Free Republic

‘Occupy’ protesters and housing rights activists are planning to help families resist eviction from foreclosed homes and take control of vacant properties in some 25 U.S. cities on Tuesday, an effort aimed at focusing attention on the ongoing housing crisis and giving the movement a new focus after the dismantling of many of its encampments. The protesters have been crafting proposals – often quietly to prevent police from learning about their intentions beforehand -- to defend families facing eviction or return others home. In Minneapolis, for example, they plan to help a Vietnam War veteran stay in his home, in...

A Dale City man whose Rottweiler died last week tried to dispose of the dog's remains Wednesday morning by setting them on fire, authorities said. In the process, he set his house on fire. Firefighters were called to the 4500 block of Kingston Road in the Kerrydale section of Dale City at 9:10 a.m., where they found smoke billowing from the front of the two-story, single-family home, said Prince William fire and rescue Battalion Chief Joe Robertson. At the back of the house, firefighters found flames extending from the exterior to the attic, he said. The Fire Marshal's Office discovered...

NEW YORK -- This year's Fourth of July race to stuff your face with hot dogs has a new women-only pigout. "Serena Williams didn't have to beat Roger Federer to win the Wimbledon title, and we don't think Sonya Thomas should have to beat Joey Chestnut," said master of ceremonies George Shea. Thomas, known as The Black Widow of competitive eating, set a women's world record July 4, 2009, by stuffing 41 hot dogs into her 105-pound frame in 10 minutes. Thomas and nine other women will compete Monday on Coney Island just before the men's stomach-churning Nathan's Famous hot...

VIDEO HERE

Public-employee unions spent tens of millions getting Jerry Brown elected, but the new governor gave them the cold shoulder yesterday after his inauguration. The Chron reports that the 18,000-member Orange County Employees Association had expected Brown to speak at its free hot-dog fest at the capitol, dubbed “The People’s Inauguration Party,” but the new governor only showed up for a few moments, grabbed some dogs, and scurried off. During his inaugural speech, Brown told unions not to expect any favors and referred to a “philosophy of loyalty” that calls for a “devotion to California above and beyond our narrow perspectives.”

We're on a mission to make the Bacon Wrapped Hot Dog the Official Hot Dog of Los Angeles. With your vote, we'll alert the powers that be and demand that the delicious, culinary masterpiece that is the Bacon Wrapped Hot Dog be crowned the Official Hot Dog of this magnificent city.

A man accused of hiding two pounds of hot dogs in his pants before leaving a grocery store sans paying faces a misdemeanor theft charge, according to a recently released arrest affidavit. A loss prevention worker at a Publix at South U.S. 1 and Prima Vista Boulevard last week told investigators she saw a man later identified as Allan Polhemus on aisle five "conceal a package of hot dogs in his pants," an affidavit states. The 32 ounce package of Publix jumbo beef franks was valued at $6.99. The wiener packaging describes the dogs as "meaty & delicious" and as...

Phoenix, Arizona (CNN) -- It was an ethnic twist on an American classic, the kind of thing that some people consider appealing and others frightening. Pinto beans, diced tomatoes, salsa and jalapenos top a hot dog that's grilled to perfection. It's 10 o'clock on a Saturday night at ground zero in the immigration debate. The hot dog vendor, a woman from the Mexican state of Sinaloa, would normally be doing a brisk business. Her cart is across the street from a popular Latino dance club that used to be frequented by Mexican-Americans but is now normally crammed with Mexican immigrants....

Restaurateur Stephen Bruce has already gotten folks to pony up $1,000 for an ice-cream sundae. So what’s a measly $69 for a hot dog? Make that an “haute dog.” Bruce’s famous Serendipity 3 restaurant in New York City celebrated National Hot Dog Day June 23 by marrying a foot-long tube of meat with such decidedly nontraditional accoutrements as black truffles and foie gras, served on a pretzel roll grilled in white truffle butter.

