Free Republic

Salem Township employees don’t contribute anything to their health care costs. And they won’t have to contribute up to 20 percent of their health care costs as a new state law mandates after the Salem Township board voted 7-0 to exempt itself from the law. Municipalities need a two-thirds vote from the governing body to be exempt from the law. The Publicly Funded Health Insurance Contribution Act (Public Act 152) states that as of Jan. 1, 2012, “a public employer shall pay not more than 80% of the total annual costs of all of the medical benefit plans it offers...

Archaeologists believe they have found the first pre-Roman planned town discovered in Britain.It has been unearthed beneath the Roman town of Silchester or Calleva Atrebatum near modern Reading. The Romans are often credited with bringing civilisation to Britain - including town planning. But excavations have shown evidence of an Iron Age town built on a grid and signs inhabitants had access to imported wine and olive oil. Prof Mike Fulford, an archaeologist at the University of Reading, said the people of Iron Age Silchester appear to have adopted an urbanised 'Roman' way of living, long before the Romans arrived. "It...

Live stream at link. On now.

Fox Chief White House Correspondent DECORAH, Iowa – President Obama got into a heated back and forth with a Tea Party activist who demanded to know at the end of a town hall meeting here whether or not Vice President Biden had called members of the Tea Party “terrorists” during the debt ceiling debate. In public, Obama did not directly answer the question from Tea Party activist Ryan Rhodes about Biden. But Obama fired back that he knows better than anyone what it’s like to be slammed for his political views and was not about to accept a lecture on...

<p>DECORAH, Iowa – President Obama got into a heated back and forth with a Tea Party activist who demanded to know at the end of a town hall meeting here whether or not Vice President Biden had called members of the Tea Party “terrorists” during the debt ceiling debate.</p>

The Debate is on Twitter now for those who wish to look.

MIDDLETOWN — New Jersey cannot succeed unless it follows fiscal discipline and enacts education, health-care and pension reform, said Gov. Chris Christie to over 200 people who weathered Wednesday’s snowstorm to attend a “town hall-style” meeting in the township. Rather than nibble at smaller problems that will not solve New Jersey’s fiscal woes, Christie told the crowd at VFW Post 2179 that he believes it is important to find a solution to the high cost of benefits for public employees. “Other politicians made you promises they couldn’t keep,” Christie said. “I’m the guy who has to be here when the...

A Democratic lawmaker said Thursday he does not want to encounter any "nuts" at town hall meetings with constituents. Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D-Pa.) made his comments as lawmakers are heading home for the July 4 recess. TimesLeader.com reported: On Thursday, while appearing as a guest on WILK Radio’s “Webster and Nancy Show,” Kanjorski was asked if he was going to hold any public town hall meetings with his constituents.

Several hundred Dallas-area residents gathered Saturday for an all-day brainstorming session about the ballooning national debt. They sweated. They scratched their heads, jotted notes and haggled. They made tough choices and in the end, like Congress itself, many came up short. Frank Reister discussed options with his table Saturday at the AmericaSpeaks town hall meeting on the national debt. Reister thought the choices subtly led people toward protecting entitlement programs. Table 29, for instance, tried earnestly for hours. They got about halfway to the goal of trimming the deficit by $1.2 trillion.

SIERRA VISTA — Promising people some straight talk — a page from Arizona Republican U.S. Sen. John McCain’s campaign style — Jonathan Paton spoke about his credentials and why he should be the GOP candidate to take on incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. While there are four other GOP candidates in the race for the party’s nod to seek Arizona’s 8th Congressional seat, Paton is spending most of his energy running against Giffords’ two-term record. Saturday, he spoke to nearly 30 people — one of them making a video of the event for the Democrats — at a town...

If you had a choice of all the people you wanted to invite, who would you want living and working with you in your town, area, state? I want Mark Steyn to move down the road and open his international newspaper and music store. I want Thomas Sowell to teach at the small but excellent local college, something like Hillsdale. I want Lou Dobbs to run the bank. I want Ann Coulter to teach political science and realities.

AL ASAD AIR BASE – The proud mayor of a small town near here, a location formerly controlled completely by the insurgency, invited a platoon of U.S. Army paratroopers for a tour of his now-peaceful area, May 13. Mayor Myeser Abdol Mohsin Freh hosted 2nd Platoon, Battery B, 3rd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment, 1st Advise and Assist Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division, on a tour of Barwana, a small town on the eastern shore of the Euphrates River across from larger Haditha in Iraq's Al Anbar province. "I am proud of my city," said Myeser to 1st Lt. Samuel...

