Free Republic

Has there been any real analysis of the Dennis Loo's research on projectcensored.org entitled "No Paper Trail Left Behind"? I've looked and can't find too much to debunk many of the points and have been getting owned in several recent discussions about the Bush election victories. Some of it is the normal moonbat diebold, felon voter purge, 'the exit polls were really right' nonsense, but there are a couple of interesting points. I could ignore it, but I'd rather logically debate it. I enjoy the back and forth discussion, but I could really use some ammo. The only thing I...

Killing children When evil is done in God's name On July 19, the Iranian government executed the two teenage boys - one 18 and one 16 - shown in the photo below for the capital offense of homosexuality. In the 14 months of imprisonment preceding their barbaric hanging, the boys were tortured and flogged. Although the Iranian government recently claimed - contrary to all original reports - that the two were executed for raping a 13-year-old boy, most observers characterize that justification, for several good reasons, as a trumped-up charge to undermine world outrage. Even if it were true, it...

I am looking for any locations that will have people supporting Bush on his entrance into the American Legion conference. I know he is coming in at the airport, heading to to Opryland, but is there any sites decided upon that will have people out, showing their support, or even protesting Bush? Same goes for Kerry's arrival. Although I live out of state, I have several friends who do live in Nashville, and since I am the more political friend, they've asked me about locations to show their suport for GWB. I'd love to relay any info to them.

I had heard on a local radio station yesterday, an email, that compared several 'unilateral' wars such as Korea, Vietname, WW2, and others, that the US has been in. It discussed the reasons for going to war unprovoked, the total death toll of soldiers, and the average yearly death toll, and compared it to the war in Iraq. Would anyone know where I could find this? I've searched here, and googled until I became googled.

I browse the comments posted there on news articles due to the juvenile humor that is often posted there. If anyone ever remebers the Saturday Night Live skits about a bunch of drunks sitting around talking about their friend Bill Brasky, talking about all of his great deeds... Well, the posters there has substituted Wesley Clark in as Bill Brasky, and I actually had tears from laughing so hard. Warning though, the site is fairly full of pre-teen humor and Bush bashing, but still has its bright spots.

Members of the Bantu tribe in Somalia find their transition to America more difficult than that of many immigrants because they've never had electricity, running water or TVs. Suleiman Ader's journey began on the farm where he was born when he, as a young man, was struck in the face by men who then forced him to watch the rape of his sister. It was during the civil war in Somalia. To escape, Ader, his wife and child walked for days to reach the Kenyan refugee camps where two more children were born and another conceived. Last month, the family...

Since I value the opinions and views of the members here, I figure I would turn here for some advice on an issue I have been pondering. I have talked with my wife about getting into one of the debt consolidation services that seem to be so widely popular these days. I hear good and bad things about it and want to get as much info as possible about it. Have any of you tried it?Which company(s) do you suggest/warn against?Know of any good websites that has some good info on what to look out for? Doing a few days...

Forgive the vanity. A coworker posed a question to me:Would you rather have someone like Dean beat Bush in '04 or have Hillary go against a non-incumbent Republican and win in '08? I'd like to see which poison the rest of you would choose. Chances are though, either would serve only single a term.

Nationstates is a country building, free, online game that allows you to name a country, choose it politics, and manage it in a simcity/civilization sort of way. By default you are given a policy choice once per day (can be changed in the settings) that impacts the future of your little virtual nation. There is a little role-playing required as you get deeper into it, but it seems to be an interesting time waster between those good, meaty posts here on FR. Take 5 minutes, and check it out. It also has a faq, and a good set of 'stickies'...

I stumbled across an interesting little site: Kevin's Fridge Magnets Anyone can go here, post a message and it will generate the magnets on the page to your message. It has gotten quite political lately. Every now and again I browse on over there to see what has been posted on the fridge. His foam bath fish time is a bit unique too... Worth the visit.

U.S. Military Deaths (not just in combat) in Operation Iraqi Freedom, as of 3/30/03: Less than 40 Traffic Deaths in California, 2000: 3,753 U.S. Military Deaths in the first Gulf War: 382 U.S. Military Deaths, World War II: 292,131 Civilian Deaths, Operation Iraqi Freedom: 203 (est.) Civilian Deaths from NATO Bombs in Yugoslavia: 500 Civilian Deaths in Germany, World War II: 780,000 Foreign Countries Invaded or Fired Upon by Iraq Since 1987: Four Times President Clinton Asked for U.N. Approval Before Attacking Serbia, Sudan, Iraq, or Afghanistan: Zero U.N. Resolutions Iraq Has Flouted Since the End of the Gulf War:...

