Free Republic

There is a lot of circumstantial evidence that the rollout of the current round of AI panic was pre-planned and that the incidents that "triggered" it were staged, but there is no direct proof.

The family of Charlie Kirk alleges in a newly obtained notice of claim that a "series of stunning failures and reckless decisions" by Utah Valley University led to the conservative activist's on-campus assassination last year. Kirk, the co-founder of the conservative student organization Turning Point USA, was fatally shot while speaking at an outdoor event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, on Sept. 10, 2025. The gunman fired from the rooftop of a campus building as Kirk was speaking before a crowd of approximately 3,000 people, authorities said. Utah Valley University was the first stop on Turning Point USA's...

Canada has been invited to become the first “associate member” of the EU by the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen. In an unprecedented offer, von der Leyen said on Wednesday that the EU and Canada “see the world with the same eyes” through shared democratic values and common approaches to many big issues, from AI to climate breakdown, the Ukraine war and geopolitics. Speaking in the presence of the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, at the European parliament in Strasbourg, she said: “We want to bring the relationship with Canada to the highest level possible. We must urgently...

Do Americans care about America’s fast-growing national debt, now above $40 trillion? You bet they do. In the latest I&I/TIPP Poll, an overwhelming majority of the voting-age population say they’re concerned about the mounting liabilities on the nation’s balance sheet, and blame out-of-control spending for the red ink. In the latest national online I&I/TIPP Poll, taken by 1,481 adults from Aug. 25 through Aug. 28, participants were asked: “The nation’s debt is close to $40 trillion. How concerned are you about the size of the U.S. national debt?” The poll has a margin of error of +/-2.9 percentage points. As...

Washington — For the third time, the House voted Tuesday to block President Trump from taking further military action against Iran, with seven Republicans breaking with the president. The vote ended in a 220 to 204 tally, marking a symbolic rebuke of the president over the largely unpopular war. Tuesday's resolution drew more GOP support than the previous two efforts to limit Mr. Trump's war powers in June and July. Three new Republicans voted yes: Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Reps. Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Zach Nunn of Iowa. The four who supported the prior resolutions were Reps. Tom...

A handful of House Republicans rebuked President Donald Trump's operation in Iran on Tuesday, joining Democrats to pass a resolution aimed at reining in the commander in chief's war powers. Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., introduced the war powers resolution that was backed by 14 of his fellow House Democrats, including Reps. Jason Crow, D-Colo, and Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash. But it was Republicans who helped put the legislation over the edge. Seven House Republicans joined all 213 voting Democrats to pass the measure in a 220 to 204 vote late on Tuesday night. Opponents of the bill were 203 House Republicans...

Friedrich Merz has cancelled a trip to New York to attend the UN General Assembly amid political pressure at home. The German chancellor was due to fly to the US next Tuesday, where he was to be awarded the "Henry Kissinger Prize" by the American Academy in Berlin. He was also due to address the UN General Assembly. However, he cancelled the trip following his Christian Democrats (CDU) party's poor performance after the hard-Right Alternative for Germany (AfD)'s triumph in the Saxony-Anhalt election and growing discontent within his own party. The loss, in which the AfD was close to securing...

Breaking: Pope Leo’s Vatican asks Catholics to ‘esteem’ other faiths The Vatican has asked Catholics to 'esteem' other faiths in its latest document on interreligious dialogue and 'fraternity.'The Vatican has asked Catholics to ‘esteem’ other faiths in its latest document on interreligious dialogue and “fraternity.”The document, signed by Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF); Cardinal Kurt Koch, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity; and Cardinal George Jacob Koovakad, Prefect of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, appeared this morning.Entitled “A Journey of Hope: Sixty Years of Interreligious Dialogue and Fraternity...

Ed Sheeran's tour in trouble after opening acts drop out in solidarity with rapper MacklemoreNEW YORK — Ed Sheeran's tour of North and South America was plunged into chaos Tuesday when four of his supporting acts abruptly quit in solidarity with the rapper Macklemore, who was dropped for making pro-Palestinian comments onstage. Hours after Sheeran posted on social media about Macklemore's ouster and attributed the decision to the tour's promoters, Irish acts Aaron Rowe and Beoga, the Danish band Lukas Graham, and Finneas posted on Instagram that they were leaving the tour. Rowe and Lukas Graham would have been replacements...

Five individuals working for the intelligence services of the Russian Federation have been charged with a terrorism conspiracy and planning murders “around the world,” including in the United States. The individuals, who are currently at large, “paid and attempted to pay individuals within the United States and elsewhere to conduct pre-operational surveillance and carry out targeted killings, and commissioned associates to commit and attempted to commit acts of terrorism against civilian and military infrastructure in European countries that are aligned, or perceived to be aligned, with Ukraine,” according to the Department of Justice. U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald said in a...

Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., introduced eight articles of impeachment Tuesday against Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, accusing him of exceeding constitutional and congressional limits on U.S. military action in Iran, Yemen and Venezuela. Massie introduced the resolution on the House floor, where he spent more than an hour outlining allegations ranging from violations of the War Powers Resolution to unlawful military strikes and retaliation against a U.S. senator. The first three articles focus on the administration’s war with Iran. Massie argues the conflict began without a congressional declaration of war or other statutory authorization and alleges Hegseth continued military operations...

Formula 1 and the FIA unveiled the long-awaited schedule on Wednesday following approval from the World Motor Sport Council, confirming 24 grands prix across 22 countries.The Australian Grand Prix is scheduled for the first week of April as the third round of the season after opening the championship in both 2025 and 2026, although its position could still shift if uncertainty surrounding Bahrain and Saudi Arabia forces changes to the opening rounds.Australia will also become one of five first-time sprint hosts alongside Bahrain, Japan, Monaco and Abu Dhabi.Montreal and Silverstone retain sprint weekends from this season, while Monza, Sao Paulo...

A Kosovo war crimes tribunal on Wednesday found former President Hashim Thaci guilty of war crimes committed during the 1998-1999 war for independence from Serbia. Thaci, a former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) commander, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for crimes including murder, torture and illegal detention. He was tried along with three other former KLA guerrilla leaders in The Hague.

Coordination emerges not primarily from explicit instruction but from shared ideological programming, financial incentives, and institutional culture. Joe Sobran (1946–2010), a longtime National Review columnist, essayist, and conservative thinker, portrayed the Left, as manifested by the Democrat Party, from the 1980s onward as a “Hive.” He believed that this metaphor was nearly perfect in characterizing a decentralized but instinctively coordinated politically driven collective that swarms in the same direction, enforces conformity, and advances the Left’s collectivist goals without needing a formal conspiracy or central command. Sobran’s hive analogy (echoed by many others) is apt precisely because it captures something that...

"Stand firm therefore . . . having put on the breastplate of righteousness" (Eph. 6:14). A righteous life testifies to God’s transforming power and brings Him glory. We've seen the importance of donning the breastplate of righteousness, but Scripture also discusses the consequences of failing to do so. These consequences serve as warnings to anyone who is prone to neglect righteousness. If you're not committed to righteousness, you not only make yourself spiritually vulnerable, but also forfeit some of God's wonderful blessings. David prayed, "Restore to me the joy of Thy salvation" (Ps. 51:13). His sin had robbed him of...

A transgender policewoman has confessed to raping a 15-year-old girl in a McDonald's toilet in Germany. Maja S., 55, confessed before the Traunstein Regional Court wearing handcuffs and leg irons amid the ongoing trial. She will likely face three and a half years in prison, according to Judge Andreas Bartschmid, in exchange for the confession. After her arrest, Maja S. was initially held in the women's section of the Bamberg prison in Bavaria. For the past five months, however, she has been in the men's section of the Stadelheim prison. Her lawyer, Peter Dürr, told BILD: 'This is a serious...

The coalition of second-tier and second-rate countries calling themselves the BRICS (an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) has just wound up its annual “summit,” this year held in New Delhi, India. In the twenty years since the BRICS coalition’s founding, its membership has expanded beyond just the countries forming the acronym, with additional attendees at this year’s event including the likes of Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. Of those new members, only Indonesia really has a claim for even second-rate status. Saudi Arabia and UAE are wealthy, but owe the wealth almost...

Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Tuesday unveiled “Vision Zero Reimagined,” a wide-ranging plan to eliminate traffic deaths within 10 years — including by boosting “pedestrian-only” zones across the city. The 105-page blueprint, however, offers few concrete details on the no-car zones, such as where they would be located or how much of the city would be turned into “pedestrian-priority districts.” “Vision Zero Reimagined puts forward the bold measures and practical fixes we need to make preventable tragedy no longer a part of everyday life in New York City,” Mamdani said. The plan also vaguely vows to institute 20 mph speed limits...

The 10-year Treasury yield climbed above 5% as surging oil prices revived inflation fears, while heavy government borrowing and expectations of tighter Federal Reserve policy added pressure. Higher Treasury yields typically push mortgage rates upward, reducing buyers’ purchasing power and increasing monthly payments — especially as 30-year mortgage rates approach 7%. Consumers may also face costlier auto and business loans, although savers could benefit from higher returns on CDs, money-market accounts, and newly issued Treasury securities. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note climbed above 5% this week, a milestone that could raise borrowing costs across the economy...

A Pennsylvania man planned to carry out an ISIS-inspired "mass casualty attack" before an FBI investigation thwarted him, according to federal law enforcement officials. Speaking at a press conference Tuesday, federal officials said Jonathan Kramer, 21, of Valencia, had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Syria. He was arrested Saturday outside of a hotel in Cranberry Township, around 25 miles north of Pittsburgh, with a rifle, ammunition and dozens of knives in his possession. Suspect shared "radical ideology" Richard Evanchec, special agent in charge for the FBI's Pittsburgh field office, called the planned attack an "imminent threat of violence...