Free Republic

The mayor and all four council members in New Jersey's East Hanover township are switching from the Democrat to Republican Party, in a move they say is in the "best interest of the community."The township has a population of about 11,100."Municipal leaders have a responsibility to best represent their constituents, and it is our belief this change of party is in the best interest of the community," Mayor Joseph Pannullo said Tuesday, according to The New Jersey Globe."As the nastiness, rhetoric, and social media vitriol of national politics continues to infiltrate local governance, we collectively determined this was the best...

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the network of pharmacies run by businessmen Alpesh and Manish Patel was struggling...One top executive had previously been convicted for his role in running a national opioid pill mill; two others, including Manish Patel himself, were barred from doing business with federal health-care programs due to allegations ranging from racketeering to conspiracy to paying illegal kickbacks. But then the pandemic presented an opportunity: loosened rules for telehealth and long-distance prescription writing combined with massive demand for unproven COVID-19 treatments could mean big money. And the Patels soon capitalized. First, they were able to take advantage of...

<p>Twitter has permanently banned prominent anti-Trump brothers Brian and Ed Krassenstein, alleging that two of the biggest stars of #Resistance Twitter had broken the site’s rules about operating fake accounts and purchasing fake interactions with their accounts.</p> <p>“The Twitter Rules apply to everyone,” a Twitter spokesperson said in a statement. “Operating multiple fake accounts and purchasing account interactions are strictly prohibited. Engaging in these behaviors will result in permanent suspension from the service.”</p>

The Clinton Foundation, after seeing a drop in donations amid increased scrutiny and "pay-to-play" allegations, is revving back up with a glitzy fundraising gala that coincides with a broader push by the Clinton machine to stay in the political spotlight. Axios reported Monday that longtime Clinton supporters received an invitation offering access -- a word that dogged Hillary Clinton throughout her failed 2016 presidential campaign -- to the family at a May 24 benefit for the Clinton Foundation. The cheapest tickets for the event will be $2,500 for cocktails and dinner. Deep-pocketed donors can lay out $100,000 for a package...

They’re holy terrors. Bands of beggars dressed like Buddhist monks have invaded the High Line and other city parks, demanding upwards of $40 from tourists — and officials are fed up. One High Line visitor handed over $5 last week, but it wasn’t good enough. “He tried to get $20,” she told The Post. Another monk’s zen demeanor dissolved after he got just a buck in exchange for the cheap plastic bracelet he proffered.

Pastor Paula White broke her silence Thursday night, addressing all the scandals that she has been associated with since her divorce in 2007. "We’re letting our hair down," White told thousands at the 2011 Pastors and Leadership Conference in Orlando, Fla. "I'm not here to look cute ... I came to let the devil know ... I'm stronger than I've ever been." Though the two-hour message began with shouts of encouragement and notes of affirmation for the participating leaders who may be facing challenges or opposition, by the end of the night it was apparent that the popular charismatic pastor...

A woman who lied about being gang raped in Somalia to claim more than £250,000 in benefits had moved to Britain after boasting it was the ‘land of easy money’. Ayan Abdulle was jailed this week after investigators discovered that the story she used to win asylum – and later UK citizenship – was a pack of lies... Abdulle, who also used the fake name Amina Muse and is from Somalia, was living in Gothenburg when the authorities insisted immigrants learn Swedish if they wanted to continue to claim handouts... She told a friend she couldn’t be bothered and moved...

According to NBER.orgthe National Bureau of Economic Research, the recession officially ended June, 2009. Yet unemployment just went UP to 9.8%. So we are not in recession folks; we have been out of it since mid-2009. What is keeping unemployment so HIGH?

Now that Harry Reid is the arbiter of all things Hispanic, he needed his own movie poster. (Click here for the larger version.)

Amid the mass of aid agencies piling in to help Haiti quake victims is a batch of Church of Scientology "volunteer ministers", claiming to use the power of touch to reconnect nervous systems. Clad in yellow T-shirts emblazoned with the logo of the controversial US-based group, smiling volunteers fan out among the injured lying under makeshift shelters in the courtyard of Port-au-Prince's General Hospital. A wealthy private donor provided his airplane to fly in 80 volunteers from Los Angeles, along with 50 Haitian-American-doctors, in a gesture worth 400,000 dollars, said a Parisian volunteer who gave her name as Sylvie.

Since this is the moment in the year when forecasts are demanded, I shall pick a sad certainty. Parliament will create more offences, lots of them. The Government, astonishingly, has apparently created a new imprisonable offence every four days for the past decade. Curiously little row has been made about this, least of all by what passes for the parliamentary Opposition. Many of the new offences in the coming year are sure to stem from the new religion: global warming. Its extent and scale may still be an issue among scientists, but politicians have latched on to this crusade fervently....

