Free Republic

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has a problem. The world's biggest retailer tips the scales at just over $400 billion (U.S.) in annual sales. It is a perpetual growth machine. But it doesn't have a stock valuation to match. At Wal-Mart, repeatedly held out as a winner in this recession as consumers traded down, sales will barely budge in the current fiscal year, ending Jan. 31. Despite the bargain hunters and the demise of weaker rivals, Wal-Mart revenues will edge up just 1 per cent in fiscal 2010. Wall Street fell out of love with "The Beast of Bentonville" (for its Arkansas...

A Minneapolis woman is still trying to come to grips with what happened to her guide dog Thursday night at the downtown Target store. Lolly Lijewski and her dog Brook had just gone into the store when a woman kicked the working dog. A stranger passing by stepped in to help. "As I was coming into the foyer of the store, my dog's feet seemed to go out from under her," said Lijewski. Lijewski didn't know what happened to her service dog. "Then there was a young girl to our left who said, 'Someone just kicked your dog,'" said Lijewski....

WASHINGTON (AFP) – A top Al-Qaeda operative who figures high on an FBI list of wanted terror suspects was killed in a US military raid in southern Somalia Monday, a US official told AFP. The official, who asked to remain anonymous, named the dead man as Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, a Kenyan wanted for questioning for 2002 attacks in Mombasa on a hotel and an Israeli airliner. ABC news and Fox News, quoting US officials, said Nabhan was killed when at least one US helicopter fired on a convoy carrying suspected Al-Qaeda targets in southern Somalia earlier Monday. An American...

The economic downturn has made an already competitive retail landscape especially brutal and unforgiving. Exhibit A is the rivalry between discount retailers Wal-Mart (WMT) and Target (TGT). The clear winner in the current downturn was Wal-Mart. Amid millions of job losses and plunging stock and housing markets, new customers flocked to Wal-Mart, at the expense of almost every other U.S. retailer except ultralow-price dollar stores. It appears that "cheap chic" -- Target's famous selling point -- is not the primary concern of recession-battered consumers. Last quarter, the average U.S. Wal-Mart store actually saw traffic increase 1.3% from the year before....

(In the downturn, Wal-Mart's low prices have trumped Target's cheap chic. With a recovery on the way, the discount giants are readying for the next chapter in their rivalry...) The economic downturn has made an already competitive retail landscape especially brutal and unforgiving. Exhibit A is the rivalry between discount retailers Wal-Mart (WMT) and Target (TGT). The clear winner in the current downturn was Wal-Mart. Amid millions of job losses and plunging stock and housing markets, new customers flocked to Wal-Mart, at the expense of almost every other U.S. retailer except ultralow-price dollar stores.It appears that "cheap chic"—Target's famous selling...

outspoken, conservative, media-friendly — and for many in the Democratic Party, a new public enemy No. 1. Now that former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is out of office, there are few Republican officials in the country Democrats would rather unseat in 2010 than Bachmann, a two-term congresswoman with a habit of pushing the buttons of liberals on everything from ACORN to global warming to even whether President Barack Obama is, as she once asked, "anti-American." "She's definitely somewhere up there," Bachmann chief of staff Michelle Martson said of where the Minnesota congresswoman sits on the Democratic campaign hit-list.

Assembly Speaker Karen Bass takes pride in being a consensus-builder, a soothing and maternal let's-get-along kind of leader. Now please pardon the interruption -- Madam Speaker is ticked off. She simmered as efforts to tame California's $26.3-billion deficit threatened to shred the health and welfare safety net she helped stitch together as a Democratic lawmaker from Los Angeles. She stewed in budget briefings as clear second banana to Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento), her counterpart in the state Senate. Finally, she boiled over at Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. He rankled Democrats with demands that could undermine their union allies and a declaration to...

Bulls-eyes have been painted on at least 6 House Democrats by the NRCC. The ammo is stockpiled and the weapons locker is open.

