Free Republic

In a widely read and discussed piece at the Daily Beast, Reihan Salan asks: Has a shadowy gang of left-wing journalists and intellectuals been plotting to manipulate the news cycle… His answer is, yes, perhaps so, but they’d be doing it with or without Journolist. Salan is more right than he probably knows. The list of those identified as former members of the group is now up to about 146 names, out of 400 in all. Nearly 1/4 of those individuals were connected with another media organization called the Media Consortium. The Consortium is an organization of progressive media outlets...

After getting frustrated out of the lemons his problems gave him, David Miller made his own corporate lemonade. Due to the frustration of always having to call technical support to solve his own frequent hardware problems, he started taking the initiative to educate himself.

I’d say this video is “unbelievable,” but it’s not unbelievable that members of the most corrupt Congress in the history of the known universe don’t care about laws, rules, procedures, or our Constitution. Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-FL), who you might remember as a disgraced former judge who was impeached (by a Democrat Congress) for taking bribes: There ain’t no rules here, we’re trying to accomplish something. . . .All this talk about rules. . . .When the deal goes down . . . we make ‘em up as we go along.Video here.

Today I came across an old video of a cartoon from 1948 called "Make Mine Freedom." The quality is not the greatest, but the message is crystal clear. First, the video and then a little commentary: It's funny to think today that even at the height of capitalist propaganda versus communist propaganda, people were ashamed of being capitalists. What is it that makes success so shameful? Why is it that when one man makes a fortune and spreads wealth throughout society, it's considered greed or selfishness, but when the snake-oil salesmen from the government steal our money and freedom while...

Republicans Distance Themselves From Heckler Who Shouted "You Lie!" During Obama's Speech President Obama said he accepts the apology of Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., who interrupted the president's speech last night to yell, "You lie!" after a line about how health insurance would not be provided to illegal immigrants. Share The president brushes off Rep. Joe Wilson's outburst during health care speech. "I'm a big believer that we all make mistakes," the president told reporters today following a meeting with his Cabinet members. "He apologized quickly and without equivocation, and I'm appreciative of that."

This is Congressman Eugene Green (HT to an e-mailer), Democrat from Texas, telling the world that if you're not from his District, you're not welcome at his future town hall meetings -- oh, and how he'll enforce his new rule (bold is his):

IPODS can kill people who use cardiac implantable pacemakers by interfering with the electromagnetic equipment monitoring the heart, according to a report on Reuters.

Do you want to know the reasons why men tell lies? Those reasons are asking to be seen. First off, a man lies to a woman to gain her approval because he simply cannot do without it. Second, he lies to prove that he can really stand out in a crowd, and therefore he deserves to find favor with her. And last but not least – he lies to her because it is easier for him to cut corners that way. Telling lies also helps him to get off scot-free when problems arise. Men lie because of their women

KHAN DARI — On March 25, three improvised explosive devices went off here. Soldiers from Company E, 2nd “Lancer” Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment entered the village in an attempt to find the assailants. “We know if we can continue getting information from anyone who can help us clean out insurgents here and find weapons caches, we’re making this a safer place down the line for the [citizens of the community],” said Staff Sgt. William Stone, a squad leader from the regiment. “All the people here say the same thing, they want our help, they want safety and they want the...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 22, 2007 – America’s largest carry-out pizza chain is giving veterans the chance to put the leadership and teamwork skills they developed in the service to use and make a good bit of dough in the process. Little Caesars founder Michael Ilitch (second from right), shakes Robbie Doughty’s hand at the grand opening of Doughty's Little Caesars store in Paducah, Ky. Doughty, a former Army staff sergeant, along with his business partner, former Army Chief Warrant Officer Lloyd Allard (second from left), are the first veterans to open a Little Caesars pizza franchise under the chain’s new...

NASA officials to make historic trip to China 21:05 22 September 2006 NewScientist.com news service Kelly Young A group of NASA officials is about to begin a historic trip to China in an effort to establish preliminary ties between the Chinese and US space programmes. "No NASA administrator has been to China," NASA Administrator Michael Griffin said after the recent launch of the space shuttle Atlantis. "We have never had any significant discussions with China about space." China joined the space elite when it became the third nation to launch its own crewed rocket in 2003 (see Confident China joins...

Camp Pendleton Marines Make Final Preparations for DeploymentBy Donna MilesAmerican Forces Press Service CAMP PENDLETON, Calif., Aug. 25, 2006 -- Just three weeks before they deploy for six months as U.S. Central Command’s theater reserve force, Marines from the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit here say they’re ready to get on with the mission despite pulls at their heartstrings over leaving home. Marine Corps Sgt. Bobby Savicke, motor transportation mechanic, retrieves his tool cart from a storage unit to inspect vehicles in preparation for an upcoming deployment at Camp Pendleton, Calif., Aug. 23. This will be Savicke’s second “float” with...

