Free Republic

WESTLEY (CBS13) – The woman who was gunned down during an attempted carjacking outside an Executive Inn in rural Stanislaus County was a mother of three and grandmother of eight, her family told CBS13 on Monday. The family identified the woman killed as 60-year-old Elizabeth Mann of Tracy. They called Mann generous enough to give a person the last dollar out of her pocket. Cherri Booth ​was a guest at the inn and saw the aftermath of the violence as the Mann’s son rushed outside. “It just breaks my heart because that trickled down to all of her children, grandchildren....

Red Double THE 11th CENTURY—the Century of contest between the Priests of the Church and Barbarism—deputes today another Martyr to our Risen Jesus. It is Stanislaus, loved by noble Poland as one of her chief protectors. He was slain at the Altar by a Christian Prince whom he had reproved for his crimes. The blood of the courageous Pontiff was mingles, and in the same sacrifice, with that of our Redeemer. What an invincible energy there is in these Lambs whom Jesus has sent amidst the wolves! They seem to be changes, all at once, into Lions, like Jesus...

A giant invasive rodent with the ability to destroy roads, levees and wetlands has been discovered in Stanislaus County. Weighing in at 20 pounds and measuring 2 feet, 6 inches long, plus a 12-inch tail, the nutria live in or near water. They're also incredibly destructive. “They burrow in dikes, and levees, and road beds, so they weaken infrastructure, (which is) problematic for flood control systems,” California Fish and Wildlife spokesperson Peter Tira said. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife is sounding an alarm about the invasive nutria. When nutria aren’t burrowing, they’re eating. They can consume 25 percent...

As'ad AbuKahlil—a political science professor at California State University, Stanislaus—spoke last month at a day-long "teach-in" at the University of California, Berkeley titled, "Building Solidarity with the Arab Spring." It consisted of a number of "workshop sessions" at the Valley Life Sciences Building, followed by a "plenary session" at the Multicultural Center, and was co-sponsored by the Arab Resource Organizing Committee, the Berkeley Muslim Students Association PAC, the International Socialist Organization, and the Syrian American Council. AbuKhalil's workshop on "The U.S. and the Arab Uprising" was held in a tiny, hot, windowless room filled with students wearing hijabs and keffiyehs....

In 1891, Archbishop Peter Kenrick agreed to allow the laity of the St. Louis Polish Catholic community to form a corporation that would govern the church's finances. Kenrick's move was not unusual at a time when immigrants often formed their own Catholic communities to buy land and build a church. By the 20th century, bishops had assumed control of most of those parishes around the country. St. Louis archbishops through the decades made half-hearted attempts to get St. Stanislaus to fall in line, but it was the clergy sexual abuse scandal that erupted in Boston in 2002 that ultimately prompted...

Lawmakers Want To Know How Much CSU Stanislaus Is Paying For Sarah Palin VisitSACRAMENTO - The California State University Foundation has released its contract with former Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin that shows the speaker's request as well as compensation for a fundraiser dinner conducted in June. According to the contract released Thursday afternoon, Palin was compensated $75,000 to appear at the event and requested two bottles of "unopened still water" with "bendable straws" placed "in or near the wooden lectern." A private plane, more specifically a Lear 60 jet, was required for Palin under the contract, though the contract...

Attorney General Jerry Brown said Friday his office found no wrongdoing at the California State University, Stanislaus Foundation. “We examined whether money given to a charitable foundation was handled appropriately, but found no violation of law,” Brown said. “However, the foundation board has agreed to make changes to improve oversight of its funds.” Read more: http://www.modbee.com/2010/08/06/1283809/attorney-general-no-wrong-doing.html#ixzz0vsK8z2Dx

Carla Marinucci, the San Francisco Chronicle’s Political Writer, had some sad news for her liberal readers this morning: Sarah Palin is alive and kicking — and kicking ass in California. Carla Marinucci cited Sarah Palin’s speech on Froiday night, which raised a record $200,000-plus for the Cal State University Stanislaus Foundation, money much needed for a school in a recession at a time when donors are low on cash as well. Wrote Carla Marinucci: “After months of buildup, including investigations, outrage and celebration, the former Alaska governor’s trip to California’s farm belt over the weekend proved beyond a doubt that...