Oakland, CA (AHN) - Attorney General Jerry Brown charged discount retailer Target on Monday with illegally dumping of hazardous wastes, while announcing a settlement with rival Kmart over similar charges. Brown was joined in filing the charges by 20 district attorneys around the state and the city attorney of Los Angeles. In a statement, the attorney general said the charges resulted from an investigation that began in March 2006 into how Target disposed of various waste products and toxic chemicals. The statement cited numerous instances in which Target showed "willful disregard" of California's waste disposal regulations, one as recent as...

IsraelNN.com) Arab attackers targeted Jews marking the Passover holiday in Jerusalem on Monday. Other rock attacks were reported elsewhere, as well, including one perpetrated by Jewish youths targeting Palestinian Authority vehicles. Local Arabs had expected and prepared an ambush for the Jewish worshipers. On Monday morning, the fourth of five intermediate days of the Passover holiday, an Arab mob threw large rocks and other items at a vehicle caravan of Jews seeking to pray overlooking the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

Nothing like it has ever happened. The President of the United States, the elected representative of the people, has just told the head of General Motors -- a company that's spent more years at #1 on the Fortune 500 list than anyone else -- "You're fired!" I simply can't believe it. This stunning, unprecedented action has left me speechless for the past two days. I keep saying, "Did Obama really fire the chairman of General Motors? The wealthiest and most powerful corporation of the 20th century? Can he do that? Really? Well, damn! What else can he do?!" This bold...

The fallout from the state budget mess continues for Republican lawmakers. Two more GOP legislators are being targeted for a recall by fellow Republicans, not because the lawmakers voted for the budget that included tax increases (they didn't), but because they didn't support the attempted ouster of the Republican Assembly leader who helped broker the deal. The Republicans are mad at Assemblymen Jeff Miller of Corona (Riverside County) and Jim Silva of Huntington Beach (Orange County) because they wouldn't go along with the bouncing of Assembly Republican leader Mike Villines of Clovis (Fresno County). Villines survived the coup attempt. Over...

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Target Corp. said Tuesday that its fourth-quarter profit fell 41 percent as consumer spending suffered amid high unemployment and other economic woes. The discount retailer earned $609 million, or 81 cents per share, in the quarter ended Jan. 31. That compares to $1.03 billion, or $1.23 per share, a year earlier. Revenue in the quarter fell 1.6 percent to $19.02 billion. Sales at stores open at least a year fell 5.9 percent, the company said. Sales at new stores partially offset that. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters, who typically exclude one-time items, had expected Target to earn...

(video of photo spread) During the presidential campaign the media said Michelle Obama was just an average gal who found her neat, but inexpensive wardrobe by picking through the racks at Target like any other working mom. But after the election was over, the truth came out. Michelle dumped Target in less time than it took Barack to dump tax-dodgin’ Tom Daschle. The latest issue of Vogue features the new first lady on the cover and in a photo spread modeling a black dress by Narciso Rodriguez and a magenta dress by Jason Woo (who also designed her inaugural ball...

Note: The following text is a quote: http://denver.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/2009/explosivethreats021009.htm February 10, 2009 LONG BEACH CALIFORNIA MAN INDICTED FOR TWO BANK ROBBERIES AS WELL AS THREATENING TO USE EXPLOSIVE DEVICES DENVER – Scott Shawn Kosterow, age 38, of Long Beach, California, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver late yesterday on charges of threatening to use explosive devices and bank robbery, Acting U.S. Attorney David Gaouette and FBI Special Agent in Charge James Davis announced today. Kosterow will likely make his initial appearance in U.S. District Court tomorrow, where he will be advised by a U.S. Magistrate Judge of the...

WASHINGTON – The upcoming inauguration of Barack Obama is an attractive target for international and domestic terrorists, but U.S. intelligence officials have no information about specific threats to the Jan. 20 event. An internal intelligence assessment, obtained by The Associated Press on Wednesday, says the high visibility of the event, the presence of dignitaries and the significance of swearing in the country's first black president make the inauguration vulnerable to attacks.

This was taken at a pro-palestinian protest 12/29 in New York..methinks the guy may have perhaps, for some reason, mis-spelled a word.

