Free Republic

Pervez Musharraf wants you to know that he has Pakistan's nukes under control. He doesn't need American or other international troops to keep the weapons from falling into the hands of resurgent Islamist radicals. He wouldn't mind keeping our money, however: Pakistan is increasingly alert to the possible threat of Islamic extremists seeking control of its nuclear weapons, but its security system is fail-safe despite the rising militancy in the country, a top official said Saturday. Some 10,000 soldiers have been deployed to secure the U.S.-ally's nuclear facilities as part of a command and control system headed by President Pervez...

I open my eyes with a start, like the murderous freak in the slasher movie the audience thinks is dead but isn't. The clock reads 3:55 A.M. I've awakened within six minutes of this time for the past three nights. I shut my eyes and take a breath, hoping to ease back to sleep. Too late. The anxiety is already gathering momentum, my brain roiling with thoughts that have no business being there in the middle of the night. It's like a Law & Order episode in my head: Opposing sides argue and counterargue, witnesses are badgered, lawyers shout objections....

KABUL (Reuters) - The United States is concerned over reports that Iranian-made weapons are crossing the Afghan border and reaching Islamist Taliban insurgents, a top U.S. diplomat said on Tuesday. Iran supported Afghan groups fighting the Taliban in the 1990s and played a crucial role in helping to topple the Taliban's Sunni government, ousted by the 2001 U.S.-led invasion, by supporting their Mujahideen foes. The Shiite Islamic Republic has repeatedly in the past denied accusations by U.S. officials that it is arming the resurgent Taliban, who are largely active in southern and eastern areas close to the border with Pakistan....

WASHINGTON - One in four people in the U.S. said in a recent poll that they would be less likely to support a presidential candidate who is Mormon, an ominous sign for Republican contender Mitt Romney. Yet the survey found two groups, atheists and Muslims, were even less likely to win votes. Sixty-one percent of those questioned said they would be less likely to support a presidential candidate who did not believe in God. Forty-five percent said the same for a Muslim contender. Only 5 percent or fewer said they would be likelier to support candidates who were atheists, Muslims...

Since he made California the first state to limit greenhouse gases, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has been signing agreements with other governments to address global warming. He has struck deals with Arizona, Oregon, New Mexico, New York, Utah and Washington. He signed one with the United Kingdom even before the California law came into being. And he's done them with a state in Australia and a province in Canada, where he travels this week to sign two more. But the Democrats who wrote and passed the global warming bill Schwarzenegger signed into law are hardly celebrating the governor's deal-making. While they...

SIERRA VISTA — The Kurds in Iraq are afraid they will again be left in a lurch if American troops are forced to leave next year, the Kurdistan representative to the United States said Thursday. If the U.S. leaves early and does not protect the Kurds, it will be the third time in a little more than three decades the ethnic group will have been betrayed by the United States, Qubad Jalal Talabany said during an afternoon sit-down interview with the Herald/Review. Earlier Thursday morning, Talabany spoke to nearly 350 people during the last day of a three-day Training and...

SACRAMENTO — While Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic lawmakers praised legislative victories, they didn't talk about damage to the governor's Democratic challenger and critics' assertions that sweeping new legislation may backfire. Schwarzenegger, Senate leader Don Perata, D-Oakland, and Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, forged deals on reducing global warming, hiking the minimum wage, lowering prescription drug costs for the poor — and other issues in what they are calling one of the most productive sessions in decades. But some say the lauded measure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in California — for instance — was political theater that...

On a sandy bluff overlooking the Pacific, surfer Mark Massara sees a developing threat to a California amenity: guaranteed beach access for average families. Luxury hotel builders are hovering over the coastline, hoping to expand to California's shores the nationwide trend of developments split between high-priced hotel rooms and privately owned condominiums. Where developers see opportunity in "condo hotels," Massara and others see a legal loophole that lets private buyers snap up parts of the coast which are supposed to remain public. And that, he fears, will make getting to the beach harder. In this low-key northern San Diego County...

The True Lover Of God Mary Lindow Jun 25 2006 06:04PM THE TRUE LOVER OF GOD DOES NOT NEED TO BE LAVISHED UPON BY MAN THE PRESENT EVILS AND PRESSURES OF OUR TIME ARE NOT NEW TO GOD OR......TO THE PRINCE OF THIS WORLD! The Bride of Christ has been either over stroked with false platitudes or has been allowed to be spoiled with a gluttony of self-love, self-analysis, and self-promotion. All members of the Lord’s Body, leaders and simple followers, have all had the virus of “I WANNA BE SOMEBODY” attempt to sidetrack and infect the human nature side...

