Free Republic

A generation ago, Poland rationed sugar and flour while its citizens were paid one-tenth what West Germans earned. Today its economy has edged past Switzerland to become the world’s 20th largest with over $1 trillion in annual output. It's a historic leap from the post-communist ruins of 1989-90 to today’s European growth champion that economists say has lessons on how to bring prosperity to ordinary people — and that the Trump administration says should be recognized by Poland’s presence at a summit of the Group of 20 leading economies later this year In 35 years — a little less than...

A meteor nearly 6ft in diameter weighing roughly 7 tons broke apart above Ohio and was seen across 10 states. NASA: Massive 'boom' heard from Ohio to Kentucky caused by exploding meteor | 1:56 ABC News | 19.5M subscribers | 137,427 views | March 17, 2026

Miami Twp. continues to face responsibility for paying a $45 million verdict to a man wrongfully convicted for more than two decades after the U.S. Supreme Court denied a request to review the case. Miami Twp. previously asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse a $45 million verdict awarded to Dean Gillispie, who spent more than 20 years in prison for sexual assaults he didn’t commit and later sued over constitutional violations in the investigation that led to his wrongful conviction. Miami Twp. submitted a petition for a writ of certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court, which, if it had...

Before the media canonizes Joe Kent, Americans deserve to know who he actually is. Joseph Kent’s resignation letter is textbook antisemitic dog-whistling dressed up as patriotism. He didn’t resign over intelligence failures. He didn’t resign over a policy disagreement on strategy or sequencing. He resigned because, in his telling, America is fighting Israel’s war, waged through a Jewish lobby and an echo chamber of Israeli officials and American media. He says his wife died in “a war manufactured by Israel.” Let’s be precise about what Kent is actually claiming: that the United States government was deceived into military action by...

The US military dropped 5,000-pound bunker buster bombs on underground Iranian missile sites near the Strait of Hormuz Tuesday, according to authorities. The massive attack announced by US Central Command came as the war with Iran had staunched the flow of shipping through the vital Persian Gulf waterway. “Hours ago, US forces successfully employed multiple 5,000-pound deep penetrator munitions on hardened Iranian missile sites along Iran’s coastline near the Strait of Hormuz,” the regional command said on X around 7 p.m. EST. “The Iranian anti-ship cruise missiles in these sites posed a risk to international shipping in the strait,” CENTCOM...

Daily Readings from the USCCBJesus answered the Jews: “My Father is at work until now, so I am at work.” For this reason they tried all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God. John 5:17–18The context of today’s Gospel is important. The lines above come at the conclusion of the story of Jesus healing the paralytic at the Pool of Bethesda. The man had been crippled for thirty-eight years, and Jesus healed him, telling the man, “Rise, take up your mat, and...

Christian McCaffrey’s had a football career worthy of Hall of Fame discussion, but his mom might actually hold the honor for most impressive athletic feat in their household. Ed McCaffrey revealed this week that Lisa McCaffrey once clocked a 40-yard dash time that would make even NFL linebackers envious. SNIP Ed, 57, explained on the “Side Piece with Melissa Pfeister” podcast that Lisa — a former Stanford soccer player — accomplished the quick sprint nearly three decades ago, when she was trying out for a local sports team while carrying Christian’s younger brother. “I think Lisa ran a 4.7 while...

Join with fellow FREEPERS to pray for AMERICA: For those in Authority in Government, Family, Military, Business, Agri-Business; End to Sex Slavery; Healthcare, Education, Churches, and the Media.Forum threads labeled [Prayer] are closed to debate of any kind.

President Trump allowed the deadline for candidates to drop out to pass Tuesday without making an endorsement in the hotly contested Republican Texas Senate primary runoff race. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is taking on incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) in the May 26 runoff, after neither candidate received 50% of the vote in the primary earlier this month. Trump had previously said he would ask whichever candidate did not receive his endorsement to drop out of the race. Paxton has said he would be willing to drop out if Senate Republicans agreed to roll back the filibuster and pass...

hief Justice John Roberts urged Americans on Tuesday to stop personal attacks on judges, claiming such attacks were “dangerous” and a “problem.” The warning comes after the Supreme Court justice warned elected officials last year not to attack judges because the rhetoric could lead to actual violence against members of the judiciary. “Judges around the country work very hard to get it right, and if they don’t, their opinions are subject to criticism,” Roberts said at an event at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. “But personally directed hostility is dangerous, and it’s got to stop."

This FBI is advancing the mission of protecting America’s children at a level never seen before. • 6,200+ missing kids located, +30% • 1,700 child predators arrested, +17% • 300+ human traffickers arrested, +15% • 764 criminal networks dismantled, arrests +20% • Online exploitation & NVE arrests up 490% • 3.8M+ pedophile accounts terminated on the dark web • 435+ VCAC arrests, 300+ indictments • 322+ child victims located • 500+ child predator & HT arrests this year • Just rescued two minors being sexually assaulted, a 16-year-old and a 7-month-old We rebuilt the FBI, surging agents out of DC...