Target credit -card holders are falling behind on their payments at an alarming rate, sending delinquencies within the retailer's $8.8 billion credit-card portfolio surging by more than 60 percent in the past year. The worsening trend could force Target to limit its exposure to future losses by further tightening the credit terms to qualify for its Visa card. And that could mean a further deceleration of sales at Target, which is struggling to attract shoppers amid soft consumer spending, analysts warned. Target already has tightened its credit underwriting this year as the economy has deteriorated. The Minneapolis-based discount retailer reported...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 7, 2008 – Coalition forces in Iraq apprehended an alleged key member of the Kataib Hezbollah network and two other suspects during an operation early today in Baghdad's Adhamiyah district. Officials believe Kataib Hezbollah is a surrogate group for the Quds Force of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. Acting on intelligence information, coalition forces targeted an alleged Kataib Hezbollah bombing cell leader believed to be responsible for recent attacks against Iraqi and coalition forces and Iraqi citizens. Coalition forces approached a residence in search of the suspected terrorist. The wanted man identified himself to forces, and was apprehended without incident,...

Tucson doctor gets restraining order against Olson's ex-wifeBy PATRICK FINLEY Arizona Daily Star Friday, November 07, 2008 The day UA coach Lute Olson announced his retirement, his ex-wife threatened the coach's doctor by placing a bullet-riddled target sheet in his office, according to a restraining order issued against Christine Olson on Tuesday. The order was obtained by Dr. Steven D. Knope and signed by Pima County Justice of the Peace Susan Bacal, saying Christine Olson was to have no contact of "any sort" with Knope. The court papers list her as Christine Toretti, her name before she married Olson. According...

For sale in Target stores...

A doll some are claiming utters pro-Islam and even satanic messages has outraged parents in Oklahoma and Pennsylvania. People insist they can hear Fisher-Price's "Little Mommy Real Loving Baby Cuddle and Coo" mumbling "Islam is the light" and "Satan is king," according to KJRH.com and MyFOXKC.com. "There's no markings on the box to indicate there's anything Islamic about this doll," said Gary Rofkahr of Owasso, Okla., who was at work when another man brought the toy in to show his colleagues. Rofkahr said he found various versions of the doll at local Target and Wal-Mart stores, which have since pulled...

It was a tragic scene in North Las Vegas involving a baby and two dogs. A four-month-old was attacked by two Pit Bulls. The dogs were attacking so viciously police say they had to shoot them dead upon arriving at the scene. Residents in the neighborhood near Cheyenne and Martin Luther King say they are shocked but not surprised that it happened. Neighbors tell News 3 the two Pit Bulls were full grown dogs and when the baby girl arrived at the house four months ago they began to display aggressive behavior towards the child and anyone who held her....

WASHINGTON, Sept. 17, 2008 – The letter that appeared in a soldier’s mailbox promised an offer almost too good to be true: a home improvement loan approved by Congress and backed up by a government agency. Officials at the Federal Citizen Information Center fear it’s a scam targeting military members that uses the center’s credibility to lure victims in. An eagle-eyed soldier notified the Federal Citizen Information Center after receiving the ad from the “Home Information Center” linked to post office boxes in Dallas and in Owasso, Okla. The letter included a reference to FCIC’s Web site in an...

THIS is Osama Bin Laden’s school-age son, who yesterday continued his father’s mission of hate — with a POEM begging for Britain to be destroyed. Baby-faced Hamza Bin Laden — just 16 but already dubbed the Crown Prince of Terror — also ranted in his evil ode that the US and our other allies must be wiped out. The teen declared in his demented ditty to fanatics: “Accelerate the destruction of America, Britain, France and Denmark.”

A party is being held at the grave of a 7/7 bomber in what is being described as an insult to the 52 London commuters murdered three years ago today. The family of Shehzad Tanweer and 400 guests will "celebrate his life" and "remember him as a martyr" at a village in Pakistan today. Tanweer, 22, Mohammad Sidique Khan, 30, Hasib Hussain, 18, and 19-year-old Jermaine Lindsay also died when they detonated rucksack bombs on three crowded Tube trains and a No30 bus. Tanweer's uncle, 42-year-old property developer Tahir Pervez, is organising the celebration in which verses of the Koran...

