Free Republic

As we approach what is likely to be the most chaotic presidential election in U.S. history, troubling signs are starting to erupt for the U.S. economy. In fact, CNN is actually admitting that “the long-predicted storm clouds in the economy may actually be forming”. I can’t remember the last time that I saw a CNN article with a headline like that. But at this point, it is becoming extremely difficult for the mainstream media to avoid the truth. Inflation is getting worse at the same time that many key sectors of our economy are slowing down. If you thought that...

As we approach what is likely to be the most chaotic presidential election in U.S. history, trouble signs are starting to erupt for the U.S. economy. In fact, CNN is actually admitting that “the long-predicted storm clouds in the economy may actually be forming”. I can’t remember the last time that I saw a CNN article with a headline like that. But at this point, it is becoming extremely difficult for the mainstream media to avoid the truth. Inflation is getting worse at the same time that many key sectors of our economy are slowing down. If you thought that...

Three months ago, Celine and her best friend, Natalie* were both laid off from the same ad agency. No longer able to afford her $3,200 rent in Brooklyn, Celine was forced to move back into her parents’ house in the suburbs. “I’m still reeling, my whole life was flipped on its head,” the 29-year-old says. The only thing more humiliating than getting fired and packing up your adult existence into your teenage bedroom? Seeing your best friend survive the same brutal layoff and emerge unscathed. “I love Natalie but she didn’t have to lift a finger because her husband is...

A physically healthy 28-year-old Dutch woman has decided to legally end her life due to her struggles with crippling depression, autism and borderline personality disorder, according to a report. Zoraya ter Beek, who lives in a small village in the Netherlands near the German border, is scheduled to be euthanized in May — despite being in love with her 40-year-old boyfriend and living with two cats. Ter Beek, who once aspired to be a psychiatrist, has been dealing with mental health struggles throughout her life.

LOS ANGELES - Many Southern California customers are frustrated and confused to learn that they might not be receiving their expensive appliance orders, purchased through the luxury appliance store Pirch, when all locations suddenly closed this week. "Are we getting our merchandise? Are we getting a refund?" asked one customer, Maribell Rodriguez. Rodriguez told FOX 11 that she has yet to receive any answers from Pirch regarding her order since the company's abrupt closure Wednesday. She is in the middle of a home renovation and just took out a $20,000 loan to pay for the appliances. "I really feel that...

Luxury designer Hermès has been hit with a class action lawsuit, with plaintiffs claiming they were forced to spend thousands on other goods like scarves and homewares before they could buy a coveted Birkin. Two plaintiffs from California filed suit against the retailer Tuesday after being urged to 'support the business' by buying ancillary products including shoes, scarves, belts, jewelry and home goods. The pursuit of a Birkin is an arduous one. Due to high demand and the painstaking effort needed to craft the leather handbags, they are difficult to produce and expensive to buy.

The suit claims that the images of the sandwich on the store's menus are misleading and amount to a breach of contract. AFlorida judge this week rejected a bid from Burger King to dismiss a class action lawsuit against the fast food chain that has alleged the franchise repeatedly exaggerated the size and beef content of its signature Whoppers. The suit claims that the images of the sandwich on the store's menus are misleading and amount to a breach of contract. It also claims that deceptive advertising, which allegedly began in 2017, has made the Whoppers appear "approximately 35% larger...

UPS missed a priority window to make ferry reservations for its trucks to get to Nantucket this summer — leaving businesses scrambling to accommodate affluent locals and moneyed visitors. The shipping courier failed to request reservations for its trucks during an early priority window before ferries for the tony island’s busiest season from May to October were booked close to capacity, the Boston Globe reported. “It’s going to put us in a world of hurt,” Shantaw Bloise, business manager at the Nantucket Chamber of Commerce, told the newspaper. “I can’t imagine how we’ll be able to function just relying on...

Students in Harvard Out of Occupied Palestine (HOOP) are demanding that the Mediterranean spread made by Sabra be taken out of dining halls because of ties to the Israel Defense Forces. This is merely one — albeit the creamiest — of many instances of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS)-style protests against Israel on college campuses across the country. The Harvard Crimson reported that on Tuesday, students gathered in Harvard Yard holding signs that say “Why does your hummus taste like apartheid?” and chanting “Don’t buy products laced with hate, Sabra funds a racist state.” Stickers on Sabra snack cups in...

Heath Racela identifies as three-quarters white and one-quarter Filipino. When texting, he chooses a yellow emoji instead of a skin tone option, because he feels it doesn't represent any specific ethnicity or color. He doesn't want people to view his texts in a particular way. He wants to go with what he sees as the neutral option and focus on the message. "I present as very pale, very light skinned. And if I use the white emoji, I feel like I'm betraying the part of myself that's Filipino," Racela, of Littleton, Mass., said. "But if I use a darker color...