[Catholic Caucus] PHOTOS: Dutch Cardinal Eijk celebrates first public Traditional Latin MassCardinal Eijk’s Pontifical High Mass is particularly significant because the Latin Mass is rare in the Netherlands and it comes despite Vatican officials’ hostility to the traditional liturgy.6, 2026 - 5:24 pm EDTTue Mar 17, 2026 - 7:05 am EDT Listen to this article4 minOSS, Netherlands (LifeSiteNews) — Dutch Cardinal Willem Jacobus Eijk, the metropolitan archbishop of Utrecht, celebrated his first public Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) at the historic Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception on Sunday.The packed March 15 Laetare Sunday Mass, viewable at the link...

Los Angeles teachers are expected to announce a strike date Wednesday that could halt classes for nearly 400,000 students. The timing is set to coincide with a massive rally in downtown LA involving three major unions. The walkout, if it happens, would be open-ended, lasting until a new contract is agreed upon. United Teachers Los Angeles represents more than 30,000 educators and staffers, whose contract expired last June.

President Donald Trump’s complaints about how the media has covered the war in Iran are “entirely justified,” according to an op-ed published by Mark Penn — a former pollster for President Bill Clinton — and former New York City Council president Andrew Stein in the Wall Street Journal. Penn and Stein argued the mainstream press appears hellbent on painting Operation Epic Fury negatively, no matter how the war is actually going. Their Monday article — titled “On Iran, Is Only Bad News Fit to Print?” — said coverage of the war has gone far beyond merely being critical and instead...

Victor Davis Hanson weighs in on how the war with Iran is going after two weeks for "The Daily Signal." Video Transcript Summary VICTOR DAVIS HANSON: We’re just completing the second week of the so-called Iran war — this effort of the United States to bomb the theocracy into submission so they will cancel their missile and nuclear programs and to champion the popular protests on the streets that have some potential to get rid of the regime itself. But it’s a very surreal war. I haven’t seen — I don’t think any of us have seen — anything like...

US President Donald Trump vowed Monday to “take” Cuba as the communist island plunged into darkness under a total power blackout linked to a crippling oil embargo imposed by Washington. After nearly seven decades defying the United States, Havana’s communist authorities are under massive pressure from a Trump administration determined to make history. “You know, all my life I’ve been hearing about the United States and Cuba. When will the United States do it?” Trump told reporters at the White House. “I do believe I’ll be…having the honor of taking Cuba,” Trump said. “Whether I free it, take it —...

European countries have pushed back against Donald Trump’s decision to ease some US sanctions on Russian oil amid Iran’s blockade of the strait of Hormuz, insisting the international community should maintain pressure on Moscow over its war against Ukraine. The UK has joined Germany, France and Norway in rejecting the move, with the foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, decrying what she said was Russia and Iran’s attempt to “hijack the global economy”. Friedrich Merz, the German chancellor, described Washington’s move to temporarily waive sanctions on Russian oil stranded at sea as “wrong”, as the Trump administration attempted to counter a surge...

Meet One of the Media’s “Non-Criminals” Kele Christian Alves-Pereire, a criminal illegal alien from Brazil wanted in her home country for MURDER charges. Because she lacks a criminal history in the U.S. the media counts this as a non-criminal arrest. Nearly 70% of ICE arrests are of criminal illegal aliens with pending charges or convictions in the U.S. Those who committed crimes in foreign countries but lack a rap sheet in the U.S. are not counted in that statistic.

A controversial bill to significantly reduce state regulation of home schooling narrowly cleared the House of Representatives Wednesday. House Education Policy and Administration Committee Chairman Kristin Noble, R-Bedford, said the bill resulted from weeks of work behind the scenes with home-schooling parents and advocates from across the state. “This does advance core principles of parental rights, educational freedom, and limited government intervention in family decisions,” Noble said. State Rep. Muriel Hall, D-Bow, a retired educator, said the legislation would undo 30 years of collaboration to ensure students in home education have the same opportunities to thrive as those in public...

🚨 BREAKING: In an incredible development, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' office and AG James Uthmeier just pledged 100% FULL COOPERATION with Dr. Oz's new investigation into rampant healthcare fraud in Florida See how EASY it is, Minnesota and California?! 👏🏻☀️ Trump CMS chief Dr. Oz said he found "horrifying" amounts of healthcare fraud in the state, and is seeking more documentation In response, DeSantis' chief of staff replied Florida is "working closely" with CMS "We have zero tolerance for waste, fraud, and abuse — and we will aggressively deploy every resource necessary to root it out at any level in...