One can buy all manner of items on eBay: clothes, cars, jewelry, furniture. Even towns. Wauconda, Wash., is the most recent town to be sold on the auction site. Daphne Fletcher, 42, who once was homeless, sold the place for twice the original 2007 purchase price. But it's not really a huge profit for her. After all the improvements to the property, paid for in part by a loan from her mom, Fletcher figures she'll pocket much less money. The town has a gas pump, a restaurant, a small store and a four-bedroom house. The town has its own ZIP...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 25, 2010 – Meetings of influential villagers have outnumbered military engagements over the last few days in Operation Moshtarak in the central portion of Afghanistan’s Helmand province, military officials reported today. At the invitation of Helmand Gov. Gulab Mangal, the Nad-e Ali deputy district governor held such a meeting, called a “shura,” in Marja that was attended by 200 residents. Haji Zahir, the deputy district governor, spoke about improving security conditions and said that more Afghan National Police would be posted in Marja. He promised to ensure the opening of shops and clinics, and personally oversaw the distribution...

That's what Rep. Baron Hill (D-IN), the policy leader of the conservative/moderate Blue Dog coalition, explained to a journalism student at a town-hall meeting Wednesday night who asked why she wasn't allowed to videotape the event for a school project. "This is my town hall meeting, and I set the rules, and I've had these rules," Hill responded, in an authoritative tone. "Let me repeat that one more time. This is my town hall meeting for you. And you're not going to tell me how to run my congressional office. Now, the reason why I don't allow filming is that...

Howard Dean to Join Rep. Moran for Town Hall on Health Care Reform Efforts This event is for residents of Virginia's 8th District only. When: Tuesday, August 25, 2009 7:00PM - 9:00PM --Doors open at 6:00PM Where: South Lakes High School, Gymnasium 11400 South Lakes Dr. Reston, Virginia What: Town Hall meeting hosted by Rep. Jim Moran featuring Governor Howard Dean, M.D., former Governor of Vermont, Democratic National Committee Chair Emeritus, author, and national grassroots leader on health care. The meeting will discuss current efforts in Congress to reform our nation’s health care system. Why: Congress is attempting to craft...

Pelosi held a health care "roundtable" discussion with religious leaders at an Episcopal church in San Francisco on Thursday -- her second roundtable forum since the president announced plans to make health coverage more accessible to the nation's 50 million uninsured. Reid, the Senate's top Democrat, has yet to hold a traditional public town hall, but is expected to host a "tele-town hall" August 28. Assistant Majority Leader Sen. Dick Durbin, who said organized protesters were prepared to take over the town halls and "shout and shove" their way to the podium, called the public meetings a waste of his...

The auditorium at Mankato East seats 700 people, all of those seats were filled, as Democratic Congressman Tim Walz took the stage at a health care town hall. As we've seen in similar settings across the country it did not take long for this discussion to get heated. The tone of the discussion was set early, when the introductory speaker said there is nothing political about your need for health care, but that didn't prevent fireworks from happening. Mankato is where Democratic Congressman Tim Walz is from, and there were more Democrats in this crowd than Republicans. "You tell em...

The Mayo Clinic continues to adjust to changing economic times, but leaders not only want Mayo Clinic to be a destination medical center, they want Rochester to be a destination medical community. "Here we come, so get ready." Mayo Clinic CEO Doctor Glenn Forbes says Mayo Clinic's financial numbers are better than expected, largely because they're becoming more efficient, but he says their work is just beginning. "The future is still filled with many uncertainties particularly in the area of health care. We're committed to continuing to build the models that are going to be successful in the future." That...

Reader Kelly e-mails that Colorado Democrat Rep. Betsy Markey is hiding from her constituents and refusing to hold a public forum during this long, hot congressional recess. So Kelly has graciously taken the opportunity to convene a town hall for Rep. Markey — and extended an open invitation. If the congresswoman doesn’t show, her voters will have a placeholder ready

Watching the recent town hall debates on health care, one thing is clear: they are not easy for members of congress. The crowds are passionate, loud, angry, frustrated, and worst of all informed. They are asking tough, specific questions. The types of questions that make politicians look foolish, because they don't know the answer. YouTube is overrun with videos of politicians taking it on the chin in these meetings. From Arlan Spector being told a giant has awakened, to John Dingell being chastised by a man standing next to his son who has cerebral palsy. But to those politicians’ credit...

"There's a lot of fear out there," said Rep. Carol Shea-Porter, a New Hampshire Democrat. To calm that fear, Obama plans to spend the month highlighting the upside of health overhaul for Americans already with insurance, starting in a state with 89 percent of its residents enjoying health coverage. In New Hampshire, Obama will speak directly about his proposal to ban insurance companies from denying individuals coverage because of pre-existing conditions. During a Friday trip to Montana, he will talk about how his plan would block companies from dropping an individual's coverage if he or she becomes ill. And in...

