Free Republic

Forget "rolling coal." A new trend called "ICE-ing," in which pickup truck owners purposefully block electric vehicle charging stations, appears to be gaining ground around the country. The practice, whose name is derived from "internal combustion engine," was observed over the holidays at a Sheetz gas station in Hickory, N.C. Reddit user Leicina shared a photo on Dec. 23, 2018, of three large pickups blocking access to Tesla Inc. charging stations. The drivers apparently chanted "----Tesla." "I've never had a supercharging experience like this one," wrote Leicina, who owns a Tesla Model 3. "These trucks blocked all the chargers, chanted...

Monday, March 14, 2016: GOP Presidential candidate Donald Trump will hold a campaign rally in Hickory, NC at Lenoir-Rhyne University. The event is scheduled to begin at 10:00 AM EDT. Monday, March 14, 2016: GOP Presidential candidate Donald Trump will hold a town hall event in Tampa, FL at the Tampa Convention Center. The event is scheduled to begin at 2:00 PM EDT. Monday, March 14, 2016: GOP Presidential candidate Donald Trump will hold a campaign rally rally in Youngstown, OH at Winner Aviation. The event is scheduled to begin at 6:00 PM EDT.

Back in 1997, when Bill Clinton's EPA was pushing stricter air pollution rules, then-EPA administrator Carol Browner scoffed at complaints that the new rules would be so strict as to eventually ban backyard barbecues.

HICKORY, N.C. – Four tractor trailer trucks from the Centers for Disease Control triggered concerns Thursday that there was something related to Ebola going on in Hickory. A CDC Project Manager, Janis Eklund, said there was no Ebola scare. "Absolutely not," she said. Eklund said the trucks are used as part of a study concerning the health and nutritional status of people living in the greater Hickory area, but she understands why seeing CDC trucks in the city triggered immediate concern. "So, I'm hoping that once they hear that and know why we are really here, that will dispel their...

NEWTON, N.C. — A man who spent almost 24 years in prison after he was convicted of rape has now been found innocent of the crime. A three-judge panel ruled Friday that Willie Grimes did not rape and kidnap a 69-year-old woman from Hickory in 1987. Grimes' lawyer presented evidence during the weeklong hearing that showed police did not question a half-dozen people who said Grimes was somewhere else when the rape happened. They also showed that two fingerprints found at the home where the rape happened were linked to another man, who has been charged with several rapes during...

Full title: "Stepmother of 10-year-old disabled girl Zahra sentenced to 15-18 years after pleading guilty to murdering child and dismembering her body" The stepmother of a disabled 10-year-old girl, whose remains were found scattered across her home state, has pleaded guilty to the horrific murder and dismemberment of the child. Elisa Baker, 42, was sentenced to about 15 to 18 years in prison after admitting second-degree murder in the death of the child as part of a plea deal. Baker also pleaded guilty to attempting to thwart investigators by planting a fake ransom note at the family home. Ms Baker’s...

OXFORD, Miss., Oct. 21 — This was no everyday summit conference. For a start, there were a lot more bluejeans than pinstripe suits.There were dire predictions, of course, and the requisite amount of pointing with alarm. But instead of conference rooms perfumed with cigar and cigarette smoke, there were tents perfumed with oak and hickory smoke, and instead of a final communiqué full of dependent clauses, there was a final speech by Calvin Trillin of The New Yorker, full of one-liners.More than 300 people, mostly Southerners, some more knowledgeable than others, gathered on the campus of Ole Miss last weekend...