The U.S. Marines rationed him two beers a day. It's a detail Ken Kurkowski remembered about serving in Vietnam. He recalled war protesters spitting on him at the San Francisco airport and barely escaping death when his tank exploded. The veteran poured everything -- the bloodshed, the wild nights, the letters to his girlfriend -- onto 106 pages. Within a year, the Library of Congress will make his memoir a piece of American history. Congress launched the Veterans History Project in 2000. It collects oral and written histories, photos and video interviews from veterans, Red Cross workers, United Service Organizations...

Soldiers of Bravo Company, 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, search a home in the city of Samarra, Iraq, during a night raid as they look for Samarra’s most wanted insurgents. U.S Army photo by Staff Sgt. Russell Lee Klika Soldiers Make Streets Safer in Samarra Since December 2005, Bravo Company has been making the streets ofSamarra safer by capturing hundreds of suspected anti-Iraqi forces. By Staff Sgt. Russell Lee Klika 133rd Mobile Public Affairs SAMARRA, Iraq, July 11, 2006 -- Texas historians think of the Alamo to be the last stand, for...

WASHINGTON, June 14, 2006 – Two coalition soldiers were killed in separate incidents in Afghanistan yesterday, and the Taliban falsely claimed to have killed nine U.S. soldiers today, military officials reported. One coalition soldier was killed in Helmand province defending a combat logistics patrol from attacking Taliban extremists. The other soldier was killed while engaging enemy forces in Kunar province. "Our thoughts and prayers extend to the families and comrades of our soldiers who sacrificed their lives today executing their mission and defending their fellow teammates," Army Maj. Gen. Benjamin C. Freakley, commander of Combined Joint Task Force 76 said....

Ex-soldier fights to make Japan remember its past By Colin Joyce in Tokyo (Filed: 07/06/2006) Japan's amnesia over its militarist past is being challenged by a compelling documentary film which suggests that the Japanese army breached the terms of surrender in 1945 by leaving soldiers to fight on in China. The Ants, to be released next month, records the struggle of the Japanese veteran Waichi Okumura to put atrocities on record and to tell the story of the forgotten soldiers left behind in China. Now 81, Mr Okumura revisited Shanxi province where he fought, including a pilgrimage to the place...

SAN FRANCISCO -- Computer server maker Sun Microsystems Inc., whose revenue has declined four years in a row, said Wednesday it planned to cut 4,000 to 5,000 jobs in an effort to return to consistent profitability. The cuts, which will reduce Sun's 37,500-person work force by 11 percent to 13 percent over the next six months, will cost Santa Clara-based Sun from $340 million to $500 million over the next several quarters, the company said. Sun executives expect the plan, which also includes selling real estate and exiting leases, to save the company from $480 million to $590 million, once...

ALGONA, Iowa - While much of the world fumes over escalating fuel prices, a small company in north central Iowa is quietly hoping to make gasoline obsolete as an engine fuel. Research at the Hydrogen Engine Center Inc. is done in an early 1900s red brick armory at the Kossuth County fairgrounds. There, a clean six-cylinder engine that looks like it could have been pulled from a Ford pickup has been running for 110 hours, not quite half the 300 hours it must continuously run for certification. The company, led by a retired Ford Motor Co. engineer, hopes to meet...

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Army News Service, May 17, 2006) – Morale, Welfare and Recreation patrons will be hard-pressed to beat the cost of an Australian vacation purchased through their Information, Ticket and Reservation office. A five-night stay in Sydney or Melbourne is available for $838 per person based on double occupancy. The “G’Day Good Deal” packages include three- or four-star accommodations for five nights, round-trip airfare from Los Angeles or San Francisco aboard Qantas Airways and a 15-hour calling card that can be used to dial the United States. Taxes and surcharges are not included in the base price. “Normally, when...

BAGHDAD, Iraq (Army News Service, May 1, 2006) – For only the second time at the Iraqi Military Academy Al Rustamiyah, a class of newly commissioned lieutenants graduated the 12-month Officer Basic Course April 26. The class of 158 Iraqi officers – twice as many as the first class – will now attend specific branch training before being assigned to units throughout the country. The year-long course included detailed instruction on such basic soldiering skills as weaponry, small-unit tactics, communications and decision-making. The primary goal, according to academy leaders, was to prepare the officers to function effectively as small-unit leaders...