I wanted to purchase a new saute pan to replace my old one. My cooking gear is very important to me, so I did a lot of research until I chose the pot I wanted. And then I found this very expensive pot ON SALE! Whoo-hoo! I tried to order the pot on Wayfair, only to find that other pot connoisseurs had beaten me to all available stock at that terrific sale price. I'd have to wait for the next shipment. That date kept changing, getting delayed. I did some searching and found the pot was also being sold at...

Students living on campus near the construction site of New College House West say they are being shaken awake from their beds in the morning and disrupted by the loud noises. Situated at the corner of 40th and Walnut streets, construction on the record-breaking $163 million dorm hall began in December 2018, with the site facing Du Bois College House, Gregory College House, and Rodin College House. Residents say administrators are not properly addressing their concerns and have not taken the proper steps to offer a solution to the NCHW noise levels. NCHW construction starts at 7 a.m. and lasts...

The Boston City Council wants to make sure everyone who needs menstrual products has access to them, regardless of income. During the regular city council meeting, Councilors Matt O’Malley and Lydia Edwards called for a hearing about menstrual equity. “It’s important to have conversations about public health that impact women, girls, and low-income families,” said O’Malley during Wednesday’s meeting.

Before it was a television show, Grey's Anatomy was a textbook. Published in 1858, Gray's Anatomy (spelled with an "a") quickly became the gold standard in medical illustration, featuring detailed diagrams of everything from the tiny bones in the hand to the internal structure of the eye. Gray's Anatomy is still in print today, in its 41st edition, but if you open the book up and flip through the pages you might notice something. Or really, the dearth of something: women. And it turns out it's not just Gray's Anatomy that has this problem—almost all medical textbooks are heavily biased...

Last October a horrific stretch limousine crash killed 20 people and rocked the state of New York. As a result, Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants to introduce a raft of transportation safety reforms including an outright ban on long limos.In an event described by the New York Times as the “deadliest U.S accident in nine years,” 17 passengers in a stretched Ford Excursion limousine, the vehicle’s driver, and two pedestrians died in a crash in the small upstate town of Schoharie, NY. The subsequent investigation revealed that the limo had failed its last safety inspection and should not have been on...

When we say ‘Santa’, you probably think of an old fat guy with a bushy beard - but what if they were a woman, or non-binary? Isn't everyone capable of spreading Christmas cheer? This is the debate that's heating up right now after a councillor in Newton Aycliffe (near Durham) complained last month about a woman being cast in the role of Santa in the town’s Christmas parade. Arun Chandran, the Newton Aycliffe councillor who was against the idea of a female Santa, told The Times that the role is only appropriate for men. “My understanding is that Santa Claus,...

Beto O’Rourke is calling for the removal of a controversial Confederate plaque hanging in the Texas State Capitol building, tweeting on Tuesday to “take it down today.” The plaque contains the Children of the Confederacy’s creed, which is a statement that pledges “to study and teach the truths of history (one of the most important of which is, that the War between the States was not a rebellion, nor was its underlying cause to sustain slavery).”

A police officer was seen shooting a groundhog in the middle of Liberty Road in Carroll County, upsetting some onlookers. A video posted by one woman shows the officer killing the groundhog after it charges at him. "This just happened. And I’m soooo distraught," wrote Justyna Olkowska on Facebook. She said she was disturbed to see "Sykesville police shooting [groundhogs] in [the] head in broad daylight." "Like I cannot believe I just witnessed this. If you’re not an animal lover, you won’t understand my pain," she wrote. "I may be wrong and he might have been doing his job but...

Most of the time, Chris Coon is a mild-mannered, low-key pastor at Urban Village Church in Chicago.But when the collar comes off and the running shorts—and especially a race bib—go on, the 49-year-old turns into a different person. An angry one. The things that stoke his ire? Poor race organization. Course volunteers who don’t direct runners at turns. And cars, especially those that don’t yield the right of way or even acknowledge his presence in an intersection. Not only does anger bubble up more frequently when he’s running, he says, he’s also more likely to act on it. “I’ve flipped...

Attendees of Fyre Festival thought they were paying for a one-of-a-kind experience when they purchased tickets to what promised to be a lavish affair. Technically, they weren’t wrong – but the unique experience which awaited ticket-holders on the Bahamian festival grounds was a bit different than the luxurious, supermodel-filled affair which they’d been promised. The new festival – run by Ja Rule and Billy McFarland’s Fyre Media company – made headlines upon its announcement through a sponsored content campaign promoted on Instagram by the likes of Kendall Jenner, Emily Ratajkowski, and Bella Hadid. However, what seemed to be a glamorous...