Nato missiles hit tribesmen By Sher Khan Afridi submitted 27 minutes ago BARA (Khyber Agency) - Amidst operation against what the authorities call criminals and miscreants, a mysterious missile hit the base of one of the religious groups near Bara town of Khyber Agency in early hours on Monday, killing at least nine persons and injuring around 15 others including a woman.All the killed were stated to be tribesmen from scattered areas of Khyber Agency.So far no one has claimed the responsibility for the missile attack against the base of the religious group but its spokesman blamed the NATO forces...

In his living room, Jonathan Schiefla felt the bullet hit his leg. The family cat, on the window sill, flew with the broken glass. Schiefla told his wife to hit the floor. In the distance, gunshots -- target practice south of their Coopersville home -- kept going off. He called 911, while wife Danyle kept pressure on his wound until rescuers arrived. "It's something you don't expect to happen, being on your living-room floor watching television," he said Wednesday. "I'm just glad our little boy wasn't around." Ottawa County sheriff's deputies identified four people -- two men, two women, ages...

(IsraelNN.com) Israel successfully fired the new RAFAEL-manufactured Blue Sparrow medium-range Ballistic Target system Tuesday morning. The system simulates trajectory thermal images and radar cross-section signatures of threats. Military sources said the system will be used in future Arrow Missile systems tests but did not release details as to when or in what context either would be deployed.

HARARE, Zimbabwe - Militant supporters of President Robert Mugabe targeted whites Monday, forcing about a dozen ranchers and farmers off their land as Zimbabwe's longtime ruler fanned racial tensions amid fears he will turn to violence to hold on to power. Mugabe's opponents pressed a lawsuit seeking to compel the publication of results of the March 29 presidential election that they say Morgan Tsvangirai won. The opposition leader urged the international community to persuade Mugabe to step down. "Major powers here, such as South Africa, the U.S. and Britain, must act to remove the white-knuckle grip of Mugabe's suicidal reign...

The tallest building in the world and still growing Last updated at 15:21pm on 6th April 2008 It is the tallest man-made structure in the world – and it is still growing. When complete next year the Burj Dubai will stretch half a mile into the sky over the United Arab Emirates, taller than three Canary Wharf towers balanced on top of each other. Already 2,200ft tall, and the result of 22million man hours of labour, the Burj is the pinnacle of skyscraper engineering. Scroll down for more... When complete next year the Burj Dubai will be taller than three...

Lance Cpl. Jeff Lutz, left, Sgt. Dameon Lyon, center, and Lance Cpl. Michael Janeiro load an AIM-9M 'sidewinder' missile onto an F/A-18 Hornet before a combat mission. The Marines are aviation ordnance technicians with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 115. Photo by 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (Fwd) Public Affairs. AL ASAD — The current role of an F/A-18 Hornet in Operation Iraqi Freedom is close air support and the pilots of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 115, the ‘Silver Eagles’, must always be prepared to deliver a lethal payload on enemy targets. Providing the firepower to the aircraft is the role of...

BAGHDAD - Warning sirens wail and within seconds rockets and mortars strike — sometimes one or two, other times 10 or more. The Green Zone is again a prime target as American and British diplomats, Iraqi politicians, contractors and others struggle to go about their business — always aware that any time they are outside the most fortified buildings there is a chance to be injured or killed. The danger has temporarily reshaped life: Green Zone traffic is minimal, few people venture out on the streets and security precautions — always high — have been boosted. Many diplomats and others...

MANSEHRA, Pakistan - Long-haired gunmen burst into the white stone building and killed four charity workers helping earthquake victims, then wrecked the office with grenades and set it on fire. Police came, but did not intervene. In a tactic reminiscent of neighboring Afghanistan, Islamic militants are attacking aid groups in the Pakistan's volatile northwest, and local authorities appear incapable — or unwilling — to stop them. The threat has forced several foreign agencies to scale back assistance to survivors of the October 2005 earthquake that killed at least 78,000 people and left 3 million homeless — risking the region's recovery...

