Free Republic

I once respected Vladimir Putin for his effectiveness, although I emphatically did not like what he did to neighboring countries, and also Russians with whom he disagreed. One can similarly respect the effectiveness of other despots such as Peter the Great and Catherine the Great without liking how they treated other countries or even their own people. When Peter the Great built Saint Petersburg, for example, tens of thousands of workers died from disease and privation, and some were eaten by wolves in the streets. Putin's invasion of Ukraine, however, demonstrates a colossal lack of judgment that reveals him to...

Ukraine landed a significant blow on Russia Saturday after it killed a large group of bloodthirsty Chechen special forces dispatched to assassinate the country's president Volodymyr Zelensky. The armed group - famed for their barbaric violence and human rights abuses - were obliterated after their convoy of 56 tanks was blown to smithereens by Ukrainian missile fire on the second day of the Chechens' deployment. It is unclear how many died - but the number is likely to run into the hundreds. Among those wiped out was Chechen general Magomed Tushaev. He was commander of the 141th motorized national guard...

The US and allies must be clear-eyed about this: what might the economic and political ripple effects of the war be?We must do what we can to contain Vladimir Putin’s aggression in Ukraine. But we also need to be clear-eyed about it, and face the costs. Economics can’t be separated from politics, and neither can be separated from history. Here are eight sobering realities:

Russian forces have entered Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, as residents of the Ukrainian capital reported a massive explosion and other blasts early on February 27 as Russia’s war on its neighbor intensified and as Western powers announced a new, dramatic step in efforts to punish Moscow with sanctions for its aggression. The head of the Kharkiv regional administration, Oleg Sinegubov, said that Ukrainian forces were fighting Russian troops in the city and asked civilians not to leave their homes. Videos posted online by Ukrainian officials showed Russian vehicles moving across Kharkiv and a light vehicle burning on the street. Sinegubov...

What’s going on in the mind of Vladimir Putin? Why did he choose this moment to invade? The conditions are perfect right now for Putin and tyrants around the world to expand their power and territory. Who among the Western leaders has the moral authority to demand that tyrants like Vladimir Putin resist their dictatorial urges? For the past two plus years of the pandemic, Putin observed Western leaders repeatedly lying to their people. When they weren’t outright lying, they were hiding the data. As they pushed mask and jab mandates, Western politicians hid data on their efficacy or lack...

The right-wing firebrand laughed off comments made during an interview with One American Network (OAN) complaining House Speaker Pelosi was secretly investigating members of Congress and constituents. “Not only do we have the D.C. jail, which is the D.C. gulag,” said Rep. Greene in a now-viral video. “Now we have Nancy Pelosi’s gazpacho police spying on members of Congress, spying on the legislative work that we do, spying on our staff and spying on American citizens that want to come to talk with their representatives.” After being roundly mocked for confusing the Gestapo, the official secret police of Nazi Germany...

Some Ring customers said that they spent time rebooting or reinstalling their apps and devices before finding out about the outage on social media. Many rely on a phone app to enter their homes, rather than a code that can also be used, with those that had forgotten the latter stuck outside their own homes as Ring doorbells went down. A source told DailyMail.com that the cause of the outbreak was a power failure in Virginia and not a malicious hacking. The nearly eight-hour outage also disrupted the company's shipping operations on Tuesday, threatening to create lasting logjams during the...

Democratic strategist Donna Brazile said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week” offered her advice for those struggling with the inflationary pressures on the American economy: be smart shoppers.

Years ago, a young Navy Pilot was injured while ejecting from his A-4 Skyhawk due to engine failure during a catapult shot from the carrier. Due to the heroics of rescue helicopter crew and the ship's hospital staff, the only permanent injury was the loss of one ear. Since he wasn't physically impaired, he remained on flight status and eventually became an Admiral. However, during his career he was always sensitive about his appearance One day the Admiral was interviewing two Navy Master Chiefs and a Marine Sergeant Major for his personal staff. The first Master Chief was a Surface...