Just saw this online poll. Town-hall protests over health care are: A - Being orchestrated by lobbyists B - Ordinary citizens expressing their opinions As of 7:45AM PST the results are: Being orchestrated by lobbyists 55% 42501 Ordinary citizens expressing their opinions 45% 35350 Total Votes: 77851

I just came from the Philadelphia town hall meeting. First off I am glad that there were more objecting to this crap. However, these people have their minds made up and don't give a spit about what we think.One thing I have to say is, I knew Sebelius was a nut job...but now I really believe she is evil! There was a man who obviously had some physical disability and he thanked Sebelius for her service...she gave him a courtesy smile then her face went to "stone cold evil" after he looked away! Such arrogance...the anger ran through my veins...

(At right) Flanked by friends and family members, a wreath is carried down the beach to be released into the ocean in memory of Craig, "founding father" of the Beach Patrol. Carrying the wreath is the current head of the organization, Capt. Butch Arbin, who is flanked by Craig's son, Robert Craig, and grandson, Christopher Craig. (Above) Sean Williams pushes a surf board, carrying the wreath and the ashes of Capt. Craig, toward a Coast Guard boat, which released the wreath farther from the shore.

News Release: April 8, 2009 Memorial Service planned to honor Captain Robert S. Craig Ocean City, MD – A memorial service for Captain Robert (Bob) S. Craig will be held 3 p.m. Saturday, April 25 on the beach at North Division Street. Captain Craig passed away on Saturday, March 28 at the age of 90. Captain Craig joined the Ocean City Beach Patrol in 1935 and served as its captain from 1946 until retiring in 1987. Captain Craig is credited with building the Ocean City Beach Patrol into the professional organization it is known as today. When Captain Craig turned...

(April 3, 2009) The man who not only epitomized the Ocean City Beach Patrol, but also built it into a serious and professional organization, passed away Saturday. When Capt. Robert (Bob) S. Craig turned 90 last July, a competition, dinner and slide show honored him for his 52 years as a town employee and member of the Beach Patrol. Thousands knew Craig from his years guiding the Beach Patrol and taking it from a small, relatively unskilled group of young men to a large group of highly skilled young men and women. Capt. Butch Arbin, the current head of the...

OCEAN CITY – Ocean City lost a treasured icon this week when Captain Robert S. Craig, who shepherded the Beach Patrol through decades of change and inspired his young charges for half a century passed away at the age of 90. Captain Craig, as he was known for decades not only by the thousands of lifeguards who worked with him and for him but also by the countless millions of local residents and visitors to the resort area, passed away last Saturday at the Coastal Hospice in Salisbury at the age of 90. A former schoolteacher and coach, Captain Craig...

As far as scenic ruins go, the Pittsburgh metropolitan area sets a high standard. The natural beauty of the Monongahela Valley and the built legacy of deindustrialization make gorgeous scenery out of blue-collar defeat. Beauty is no compensation for lost jobs though. The old steel towns of this region have been imploding for decades. No place has lost a greater share of its population than Braddock, Pennsylvania, just outside Pittsburgh. This ravaged, near-empty stretch of abandoned homes, storefronts, and buildings was once a storied cornerstone of the industrial age. After losing 90 percent of its peak population, today it looks...

PARSHALL, N.D. — In this tiny reservation town about two hours from the Canadian border, a Southern twang is sometimes heard over the din at the local diner and there’s talk of Texas tea beneath the streets. Roughnecks from Texas and Oklahoma have travelled here on hopes that they now share with the town’s 1,000 or so inhabitants — that there is oil in Parshall. About 400 people own mineral rights under homes, businesses, churches, nursing homes or tribal land. All of it has been leased, town officials said. “We were dying,” said Loren Hoffman, a local farmer and the...

Barack Obama 'belittles' small town America By Tim Shipman in Washington Last Updated: 12:52am BST 13/04/2008 Barack Obama's presidential campaign has been knocked off balance after the Democratic White House frontrunner was caught on tape apparently belittling the fears of small town Americans who have lost their jobs. Senator Barack Obama speaks at a town hall meeting at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana The senator from Illinois was forced into a frantic damage limitation exercise after a recording emerged in which he appeared to dismiss impoverished blue collar workers as bitter individuals who have turned to God, guns and...

