Free Republic

New York has a major opportunity to lead the nation in reducing emissions and to strike a blow against inequality by making significant and bold investments in public transit across the state. Transportation is now the top climate culprit in New York state, responsible for more greenhouse-gas emissions than power plants. While our state is ramping up investments in renewable energy, moving people cleanly and efficiently is absolutely critical too. We must address this need by expanding public transit in ways that will also create family-sustaining employment options, improved public health, safety and mobility. The climate crisis and the transportation...

Connecticut’s legislature has passed a bill that would give the state’s Electoral College votes to the presidential candidate who wins the popular vote nationally. The state Senate voted 21-14 on Saturday to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which includes 10 states and the District of Columbia. The state House passed the measure last week, 77 to 73. The compact requires its members to cast their Electoral College ballots for the presidential candidate who wins the national popular vote. The agreement goes into effect once states representing at least 270 electoral votes — the number needed for a candidate...

The Hillsborough Board of County Commissioners has approved the lengthening of the firearm purchase waiting period. Commissioners voted 5-2 Critics insist "cooling off periods" pointless Gun store owners say move will drive business to other counties On Wednesday, commissioners voted 5-2 to extend the waiting period from 3 days to 5 days. The move comes in the wake of emphasis on the state's gun laws after a school shooting in Parkland killed 17 students and administrators are Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. The increased wait time proposal came from Commissioner Les Miller shortly after the Parkland massacre. "Maybe someone having...

abies are so passe, even royal ones. The hip new thing to have is a “theyby”, according to a trend spotted by New York magazine that sees parents bringing up their offspring in a gender-neutral fashion. There was of course nothing gender-specific about the “ba-“ part of “baby”, which is already a diminutive form of the original English word “babe”. The Oxford English Dictionary says that its origin is probably onomatopoeic – two syllables of “ba”, which is a typical “early infantile vocalisation”. So while a baby can call itself a baba, even if by accident, it will take much...

When you don’t know what else to do, sue. To critics in both major national parties, the Democratic National Committee seemed to be following that dubious legal advice by filing a lawsuit last week that alleges collusion between Russia and Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. Some from both parties ridiculed the suit as a distraction from special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation and the cash-strapped DNC’s rebuilding efforts as midterm elections approach. Trump has a long record of threatening more court fights than he actually wages. You might recall his similar promises to sue the publisher of Michael Wolff’s “Fire and Fury”...

Patriotic supporters of the Second Amendment will be staging rallies across the nation on Saturday as the push to strip law-abiding Americans of their right to bear arms has never been more relentless nor the threat more perilous than it is now. The group calling for the rallies at state capitals is called National Constitutional Coalition of Patriotic Americans (NCCPA) and they want to stress the urgency of having the voices of pro-constitutional patriots to have their voices heard instead of being drowned out by the anti-gun lobby, the activist media and hypocritical celebrities who have used their money, names,...

Fielding questions over whether President Trump wants to go after Amazon and it's tax treatment, Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Wednesday that Trump is "always looking to create a level playing field for all businesses and this no different." But she added that the president has no specific policies to address that at this time. The backdrop: Axios' Jonathan Swan reported earlier today that Trump hates Amazon, which led Amazon shares to drop 6% at market open.

“President Trump on Wednesday voiced support for confiscating guns from certain individuals deemed to be dangerous, even if it violates due process rights,” thehill.com reports. ‘I like taking the guns early, like in this crazy man’s case that just took place in Florida … to go to court would have taken a long time,’ Trump said at a meeting with lawmakers on school safety and gun violence. ‘Take the guns first, go through due process second,'” This he said despite . . . Vice President Pence’s caution on gun confiscation. Trump was responding to comments from Vice President Pence that...

CHICAGO In an awkward onstage appearance this week, Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner drank a glass of chocolate milk to demonstrate his belief in diversity. "It's really, really good," Rauner said after taking a sip of the sugary drink. "Diversity!"

Video LinkThis video was streamed a couple of hours ago. The youtube account is "CBTS" which would be "Calm Before The Storm"...and the intro to the video is almost certainly Bill Still.Anyway, it is good analysis by Corsi of what has transpired today SO FAR.

