Free Republic

For many young professionals far from their schools days and a ways away from having children of their own, the battle over healthier school lunches seems of little relevance. But in Washington, D.C., the policy debate has become an all encompassing issue highlighting the intricate network of lobbyists, corporations and associations all with a financial stake in a policy that was otherwise born of good intentions. The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act was passed in 2010, offering $4.5 billion in new funding over 10 years. However, the details of the new program have yet to be implemented due to a growing...

This salad...only in America...and I mean that in a really good way. Someone should send this photo to this chick.

Fears of the Ebola contagion breaking out stateside have fueled a curious boom in industrial-grade protective gear.Since the first case of the Ebola virus was confirmed in Dallas, Rick Pedley noticed an unusual blip in sales at his online store, PK Safety. His regular customers, most of whom work in hazardous environments like construction sites or claustrophobic drainage pipes, bought protective gear at a rate of about 150 orders per day. That gear included gloves, hard hats and the occasional hazmat suit. Now there are plenty of newcomers, shoppers who evidently fear their communities might become hazardous. Orders have doubled....

Most clear-thinking people can see by now that there isn't going to be a functioning global carbon emissions abatement scheme in the foreseeable future. Whether or not that's a good thing (and I think it is) is a separate question. Because regardless, we should look at the world as it is. Now of course, excessive carbon emissions into the atmosphere remain a serious concern and a real problem. So what can we do to solve it? First, let's look at the main sources of carbon emissions. The two big ones are energy production and agriculture, which is set to explode...

Local school districts around the country are going to take a huge financial hit in fiscal year 2015 because the cost of the school lunches they offer is expected to triple. The combination of escalating costs because of harsher restrictions and the dwindling number of students enrolled in the program, which limits reimbursements from the federal government, are going to rigger the enormous rise in costs, according to the School Nutrition Association (SNA). SNA is comprised of 55,000 school nutrition professionals around the country. SNA CEO Patricia Montague said, "School nutrition professionals have led the way in promoting improved diets...

Ideas. Am I cursing my future children to a life of being social outcasts because mommy wants to feed them green smoothies? Right now, there are at least a handful of people who I KNOW will never babysit my imaginary, yet-to-be born child. As far as they’re concerned, my baby will be more under wraps than “Blanket” Jackson was. Yes, I want nothing more than to have a full stock of potential babysitters, but sometimes these people—my friends—say things that make me get the Scooby Doo face. “Your kids ain’t gon have any friends!” “I’m going to feed your kids...

First lady Michelle Obama said it was "natural" that kids are "grumbling" over new requirements for schools to fill vending machines and lunch lines with healthier food, but that it would not deter her from improving child nutrition. "Change is hard," the first lady said in an interview with Channel One. "And the thing about highly processed, sugary, salty food is that you get addicted to it. I don’t want to just settle because it’s hard." The first lady said she knew children "are grumbling because they have to make changes," and said her daughters roll their eyes when she...

Famed chef Emeril Lagasse says that it’s becoming all but impossible to be a successful restaurateur in America today. The government just gets in the way too much. Lagasse specifically singled out the current president’s policies. “It’s becoming a very challenging industry to become a very successful average restaurateur,” continued Lagasse. “I can’t charge $300 a person in my restaurant or I would not be in business. Am I using any different ingredients? Not really. Am I using any caliber of service staff? I don’t think so. I think our service is as good or better than most places.” “And...

The "climate change industry" has become such a religion of environmentalism gone berserk that they are now trying to ban farming

There was something pathetically nostalgic at the specter earlier this month of fast-food workers demanding compensation to the tune of $15 an hour for performing jobs that require almost no skills beyond not being in a coma. It recalled a halcyon age very long ago when management depended on menial labor, when a general strike of unskilled workers could bring bosses to their knees. But now a company called Momentum Machines is touting a device that can allegedly shoot out 360 custom-ordered and fully wrapped burgers per hour, rendering the very idea of an exploited and undercompensated “fast-food worker” a...

Bears in Northern Wisconsin The gun culture permeated the part of Wisconsin where I grew up.   In that area and time, we did not think of it as a separate culture.   The gun culture and the culture were one and the same.   Guns and hunting were simply integral parts of everyday life.    If a boy was not a hunter, he aspired to be one.  There was considerable game, ruffed grouse, woodcock, rabbits, squirrel, ducks,  geese, deer, mink, muskrats, raccoon, fox and ...bear.   There were not very many bear.   In my first 18 years, with nearly a decade spent wandering...