New Babylonian town found Azzaman, March 19, 2008 Iraqi archaeologists have discovered a new Babylonian town 180 kilometers south of Baghdad. The head archaeologist Mohammed Yahya said the town is more than 20,000 square meters in area and includes administrative quarters, temples and other buildings of “magnificent and splendid design” Yahya, who is the head of the provincial Antiquities Department in the Province of Diwaniya, where the new Babylonian town was discovered, said he still lacks evidence on the town’s ancient name. The locals call it Shamiya after a provincial district nearby, he said. “We have dug up a sectional...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU, Iraq, Feb. 5, 2008 – About 1,000 residents returned to a town southwest of Baghdad last week after learning coalition and Iraqi forces had secured the area. Residents of the Zambraniyah, Iraq, area move through a coalition checkpoint as they return to their homes. Residents fled the area in January when coalition and Iraqi forces moved in to clear out al Qaeda in Iraq terrorists. Photo by Staff Sgt. Michael Paredes, USA  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. When heavy fighting broke out in the Zambraniyah area in early January, coalition forces advised families to...

CAMP LIBERTY — Community leaders, Iraqi Police and supporting Coalition forces met recently here to celebrate securing Aqur Quf, a town in the district of Abu Ghraib near Baghdad. The town has seen a dramatic decrease in the levels of violence since earlier this year, said Louisville, Ky. native Capt. John Nelson, commander of Company D, 2nd Squadron, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. “Before we came to the area,” he said, “there were a lot of improvised explosive devices directed against Coalition Forces as well as a high level of sectarian violence between the Shia...

Stunning survey unveils new secrets of Caistor Roman town PA280/07 — December 13 2007 On the morning of Friday July 20, 1928, the crew of an RAF aircraft took photographs over the site of the Roman town of Venta Icenorum at Caistor St Edmund in Norfolk, a site which now lies in open fields to the south of Norwich. The exceptionally dry summer meant that details of the Roman town were clearly revealed as parched lines in the barley. The pictures appeared on the front page of The Times on March 4, 1929 and caused a sensation. Now, new investigations...

German town wants its own Great Pyramid By Bojan Pancevski in Berlin, Sunday Telegraph Last Updated: 12:17am BST 02/09/2007 The pharaohs may have set the standard, but German entrepreneurs are hoping to challenge Egypt's pre-eminence in monumental self-indulgence by building the world's largest pyramid. The pyramid of tombstones planned at Dessau They have secured €90,000 (£61,000) in state funding to assess the feasibility of building a 1,600ft tall "Great Pyramid" near the town of Dessau, in the impoverished east German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Like the original Great Pyramid at Giza in Egypt, this would be a place of burial. But...

Calif. Farm Town Is Nation's Smoggiest Published: 8/9/07, 3:26 PM EDT By SUDHIN THANAWALA (AP) - ARVIN, Calif. - Lying in a rich agricultural region dotted with vineyards and orange groves, this central California community seems an unlikely place for a dubious distinction: the most polluted air in America. Hemmed in by mountains, Arvin is the final destination for pollutants from cities as far away as San Francisco Bay, and its wheezing residents are paying the price. Many of them complain that the air smells toxic. "It's common for people here to say, 'I'm going to the beach so I...

An Iraqi policeman enters a gateway into a townsperson's home along with Marines from Bravo Company, Proper Task Force, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines, attached to 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, Regimental Combat Team 2, on June 24, 2007. Marines and Iraqi police speak with homeowners providing a friendly face and show the cohesion of Iraqi and coalition forces. Role-model Town Produces Positive Results Iraqi town with friendly citizens cooperate with coalition forces. By Cpl. Eric C. Schwartz 2nd Marine Division ANAH, Iraq, July 13, 2007 — The air smelled clean, the roads were paved and spotless, and the laughter...

CONSTRUCTION has started on the world's first Woman-town, where disobedient men will get a spanking. The 2.3sqkm Shuangqiao district in China's Chongqing will have a motto proclaiming its philosophy: "A woman never makes a mistake, a man must not refuse a woman's request."

Army town united after four years in Iraq By Alex Spillius in Fayetteville Last Updated: 12:57am GMT 19/03/2007 Wesley Loffert has two sons in the military and had a message for those who think US troops should be brought home from Iraq. Martin Verhagen's children are due to serve in Iraq and Afghanistan "You are encouraging the enemy by telling him if you kill enough Americans they will leave. You have got to let the president and let the commanders do their job," he said. Mr Loffert, a 73-year-old retired colonel and Vietnam veteran, lives in an immaculate, shuttered bungalow...