Russia may have to retarget some of its rockets at the missile defenses that the U.S. is planning to deploy in Central Europe, President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday. "Our experts believe the system threatens our national security," Putin said at his final annual news conference in the Kremlin echoing comments he made on Tuesday. "If it appears, we will be forced to respond appropriately - we will have to retarget part of our systems against those missiles." He also said Russia could be forced to redirect its missiles at Ukraine if NATO bases are deployed in the country. "We...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 20, 2008 – Al Qaeda remains the most dangerous terror group in Iraq, and coalition and Iraqi security forces continue to attack it, Navy Rear Adm. Greg Smith, a spokesman for Multinational Forces Iraq, said today in Baghdad. Smith gave an update on Operation Phantom Phoenix and a short history of al Qaeda’s operations in the country. He also spoke about Iran’s influence in Iraq. The effects of Operation Phantom Phoenix have been substantial, Smith said. “Since January 1, Operation Phantom Phoenix has conducted 18 battalion-level operations, detained 1,023 terrorists and killed 121 terrorists,” Smith said during a...

REDZIKOWO, Poland - Among the people living around this disused Polish air base, there is little enthusiasm for the missile interceptor station likely to be built here as part of a U.S. missile defense system. Poland's new government is sounding increasingly skeptical about the plan, arguing that it won't boost Polish security, and that sentiment is echoed throughout this farming region near the Baltic Sea coast. The main fear is that the area will become a target for retaliation by Russia, which vigorously opposes President Bush's plan. "If they build the missile defense base here, it'll be a magnet and...

Target department stores apparently haven't gotten the memo that dissing the Internet and bloggers can be a dangerous game for a retailer these days. And, Target isn't just dissing blogges and "non-traditional media" they might be claiming they won't even interact with them. All this over a new advertisement that shows a woman in Winter clothing, spread-eagled atop the Target logo, the center of which appears right between the model's spread legs. Just what the "target" here is, can be a pertinent question to ask and several consumer advocates are asking just that question. Amy Jussel of the organization Shaping...

It was supposed to be a Target Christmas. Buffeted by high energy costs and a slowing housing market, consumers were expected to trade down from mid-priced department stores, like Macy's and Nordstrom, to discount retailers with designer cachet - Target's undisputed terrain. But instead of dominating this holiday season, Target is muddling through it, perplexing rival merchants and Wall Street analysts, who consider the chain a bellwether and are scrutinizing its performance for clues on the health of the economy. In two of the past three months - September and November - Target's sales growth has slipped below 1.5 percent,...

A judge rules that the retailer needs to stand trial for having a Web site that is insufficiently accessible. When a federal court judge issued rulings Oct. 2 that the $60 billion retailer Target needed to stand trial on charges that its Web site is not sufficiently accessible to visually-impaired shoppers, it sent a strong signal to much of the e-commerce space.

Target Corp. is learning the hard way that life in the blogosphere can put you right in the bullseye. The Minneapolis-based discount retailer is being outed in online blogs and discussed in college ethics classes after students allied with the company were told to "keep it like a secret" while singing the company's praises on the social network site Facebook.com. "Keep it a secret? That sounds unethical," said Rosie Siman, 21, a senior at the University of Georgia and a member of the Target Rounders. The group of mostly college students gets discounts, CDs and other prizes for marketing Target...

I get all these AFA alerts about stores that ban Christmas. How about a list or a link to a list of shopping alternatives who do not ban Christmas? Here's a few examples of web sites who were not so ashamed to allow the word Christmas to appear on their front page. (Searching the page for text does not always work, e.g. Starbucks mentions Christmas on their front page, but it's in an image.): http://www.gifts.com/ http://www.walmart.com/ http://www.target.com/ (Surpise!) http://www.ftd.com/ http://www.lenox.com/ http://www.winebasket.com http://www.starbucks.com/

WASHINGTON, Nov. 26, 2007 – Coalition forces detained 10 suspects today during operations targeting al Qaeda networks along Iraq’s Tigris River Valley. The forces conducted several operations targeting associates of al Qaeda in Iraq leaders, including foreign terrorist facilitators and planners of car-bombing attacks. During the operations, coalition forces captured two wanted individuals and detained eight suspects. During one of the operations, information gathered from local citizens indicated that terrorists were using a school as a meeting location and safe house. Coalition forces briefly entered the school, but did not do any damage and left the school as it was...