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- On eBay, the highest bid wins -- unless the item on sale is a laser printer from CompAtlanta and the bidder happens to be Canadian. That's what a tax consultant discovered last week when he tried to buy a printer on eBay, but was refused by the vendor when it was discovered he lived in Vancouver. David Ingram received notification that his winning bid of $24.50 had been canceled, along with this message: "At the present time, we do not ship to, or accept bids from, Canada, Mexico, France, Germany or any other country that does...

I was hoping to go find some good songs from some patriotic artists. I know of some, Charlie Daniels, Darryl Worley, Clint Black, Toby Keith, Alan Jackson, Hank Williams JR, and of course Lee Greenwood. But not being too much into music, I forget song titles, and other artists that have some good old American patriotic songs.Do any of you have any suggestions? Country and non-country ideas are welcomed. Thanks.

I have been collecting a list of upcoming movie releases I have gathered and thought some of you may be interested in it as well. Cowboy Bebop the Movie - April 11, 2003 Ghosts of the Abyss - April 11, 2003 (IMAX Titanic movie) BulletProof Monk - April 16, 2003 George and the Dragon - April, 2003 Xmen 2 - May 2, 2003 The Matrix 2 - May 15, 2003 Pokemon Heroes - May 16, 2003 Bruce Almighty - May 23, 2003 2 Fast 2 Furious - June 6, 2003 Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd - June 13,...

<p>BERLIN, Germany (Reuters) -- A popular German singer who had breast implants paid for by health insurers has sparked a debate about what is wrong with the country's generous but cash-strapped welfare system.</p> <p>Pop singer Juliette said she had an operation to enlarge her breasts three years ago, and her health insurance paid the bill, raising eyebrows about the extensive treatment Germans receive at a time when insurers are facing huge deficits.</p>

France Budget Deficit Will Pass EU Limit France's Budget Deficit Will Breach Limit Set by the European Union, Business Lobby Says PARIS Feb. 18 — France's employers' federation on Tuesday predicted the nation's budget deficit for 2003 would surpass the limit set by the European Union. Ernest-Antoine Seilliere, the president of the Movement of French Businesses, said France's budget deficit would likely exceed 3 percent of the nation's gross domestic product as economic growth slows and public spending rises. The government has forecast that the 2002 deficit would be 2.8 percent of GDP, and fall to 2.6 percent this year...

I just received this picture in my email today. I haven't ever seen it here or elsewhere and thought I would share it. This is the text that came with it:This is a beautiful photo of a giant flag in Arizona. The photo is authentic and unretouched. The picture was taken on regular Kodak 35mm film and developed at Wal Mart. The person who took the picture couldn't believe the image created by the sun's rays. Nice of them to share with the world! For those that prefer to think that God is not watching over us....go ahead and delete...

Has anyone else ever had random emails from liberals? Since this is about the only place I have my email address open to the public, and the political nature of the email, I figure it was gotten here. No biggie, I kinda like to debate liberals, but I was curious if anyone else has this occur. Klsklb@aol.com sent me this about 1am EST:"AWOL Bush is the biggest chickenshit in the nation. This unelected asswipe will send others to die, whereas he chickened out. what a dipshit!" Sad, isn't it? I have responded once, but anyone have any pithy quips I...

Take the economic stimulus plan taste test. The political labels have been taken off the competing national plan. So you won't be able to tell which is President Bush's and which comes from congressional Democrats unless you've been closely following the news and not keeping up with more interesting fare like Joe Millionaire and those cloning Raelians. Your challenge today is to pick which plan fits your needs and those of your family, if you have one, more closely. Explain why which plan is better for you. Tell me about what's happening to the economy in your community. Tell me...

<p>So much for Republicans being the party of the wealthy. According to a new study by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, that moniker more appropriately belongs to the Democrats.</p> <p>"Republicans raised more than Democrats from individuals who contributed small and medium amounts of money during the 2002 election cycle," the report notes, "but Democrats far outpaced Republicans among deep-pocketed givers." Among donors who gave more than $200 but less than $1,000, Republicans enjoyed a substantial $68 million to $44 million edge over Democrats. The margin was closer among those individuals who gave $1,000 or more: The GOP took in $317 million, compared to the Democrats' $307 million.</p>