Free Republic

An Italian couple and their 11-year-old son died in a freak accident on Tuesday when they fell into a 10ft-deep hole that suddenly opened up in a highly active volcanic area near Naples. Police said the child strayed beyond safety barriers and was swallowed up by the pit, plunging into boiling hot mud at the Solfatara Crater in Pozzuoli, part of a huge volcanic area known as the Campi Flegrei or Phlegrean Fields. His father, 45, reportedly rushed to his rescue but also fell into the sink-hole. The boy’s mother, 42, then went to their aid, but she too was...

Over the past two weeks, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has outlined short- and long-term spending increases that have some wondering if he has turned his back on his roots as a fiscal conservative. Schwarzenegger campaigned on budget responsibility at a time when the state was facing a multibillion dollar budget deficit. But with the state's economy improving, the governor has proposed spending $1.7 billion more on education next fiscal year than is constitutionally required and has plans to borrow $68 billion through general obligation bonds over the next 10 years. "There is no question this is a U-turn from the fiscal...