Gays challenge traditional marriage supporters: put up or shut up Homosexual group calls for boycott of Wal-Mart, shopping at Target instead If Wal-Mart sales go down, gays will claim victory in support of same-sex "marriage" benefits The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation's largest homosexual organization, has issued a challenge to pro-traditional marriage supporters saying in essence: "Put up or shut up." They have called for a boycott of Wal-Mart while urging their supporters to buy from Target. The reason? Wal-Mart refuses to offer "domestic benefits" (benefits given to married couples) to homosexual partners. The homosexual organization also urged individuals...

A disappointing October sales report Thursday sent a clear signal to retailers that they’ll have to pull out all the stops to get shoppers into their stores this holiday as declining home values, tighter credit terms and rising gas prices appear to have left consumers feeling spent. The nation’s biggest chain stores posted the second consecutive month of weak sales results, underscoring their concerns that sales growth this holiday season could be the slowest in five years. “Consumers are exerting a lot of caution,” said Mandy Putnam, vice president at TNS Retail Forward Inc., a Columbus, Ohio-based market research and...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 1, 2007 – Though memories of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks may fade with time, President Bush today said that the U.S. remains a top target and urged lawmakers to take measures he sees as vital to countering terrorism. During a speech at the Heritage Foundation here, Bush vowed that during his remaining 14 months as president his administration will remember lessons learned from the attacks, which claimed almost 3,000 victims. “I fully understand that after six years, the sense of imminent danger has passed for some,” he said. “I just want to assure you that...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 1, 2007 – Coalition forces detained 12 suspects during operations early today targeting al Qaeda networks in central and northern Iraq. Surveillance elements led coalition forces to a location in Mosul, where they captured a wanted individual and three suspected terrorists. The wanted individual reportedly is an associate of al Qaeda members involved in foreign terrorist facilitation, to include one who was captured in a coalition operation in Bayji on Oct. 26. Reports indicate one of the suspect's associates, a senior facilitator residing outside of Iraq, is attempting to communicate with terrorist leaders in the country. During the...

Al-Qa'eda target west from Horn of Africa By David Blair in Addis Ababa Last Updated: 3:04am BST 22/10/2007 Special report In the rapidly changing battleground against international terrorism, the arid plains of the Horn of Africa are becoming a steadily more significant base from which al-Qa'eda's followers can launch their attacks. An armed and disguised Somali woman demonstrates her support for the Union of Islamic Courts last December The Horn now ranks alongside the Middle East as the area of greatest concern to British counter-terrorism officials, coming second only to Pakistan, where al-Qa'eda's core leaders are ensconced. Al-Qa'eda operatives based...

Two Texas Target stores have served as scenes of embarrassment for the brick-and-mortar retail chain after an angry mother discovered rocks inside the box that was supposed to contain a shiny new $350 iPod. The box, which weighed as much as the iPod it was supposed to contain, was destined as a birthday gift to her teenage daughter. Upon returning to the store, Target employees believed the story but said they were sold out of that particular iPod model and that the woman was not allowed a refund in cash because she had purchased the device on her Target card....

New York (AP) -- A federal judge granted class-action status to a lawsuit alleging that Target Corp. is breaking California and federal law by failing to make its Web site usable for the blind. The plaintiffs fault Target for not adopting technology used by other companies to make Web sites accessible to the blind. The technology allows reading software to vocalize invisible code embedded in computer graphics and describe content on a Web page. Granting class-action status allows blind people throughout the country who have tried to access Target.com to become plaintiffs in the suit, which alleges violations of the...