[1rudeboy's note: this spam attack yesterday threw a wrench into API's plans to announce the reason for the latest delay in airing the Michelle Obama tape before November 14th, as promised] We were to make a major announcement on the Michelle Obama tapes yesterday night but we were unable to do so because API site was spammed by enemies with the help of Mountain Sage blog. Mountain Sage has been politically active since she was 17 years old. Issues she was deeply involved with were the 18 year old vote, women’s rights, birth control and abortion rights, and anti-Vietnam war...

Continuing the Saturday series on minority religions, a glimpse of Scientology: Spanning 129 countries and about 500,000 members, Scientologists rank 22nd among world religions. It may be difficult for a full count, as it is more applied philosophy than religion, and thus allows members to belong to other faiths and still fully practice Scientology. Half of Scientologists also report being Christians. The Church of Scientology was founded in 1954, based on the teachings of Louisiana-born author Lafayette Ron Hubbard. His family moved to Montana when he was 2 (1913), where he befriended Blackfoot Indians and began a personal spiritual journey....

   Protest ... Tina Borer   Britain's No1 gipsy site KO'd By JOHN TROUPFebruary 24, 2007       RESIDENTS of a tiny village swamped by more than 1,000 travellers have won their battle to have the intruders thrown out. Locals were celebrating last night after a planning inquiry ruled those on the illegal site, the biggest in Europe, must go.Families in Crays Hill, Essex, claim the travellers made their life hell after swarming into the village about six years ago.They say some residents received personal threats, that travellers’ children disrupted the local school, and property prices dived dramatically.Council chiefs...

ORLANDO, Fla. -- No charges will be filed against the man accused of punching a boy at a Disney theme park while dressed as Tigger, Local 6 News reported. Michael J. Fedelem, 31, won't face any charges after the state attorney's office reviewed a video of the alleged incident, which was taped last month by the father of the 14-year-old boy. The video showed Tigger apparently punching Jerry Monaco Jr. in the face and knocking him back, and prompted an Orange County sheriff's investigation into the incident. You don't come here for this," father Jerry Monaco said. "Disney is supposed...

In February, the Temple of Deliverance Church of God in Christ gave a New Orleans family, who was displaced by Hurricane Katrina, the keys to a house in Hickory Hill that church members said the wife selected. They got a $75,000 house for free. But we discovered that the family sold it without ever moving in.

Please be warned of the following apparently new scam: They call and say you've been randomly selected to receive a "general purpose grant" of $7500 from the US Treasury. The name they give for themselves is American Financial on Ynez Rd in Temecula, CA. They say you can have the money and the administration fee is only $279.95.

End Gypsy prejudice: VaticanFrom: Reuters From correspondents in Rome March 01, 2006 EUROPE must drop its prejudices against Gypsies, the Vatican said today, in a document that called for more understanding of the nomadic peoples that have been persecuted through the centuries. In a study of the position of Gypsies in society, an advisory body to the Pope said traditionally Christian countries had persecuted them in the past and that deep-rooted prejudice remained as Europe faced a "new wave" of Gypsy migration. "Considered by many as harmful aliens and insistent beggars, public opinion usually clamours for nomadism to be banned,"...

I almost choked when I heard the 'honorable' Senator from Nevada (during the Democratic 'rebutal' of the President's State of the Union Address) admit that he hailed from Searchlight, Nevada. Searchlight, for those of you who may be unfamiliar with the American mining industry, is 'ground zero' for mining scams, fraudulent mining claims, and mineral-related 'flim flams' in general. Doubt it? Ask any federal Certified Mineral Examiner - Searchlight is America's 'Mining Scam Central.' In fact, it's the 'Mother Lode of Liars & Thieves,' when it comes to America's mining industry. To hear 'Dishonest' Harry Reid bragging about his Searchlight...

Defiant tax protester gets seven-year sentence By Toni Heinzl FORT WORTH - He calls himself a "Christian patriot" and a "political prisoner." Convicted in January on 29 counts of violating U.S. income tax laws, Bedford businessman Richard Simkanin remained defiant in his anti-government stance at his sentencing Friday. Simkanin, 59, told U.S. District Judge John McBryde that after spending thousands of hours studying federal tax laws, the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, he concluded that he did not agree with the tax laws. But McBryde had heard enough. Going beyond federal sentencing guidelines, McBryde sentenced Simkanin to seven years...