Power companies in Texas are remotely raising temperatures inside of some customers’ homes amid the state’s ongoing energy shortage.Houston resident Brandon English, whose home has an internet-connected smart thermostat installed, was shocked to learn of the practice after his wife and infant daughter “woke up sweating.”Speaking with KHOU 11, English stated that despite his wife turning down the temperature before taking a nap with their 3-year-old child, the temperature in their home rose significantly.“They’d been asleep long enough that the house had already gotten to 78 degrees,” English said. “So they woke up sweating.”English, who expressed concerns over the potential...

Metallica frontman James Hetfield has spoken of how he’s “sceptical” of getting the coronavirus vaccine. Speaking in a new interview, Hetfield was asked about the prospect of Metallica touring again soon, and how they would make potential live shows safe for fans. “I have no clue,” he told The Fierce Life podcast. “It’s not up to me. It really is up to the safety of everyone — not just the fans, but the crew and us. “I’m not sure what that means in the future as far as vaccines. I’m a little skeptical of getting the vaccine, but it seems...

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) defended his state’s controversial nursing home directive, which instructed nursing homes to accept coronavirus patients, contending this week it was Republicans who “politicized a health order” and referring to the order as a “smart” decision from a medical point of view.

By now, Monday’s massive Google outage is history for most people. While it was a minor inconvenience for some, with most Google services being down for hours on end, it was a much larger pain in the electronic ass for the tragically hip who have surrendered their “smart” homes to Google. In fact, of the services that went down, it was Google Home users who were literally left in the dark during the outage on Monday, RT notes. As a result, “smart home” users were complaining about not being able to perform once-simple tasks at their homes – like turning...

"There will be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration," Pompeo told a State Department news conference. He later sought to assure the world that America's post-election transition would be successful.

As in the red dye spurting over his hands and tracing an arc, before splashing onto his rented Chevy Monte Carlo. An exploding cartridge, he would later realize, had been placed in the pile of bills handed to him by a teller at the Augusta bank he had just robbed with two strangers. Clutching a wad of cash, a look of horror setting in, Crane figured, quite rightly, that he would not be making the final cut at the Masters, after all. ..., with half a day to kill before his first production shift, he went about scrounging up a...

Contrary to recent reports, federal agents told The Chronicle on Wednesday that they did not tell the family of missing Cal Poly freshman Kristin Smart that a big break in the 23-year cold case was imminent. A spokesman for the family confirmed Wednesday that the person who advised Smart’s mother, Denise, was not an active FBI agent.

The family of Kristin Smart, the California college student who vanished 23 years ago after attending a party near her school, was reportedly told by federal agents to be prepared for news and to secure a family spokesperson. Denise Smart, the woman's mother, told the Stockton Record that she was contacted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and was told to "be ready." "This is really going to be something you don't expect. We want to give you the support you need," she said she was told. The report said the FBI was not clear on what the development was,...

LAS VEGAS - CES 2020 officially kicks off here in Las Vegas on Tuesday, and companies from around the world are rolling out the forklifts to build out some of the massive exhibits that will be on display for the 170,000 attendees at this year’s edition of the tech industry’s trade show. But we’ve already got a good idea of the kinds of major announcements we’ll get during the biggest week in tech. Here’s what to expect, from 8K TVs to smart toilets to smartphones with foldable displays. As usual, some of the hottest news will come from the TV...

Terrill Frantz, a cybersecurity associate professor at Harrisburg University, compares smart TVs to your smartphone. TVs on the market now have the ability to connect to the internet. They’re equipped with cameras, microphones, and in some cases, facial recognition technology. “How easy is it for somebody to hack into a smart TV,” I asked. “Well, presently, it’s fairly easy,” answered Frantz. The FBI says smart TVs are often poorly secured by their manufacturers, compared to computers or smartphones. Experts say cyber-criminals can hack in and change channels, play with the volume, and in a worst-case scenario, watch and listen to...

Those laser pointer lights could hack into your smart home voice assistant. University researchers say they were able to hack Alexa, Google Home, Siri and Facebook Portal by shining lasers at them. The light can trick microphones and make the devices react as if they are receiving audio. The study found light commands can be sent from 360 feet away, from one building to another. The light can also penetrate glass, affecting a device that is left near a window. In one case, a garage door was opened using a laser light. Researchers also say they can use light commands...