Toxic Tides: Another reason to worry about hurricanes Sid Perkins When Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne struck Florida in the summer of 2004, they killed 116 people, left thousands homeless, and caused billions of dollars in damage. Now, scientists suggest that the storms may also have triggered an intense, widespread Gulf of Mexico algae bloom that afflicted the state's western coast throughout 2005. DANGER ZONE. The red-and-yellow patch of Gulf of Mexico water off Tampa Bay shows the origin of last year's huge red tide, which may have been fueled by nutrient-rich groundwater discharges boosted by 2004 hurricanes. Hu,...

Relations between the US and Russia are deteriorating badly and there is a danger of conflict in the flashpoints of the south Caucasus, according to senior former officials and corporate leaders advising the EastWest Institute (EWI). EWI board members at the think-tank's annual meeting in Charleston were almost unanimous in calling for moves to prevent what one called an emerging "cold peace" between the US and Russia. John Mroz, founder and president of EWI, called the deterioration worrisome. He placed the trend in the context of growing distrust between the major powers, including China, with the world in a state...

EL PASO, Texas - Some sheriffs, residents and immigrant advocates along the nation's southern edge raised doubts Monday about President Bush's plan to send up to 6,000 National Guardsmen to help stop the flow of illegal immigrants across the Mexican border. While some welcomed the idea, others expressed concern that the troops — especially those returning from tours in Iraq — might shoot first and investigate later, despite assurances from the White House that deployed troops at the border likely would serve only a support role. Those people worried about a repeat of the 1997 fatal shooting of an 18-year-old...

The names in the American pantheon of black civil rights leaders is long. It stretches from Crispus Attucks, a slave of black and American Indian parents who was killed in the 1770 Boston Massacre by British soldiers, to Andrew Young Jr., a 1960s civil rights leader and later Atlanta mayor. Now there's an effort to add a new name to the list: Minutemen. The lawn-chair brigade, which appointed itself border guardians last year, has now taken it upon itself to become guardians of black America. The Minutemen, lead by cofounder and failed congressional candidate Jim Gilchrist of California, launched a...

With the release of the Sony Pictures version of Dan Brown’s mega-selling “The Da Vinci Code” in two weeks, worries continue to mount among traditional Christians about both the book’s and the movie’s impact. Should non-Christians be concerned? Yes, we should. Jews in particular need to be aware of the gift Brown has given, in all innocence, to anti-Semites. As everyone knows by now, Brown uses a gripping suspense story set in the present to inform us that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene and that he has descendants living in Europe today. Furthermore, the members of this surviving Jesus...

Key West orders signature feral fowl off its streets Wed Apr 19, 3:13 PM ET MIAMI (AFP) - Fearing they could represent a potential bird flu threat, the Florida town of Key West has ordered the famous feral chickens that wander its streets to the coop, authorities said. The US island town, known for a live-and-let-live attitude, in this case got a bit firm, and late Tuesday ordered the more than 2,000 birds removed from public places, such as parks and streets. "Key West has many uncooped roosters and chickens, many of which could become a transmission source of the...

"We've found that people with stress have increased levels of obesity, hypertension, anxiety and depression, and trying to work through your stress with empty calories and fatty foods doesn't do any good," said Russ Newman, executive director of professional practice at the APA. "In fact, it makes it worse, which makes you all the more stressed." The survey also found that men and women handle stress differently, which

Climbing a Wall of Worry By Donald Luskin December 9, 2005 IS IT THE BEST of times, or is it the worst of times? GDP growth is robust, unemployment is low, and corporate profits, home ownership and household wealth are at all-time highs. The economy is practically roaring. Yet in a recent poll1, 43% of Americans said they believe the economy is in a recession! So with stocks making four-year highs this week, what should you do next? If you believe the numbers, then this is a great time to be long stocks. Bull markets, it's said, climb a wall...

SACRAMENTO – Stunned by a string of industry-friendly appointments and a tight budget for coastal resources, some of the state's leading environmentalists are questioning whether Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has retreated from a once-lofty green agenda. "What is the governor doing?" wondered Paul Mason, who tracks forestry issues for the Sierra Club. "It's like he's abandoned his claims to being the good environmental governor." Schwarzenegger still receives relatively high marks for initiatives to scrap smog-spewing vehicles and old diesel buses, as well as for his support for alternative energy sources and a commitment to combat global warming. However, environmentalists say more...

In my post right after the Anderson murder, I was asking for balance, for some degree of caution in what both the Government and the opposition said or did. I said the government had a higher responsibility and should be careful. After one week, things are not going well. The government seems to be taking advantage of Anderson’s death to initiate a new wave of persecution and repression in the name of security and using Anderson’s death as the excuse. When even the Vice President recognizes that the police mistreated the parents of Antonio Lopez Castillo. When Lopez Castillo is...

Two veteran Minnesota doctors say the technique used for a common tuberculosis test — injecting the vaccine between layers of skin — could be used to stretch the current flu vaccine supply by a factor of 10.