Pop star Taylor Swift apparently struck a nerve with leftists and Internet trolls this week after she said she “couldn’t have asked for a better year” in 2017 and thanked her fans in a birthday Instagram post. “I love you guys so much,” Swift captioned a photo taken at a recent London concert. “I couldn’t have asked for a better year, all thanks to you. Thanks for all the birthday wishes. Can’t wait to see what 28 will be like. See you on tour.” That simple message was apparently too much for some Twitter users — and at least a...

With the horrific shooting that recently took place in Las Vegas, debates over gun control have been given center stage in our media and politics once again. And while every pundit seems to have their own surefire way of combatting gun violence, they all gloss over the elephant in the room. Which is, although mass shootings have taken on a repulsive popularity recently, the gun violence surrounding the War on Drugs has created more casualties than every mass shooting in the US combined. And despite the fact that these commentators tirelessly argue the merits and faults of one another’s ideas,...

Why is there no motive for the Vegas massacre? Why did Stephen Paddock have a secret life? It is terrible to contemplate, but the possibility that Stephen Paddock was an undercover federal operative or informant cannot be ruled out. He may have been set up or used by ISIS and/or a federal agency in a scheme that backfired. The feds may have thought they were going to catch ISIS in the act of preparing a major terrorist attack. ISIS terrorists may have thought Paddock was one of them, but realized at the last minute it was a set-up. They claimed...

Puerto Rico, already trying to dig itself out of a historic financial crisis, is now facing a direct hit by a major hurricane that could destroy any progress the U.S. territory has made under a year-old economic rehab plan ─ and set it back further. Hurricane Maria is forecast to hit Puerto Rico early Wednesday, testing the local government's ability to respond to a humanitarian disaster. While the Caribbean island of 3.4 million people is accustomed to tropical storms, it hasn't been hit by a Category 4 or 5 hurricane since 1928.

Victor Pratt has been in the hospital since Sept. 1 after a rattle snake bit him in the face. Two weeks later, and the wound is still difficult to look at. "It makes your brain smash," Pratt said, trying to describe what the pain felt like. He was able to keep his cool enough to pry the snake's jaw off him and get to a hospital in Coolidge, where the incident happened.

Several influential House conservatives are privately plotting ways to use the legislative calendar this fall to push their hard-line agenda — including quiet discussions about possibly mounting a leadership challenge to House Speaker Paul D. Ryan. The group has gone so far as to float the idea of recruiting former House speaker Newt Gingrich or former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum as potential replacements for Ryan (R-Wis.) should there be a rebellion. The Constitution does not require that an elected member of the House serve as speaker. While the chances that a non-House member could mount a credible threat to Ryan...

The Food and Drug Administration is turning to a widely condemned narcotic in an effort to help people dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The FDA has classified the noted party drug as a “breakthrough therapy” for patients. The “breakthrough” designation isn’t just a ceremonial title. The FDA will now fast-track the review of ecstasy as an approved treatment for PTSD. The pills, known by drug dealers and users as “Molly,” reportedly contain the chemical MDMA, which researchers believe is a key in treating the disorder. According to reports, MDMA helps patients deal with traumatic memories by relieving some of...

Obama essentially wants us to trust his word that health care will work out just fine for the rest of us who do not have the coverage he and the Congress have. Okay, but before he asks us to trust him, he should trust us first by putting to bed a little unfinished business: basically, whether he qualifies to be President in the first place. He and his administration have mocked and degraded those who have sought the answer to this question. We're told they're a small clutch of angry fringe lunatics, unable to put their racism aside and accept...

Joey Bada$$, a hip-hop artist who has earned praise from Malia Obama, asked his Twitter followers if he was "crazy" for staring at the solar eclipse without protective glasses - then canceled his upcoming performances. "Am I crazy for watching the eclipse today w no glasses?" the rapper tweeted. "I've sungazed before and afterwards saw colors for a whole day. I didn't die tho." -- Full article at link.