Fellow FReepers, your prayers are urgently needed for MamaB and her husband and family. I received the following email from her this morning: We got more bad news yesterday at the Kirklin Clinic. There is no treatment available right now unless the dr. down there can find a clinical study at a cancer research center like in San Antonio. He has 6-9 months to live without any treatment. We are all heartbroken and disgusted with the oncologist here who shoul have found this months if not years ago. Could you tell the people on the Dose tonight? Thanks. I have...

WASHINGTON, March 9, 2006 – In a rare joint appearance before Congress, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today urged the Senate Appropriations Committee to quickly pass a $91 billion supplemental spending bill. The bill proposes $65.3 billion to fund operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as about $20 billion needed for Hurricane Katrina reconstruction. The two cabinet members appeared with Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Army Gen. John Abizaid, commander of U.S. Central Command. Rumsfeld said the supplemental includes $34.7 billion for on-going deployments and operations...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 3, 2006 – A $70 billion supplemental fund for ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan will be part of the administration's fiscal 2007 budget request set to be delivered to Congress Feb. 6, officials said yesterday. "The president has committed to ensuring that our military forces have not only what they need, but they have it in the quantities that they need to be successful in prosecuting the military components of the war on terror," Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Bryan Whitman said during a teleconference. Joel Kaplan, deputy director of the White House Office of Management and...

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) - A judge on Thursday denied a request by defense attorneys to seal records and prevent the Riverside County district attorney's office from releasing information about the recent arrests of 49 men accused of attempted child molestation. Superior Court Judge Bernard Schwartz denied both motions filed by the county's public defender's office, saying there wasn't enough evidence to justify the request. The decision affected only nine defendants who remain in custody. It was unknown whether defense attorneys will file a similar motion with the other 40 men who have posted bail. A message left for defense attorneys...

Dear Fellow Freepers, Mrs. B-Chan was admitted to the hospital tonight and will undergo surgery within the next several days. Although her life is not in immediate danger and she is resting comfortably at present, I would deeply appreciate it if you could take a moment to ask God to bless her during her illness and convalescence. For those of you who do not believe in God, would you please pray for her anyway as a favor to me? A brief, silent prayer costs you nothing, and God will hear you whether you believe in Him or not. Thank you.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - A federal judge ruled Monday that prosecutors can use a confession by a man charged with joining al-Qaida and plotting to assassinate President Bush, despite defense claims that the confession was obtained through torture. The ruling came after a six-day hearing in which Ahmed Omar Abu Ali testified that Saudi Arabian security officers whipped his back, kicked him in the stomach and pulled on his beard to obtain a confession. U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee issued a one-page ruling and said he would explain his reasoning in a forthcoming order. Abu Ali's lawyers wanted the confession...

If I get this pasted go to the near bottom of the Washington Post article and see how K. Blanco thought it better to avoid Martial Law declared in her state than to save the lives of her people. and - she is advised by the law firm of Clintoon's ex, former director Witt in how to avoid a "takeover" http://msnbc.msn.com/id/9189916

This is a heartfelt prayer request, and I hope you don't mind a little detail - it's important to my situation: I had something happen at the end of last week that REALLY made me mad - and that's not easy - and disturbed me as well. I had called a collection agency as a potential client (deadbeat customer of mine), one that I had been a debtor with (a mistaken collection placement when the original creditor didn't apply my payments) and had come to a successful conclusion with. I had asked for, and worked with Collector A - nice...

I hate for my first post to be a vanity, but so be it. On Sunday night, a woman was shot in a parking lot of a convenience store as a result of a custody fight between the shooter and the victim’s husband. I found out today that the victim is a friend of mine from my co-ed softball team. I didn’t recognize the name because she was just married on July 16th, and didn’t know her new last name. She was shot twice in the stomach and once in the arm. She had surgery on her stomach yesterday and...

Lawrence Sidney Eagleburger (August 1, 1930-) was born in Milwaukee. Described as a career diplomat, Eagleburger joined the Foreign Service in 1957 and held a series of embassy, State Department, national security, and Defense Department posts before serving as Ambassador (1977-81) to Yugoslavia. He was a State Department Assistant Secretary (1981-82) and Undersecretary (1982-84) before serving as Deputy Secretary of State (1989-92) and Secretary of State (1992-93) under President George Herbert Walker Bush, becoming the first Foreign Service officer to hold the latter post.

WASHINGTON - Senate Democrats opposed to John R. Bolton asked one of his GOP supporters to be a go-between in their pursuit of information that could break an impasse over his nomination to be U.N. ambassador. At the same time, a Democratic lawmaker said the Bush administration has made overtures to try to get the nomination to a final vote. "The White House did make some proposals which didn't really do it, but they're reaching out a little bit," Sen. Barbara Boxer (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., told reporters Thursday. Democrats have demanded to know more about communications intercepted by...

I would like to ask for prayers as I work through a difficult time. The early part of this year was very slow for me. Primarily I take responsibility because I allowed certain personal problems to drag me down. In response, my compensation package was changed and my advances were ended. I have since remedied the situation, but am still struggling. I have already had one pay period where I went unpaid. I do not have the type of job where it is likely to earn commissions every 2 weeks by the nature of the industry. It looks like I...