They don't call Sarah Palin the Thrilla from Wasilla for nothing.After months of buildup, including investigations, outrage and celebration, the former Alaska governor's trip to California's farm belt over the weekend proved beyond a doubt that she delivers - for Republicans and Democrats. State Attorney General Jerry Brown probably will be grateful that he was the focus of the 2008 vice presidential candidate's barbed criticism as he investigates her compensation from the Cal State University Stanislaus Foundation for her speech Friday night at the nonprofit's 50th anniversary event at the Turlock (Stanislaus County) campus. Brown's office is looking at whether...

Behold the mix of protest, support, and even evangelism. Only in America.

TURLOCK, Calif. - Sarah Palin spent only a few hours in Turlock. But the repercussions of her visit will last a long time, from the big money she drew to the debate over her appearance to a legal investigation into the nonprofit foundation that signed her. University officials said they couldn't be happier with her appearance at the 50th anniversary gala, bringing in more money than any other single event in the campus' history. "I am really very pleased," university President Hamid Shirvani said Saturday. "It was an extraordinary event, unprecedented in the past five years I've been associated with...

CNN, San Francisco Chronicle, Denver Post and ADN cover Sarah Palin's speech + local news coverage of student protestors & every move Sarah Palin makes.

After months of anticipation, legal battles, and protests, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin visited Turlock on Friday where she delivered a speech on civic education and American exceptionalism before a sold-out crowd at California State University, Stanislaus’ 50th Anniversary Gala Fundraiser. Tuxedo-clad men and women in their finest dresses packed the Main Dining Hall at CSU Stanislaus Friday evening for what CSU Stanislaus Foundation Chairman Matt Swanson termed the “greatest meal in the history of the campus.” But while the meal was memorable – a caprese salad with heirloom tomatoes, seared scallops and savory mushroom risotto, and frozen chocolate soufflé...

Has Sarah Palin's California visit caused a stir in the Golden State? You betcha! The 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee will take the stage tonight at a fundraiser at California State University, Stanislaus. The university was dogged with questions over how much former Alaska governor is being paid to speak at the gala. Officials said that because the event is being put on by a nonprofit foundation associated with the university, the speaking contract is not subject to disclosure under the state public records laws. The push to release the payment details (and the push-back from the university) involved Dumpster...

I was unaware that this was going on when I killed my feed, so I didn’t get all of it. So if someone else has it, please let me know and I’ll post it:

"The Declaration of Independence was the Declaration of Responsibility too." - Sarah Palin

Throngs of protesting students and hundreds of well-heeled donors are preparing to greet Sarah Palin, whose speech at a struggling public university in California's farm country Friday evening will cap off a prolonged legal dispute over her visit. The former Alaska governor is set to headline at the 50th anniversary celebration at California State University, Stanislaus, which in recent days has transformed its humble cafeteria into a glitzy Gala Hall, now surrounded by chain-link fences and extra security officers. Palin's speech has generated intense intrigue and scrutiny since the nonprofit foundation holding the event first announced her visit in March....

Fox40 in California is streaming live Governor Sarah Palin's speech at Cal State Stanislaus. View here: http://www.fox40.com/news/livechannel/

Sarah Palin discussed civic education, freedom of speech and the infamous "bendable straws" demand at California State University, Stanislaus Friday night. Palin poked fun at the controversy sparked by the announcement she would appear and the outcry over her confidential contract, a portion of which students said they found in a university Dumpster. "Do I have my straws?" she said, adding that she felt sorry for the Washington Speakers Bureau, which on her behalf negotiated "with the entire state of California." And she took a shot at those who have launched an investigation into the university Foundation's finances in response...

Governor Palin will be speaking at Stanislaus University this Friday, June 25th. Much has been made of this particular speaking engagement with people complaining about the Governor being the choice to headline the school's 50th anniversary celebration. They have hidden behind what they hoped would appear to be reasonable arguments for their protest, but those arguments simply don't hold water. Look, if school officials would disqualify a "polarizing and divisive celebrity with no connection to our school or community," as one person coined her, perhaps they need to re-examine the reason for fundraisers. The last time I checked, the institution...