VAIL, Colo., March 8, 2007 – For the fourth consecutive year, 25 veterans wounded in the global war on terrorism will test their mettle on the slopes thanks to the Vail Veterans Program’s winter sports clinic that kicked off here yesterday. “We’re really a stepping stone in their recovery. This is therapeutic for them to be here,” Cheryl Jensen, director of the Vail Veterans Program said during a kick-off dinner here yesterday. “By the time they leave here, they’re totally comfortable with themselves or have confidence that they never had. “They grow emotionally and physically while they’re here in...

CAMP KOREAN VILLAGE, Iraq (Feb. 14, 2007) -- While the rest of the battalion is miles away, Marines from C Company are working a “smugglers town” in western Iraq. As a whole, Marines from the Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C.-based 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion are stretched throughout the Al Anbar Province. Some conduct security operations in cities like Rawah and Anah, 150 miles northwest of Baghdad, while Company C assists the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit in Rutbah, a city of roughly 30,000 about 50 miles east of the Jordanian border. While most of the area consists of flat...

Infantry Company’s Efforts Breathe Life into Small Town Farmer’s crops thrive thanks to guidance, equipment from U.S. troops. By Cpl. Michael Molinaro 2nd Brigade Combat Team PAO, 4th Infantry Division FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU, Iraq, Oct. 16, 2006 -- Multi-National Division - Baghdad soldiers delivered an assortment of equipment and goods to the Muehla Agricultural Union, Oct. 9. Refurbished tractors, seed spreaders and water pumps were among the items donated to the union as it begins to move from underneath the guidance of the soldiers from Company B, 2nd Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 6, 2006 – The northwestern suburbs of Chicago will hold a Freedom Walk on Sept. 9 to remember the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and to honor the nation's veterans, past and present. "We just really feel that on this five-year anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001, it's extremely important that we honor, in a very visible way, the victims of 9/11, … our military and our police and firefighters," Dirk Beveridge, the event's lead organizer, said. The walk will begin at 2:30 p.m. at the Metra train station in downtown Barrington. The walk will be...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 6, 2006 – Waxhaw, N.C., will be awash in red, white and blue Sept. 9, as the town holds a Freedom Walk and “Waving Patriotism” event to commemorate the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and honor servicemembers, past and present. Hosted by Flags Across the Nation, a nonprofit group that promotes patriotism, the events and walk will begin with a welcome ceremony at 11 a.m. near the town’s Memorial Wall and fire station and conclude at 5 p.m. Those attending are encouraged to write letters and create patriotic art for the troops. They can also brush up on flag...

Hundreds of Chechens forced to flee Russian town as restaurant brawl erupts into race riot · Xenophobic groups use fight to urge ethnic attacks· Minorities targeted in internet campaign Tom Parfitt in Moscow Tuesday September 5, 2006 The Guardian UK Several hundred Chechens and dark-skinned people from the Caucasus have been forced to flee a town in north-west Russia after a brawl in a restaurant prompted a race riot at the weekend. The exodus of minorities from Kondopoga in the Karelia region near the border with Finland follows events on Saturday when a mob rampaged through the town and burned...

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...

BAGHDADI, Iraq (Aug. 17, 2006) -- After 30 recent graduates from the Iraqi police academy came to Baghdadi, Iraq, residents in this Saddam-era military housing complex are expressing interest in joining the police force because they are noticing a decrease in insurgent activity. Marines with the Hawaii-based 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, or “America’s Battalion”, are combating the insurgency with local police officers – who recently received “much needed” new gear to get the job done – pistols, protective vests, rifles and batons to use while patrolling the city’s streets. Soon they will receive radios and police cars, said Maj....

YUSUFIYAH – The sounds of car horns honking and chickens squawking were a soundtrack for prosperity at a market just south of Baghdad on July 13, where vendors displayed everything from clothing to ice and vegetables in this once insurgent-infested town. American, British and Iraqi forces fought pitched battles here in the fall of 2004, during a sweep of insurgents still loyal to Saddam's regime. Today, the market is full of faces looking forward to peaceful and uneventful days. “Before the American Army came to this area, it was full of insurgents and thieves and killers,” said Ali, who declined...

Posted on Mon, Jul. 17 Matera: A southern Italian town revives its ancient cave dwellings By Carol Pucci The Seattle Times (MCT) MATERA, Italy - Nicola Rizzi stands in front of his boyhood home where chickens and ducks used to wander, closes his eyes and smells bean soup and tomato sauce boiling on pots heated by wood fires. He was 11, a survivor in a neighborhood of windowless caves and damp walls, where animals and humans slept side-by-side and half the children born there died, among them three of his brothers and sisters. Mostly though, Rizzi remembers the smell of...