Free Republic

A massive ship carrying a new, giant crane to the Port of Oakland made narrow passages under the Golden Gate Bridge and the Bay Bridge this morning and is heading for the Ben E. Nutter Terminal. The Zhen Hua 26 from China is 764 feet long, just a tad shorter than San Francisco's iconic Transamerica Pyramid. The crane stands more than 300 feet tall on the ship, and the crew made preparations to allow the crane to fit under the bridges on its final leg from China.

Note: The following text SNIPPET is a quote: SEVEN CHARGED FOR ILLEGAL EXPORT OF ELECTRONICS TO U.S. DESIGNATED TERRORIST ENTITY IN PARAGUAY February 19, 2010 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Jeffrey H. Sloman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Anthony V. Mangione, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Office of Investigations, John V. Gillies, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, Harold Woodward, Director of Field Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Michael Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, Department of Commerce (DOC), Adam J. Szubin, Director, Department of the...

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Duncan Tucker's "Transamerica" was named the outstanding film in limited release at the 17th annual GLAAD Media Awards. The awards honor individuals and projects in the mainstream media and entertainment industries for their fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation presented the honors Saturday night (April 8) at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood. "Brokeback Mountain" had been named outstanding wide-release film at GLAAD's New York ceremonies, which took place March 27. At the Los Angeles event, Showtime's "The L Word" was...

Never mind that country music is considered bedrock conservative, the unofficial red-state soundtrack. This year, some of country's most famous names are singing in movies with gay and transsexual themes. Dolly Parton received an Oscar nomination for "Travelin' Thru," a song she wrote and sang for "Transamerica," while Willie Nelson and Emmylou Harris are heard on the Oscar frontrunner "Brokeback Mountain." Nelson, always an iconoclast in his music and politics, even released a gay cowboy song on Valentine's Day, "Cowboys Are Frequently, Secretly (Fond of Each Other)." But don't expect a wave of gay love songs to sweep across the...

 The Golden Globe Awards, Hollywood’s latest orgy of self-congratulation, demonstrated how utterly out of touch with mainstream America Hollywood has become. Far from the days when Hollywood celebrated traditional values, moral fiber and American heroes, modern films celebrate deviancy, moral relativism, and America’s enemies.  This year’s nominees and winners for the Golden Globes were a case in point.Felicity Huffman of Desperate Housewives fame took on yet another brush with degeneracy by playing the part of a man about to undergo a sex change in the not-so-subtly titled, Transamerica.  It seems all an actor has to do these days is to gain...