WatchSections Russians Just Bought America’s Most Beloved Crappy Beer Written by HILARY POLLACK September 19, 2014 / 4:15 pm Say goodbye to Pabst Blue Ribbon’s status as our nation’s most iconic cheap beer. For the past 170 years, Pabst Blue Ribbon has been a staple in the diets of American college students, starving artists, and broke drunks. And it’s likely to maintain that status for years to come—but it will now be in the hands of Russians....

Another thing to point out is the amount of time it takes to get back on track following a disruption in supply. Take a blizzard that shuts down a distribution center for a day. The way things work is that shipments are coming in constantly, but they are timed so that basically only the items projected to be necessary are delivered. There are not warehouses full of every item imaginable that can just be run out to a store. Now a blizzard not only shuts down the warehouse and its delivery vehicles, but it shuts down the trucking that supplies...

THORNTON, Colo. - Chick-fil-A is releasing an employee's "disciplinary documents," after the company demoted her following surgery for breast cancer. However, employment law attorneys call the documents "suspect."

In what may be the ultimate Nanny State move, Vermont has outlawed consuming or bringing brownies, cakes, or cookies to school. The mandates are part of a new program titled “Smart-Snacks-in-Schools” and will apply to lunch items, vending machines, and fundraising events between midnight and half and hour after school. Boston.com reported:

McDonald's just expanded a test for burgers that are 100% customizable. The brand hopes the strategy, which is currently in four restaurants in San Diego, California, could help attract a younger crowd and revive lagging sales. Many analysts believe that the customization will soon become widespread at McDonald's and allow it to better compete with fast-casual competitors like Chipotle. Chipotle is largely successful because the ingredients for its burritos, bowls, tacos, and salads are entirely selected by customers, who increasingly crave tailored options and high-quality ingredients. Dominique Zamora at Foodbeast tried out the process, which also has elements of fast-casual...

According to The Week, the FDA is out to regulate away our freedom to partake in French cheese: New FDA restrictions on the levels of harmless bacteria found in imported cheese have effectively banned a number of artisan French cheeses, including Roquefort, Morbier, and Tomme de Savoie. The restricted bacteria already exist in the human stomach, and the banned cheeses have not changed their recipes for years. While the restriction is already affecting imports, domestic cheese producers are under the FDA gun, too. Raw milk cheesemakers may be put out of business over a change they say is capricious at...

SEPTEMBER 8, 2014 Psychologist: Minorities Are Obese Because of Racism Are racial microaggressions making you fat? One professor at an N.J. public university thinks so. By Katherine Timpf A study by Rutgers University – Newark claims that minorities are obese because racial microaggressions cause them to eat fast food and avoid exercise. “When you are exposed to negative stereotypes, you may gravitate more toward unhealthy foods as opposed to healthy foods,” said Luis Rivera, the experimental social psychologist who conducted the study. “You may have a less positive attitude toward watching your carbs or cutting back on fast food, and...

Sept 4, 2014  Statistically, minimum wage earners tend to be young, and don't have the experience or knowledge to predict the outcome of a federally mandated $15 minimum wage. If they understood the incentives of corporate  investors, inventors, endemic Washington cronyism, or even basic economics, they might think twice about doing "whatever it takes". One of the interesting things about life is that no matter how backwards our culture or government is, technology marches on, and the latest foot soldier is this: (picture at http://www.6foot2inhighheelshoes.com) Along with automated credit card kiosks, fast food is about to change, and probably for...

On Tuesday, LA Weekly reported that several upscale restaurants in the City of Angels will be adding a 3 percent surcharge to cover their employees' healthcare costs, a trend that has been gaining steam since the Affordable Care Act launched nearly one year ago. Beginning on September 1, restaurants Lucques, Tavern, A.O.C, and a few offshoots all added a 3 percent surcharge to customers' checks, explicitly stating in a press release their decisions hinged on covering employee healthcare costs. Lucques Group, Suzanne Goin and Caroline Styne, owners of the restaurants, also named several other restaurant groups that will be duplicating...