Sonna no uso da! Fuzakeruna yo! Were those the words of ex-champ Takeru Kobayahsi as he brazenly stormed the stage at the ninety-fifth annual Nathan’s Hot Dog eating contest yesterday? Poor Takeru! Joey “Jaws” Chestnut had just crammed 54 franks down his gullet in 10 minutes and was being awarded his fourth consecutive Mustard-Yellow Belt, when the crazed Kobayashi ran up the dais and went all anime. By which I mean, he stood rock still and expostulated and expostulated and expostulated. The only thing that was missing were his tentacles. But New York’s Finest were there—thank you, boys!—and, after a...

So, as I mentioned yesterday, July is National Hot Dog Month. Due in no small part to astronomical consumption numbers on the Fourth of July holiday weekend, the official designation dates back to 1957. How astronomical are those numbers? Pretty serious. As a nation, if we live up to expectations, we’ll down about 150 million franks on Independence Day alone. Never mind the rest of the summer cookouts in July. That’s enough to stretch from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. over 5 times. Of course, if you’re not familiar with the proper technique and customs of hot dog consumption (no...

An East Ridge Middle School student died after choking on a hot dog Friday at the school, according to a Lake County Sheriff's Office incident report released today. A deputy responding to the scene during the middle of the day Friday said attempts were made to give the teen "rescue breaths," but those efforts were unsuccessful. "I observed EMS personnel attempting to remove several large obstructions (hot dog material) deep in the patient's throat," the deputy noted in the report. EMS workers eventually "established a partial airway" and appeared to stabilize the patient before taking him to South Lake Hospital,...

PRESIDENT OBAMA has been caught in a shocking cheating scandal after being caught in a Washington, DC Hotel with a former campaign aide, sources say. And now, a hush-hush security video that shows everything could topple both Obama's presidency and marriage to Michelle! A confidential investigation has learned that Obama first became close to gorgeous 35 year-old VERA BAKER in 2004 when she worked tirelessly to get him elected to the US Senate, raising millions in campaign contributions. While Baker has insisted in the past that "nothing happened" between them, the ENQUIRER has learned that top anti-Obama operatives are offering...

According to both common sense and the American Academy of Pediatrics, there are two truths about hot dogs which neither science nor industry can afford to ignore: kids love hot dogs, and hot dogs are the perfect size and shape for a child to choke on. To wit: "If you were to take the best engineers in the world and asked them to design a perfect plug for a child's airway, you couldn't do better than a hot dog," one AAP doctor said. As such, the hot dog is in need of a redesign. So the folks at Fast Company...

Is it time to fiddle with the frank? When her boys were younger, Laurel Blackett always sliced hot dogs lengthwise and then horizontally before serving the food. The East Kingston mother knew about the hot dog's choking hazards and took precautions, but the American Academy of Pediatrics says more needs to be done to keep children safe. The agency issued a policy statement this week with recommendations for government agencies, manufacturers, parents, teachers, child-care workers and health care professionals to help prevent choking among youngsters. The recommendations include redesigning foods to minimize the choking risk, meaning the hot dog could...

February 23, 2010 Doctors in America call for 'safer' hot dog to prevent child choking deaths US paediatricians say the hot dog is perfectly shaped to "wedge tightly into a child?s hypopharynx" Giles Whittell, Washington That iconic symbol of all things American, the hot dog, needs a safety makeover, doctors said yesterday. The fast-food favourite was singled out in an academic journal for causing nearly one in five food-related choking deaths among young children. Perfectly shaped to “wedge tightly into a child’s hypopharynx”, the frankfurter-style sausage at the heart of the hot dog is a prime culprit in the wave...

WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) -- A Massachusetts man who stole a hot dog from another man sitting under a tree in a park has been sentenced to 18 months in prison. Antonio Judd pleaded guilty Monday in Worcester Central District Court to charges including larceny from a person.

Picture essay at link.

Defending Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest champion Joey Chestnut says he practiced hard to successfully retain his crown Saturday in New York. The 25-year-old told the New York Daily News he went into the annual Fourth of July competition in Coney Island confident he would repeat as the hot dog-eating champion of the world. "I've been practicing hard," Chestnut said wolfing down a personal high with 68 hot dogs. "I knew it would be hard to beat me." Chestnut said despite going against six-time titleholder Takeru (Tsunami) Kobayashi, he felt comfortable after consuming 23 hot dogs in the event's first...

For me, one thing announces the arrival of summer, and one thing only. Not Memorial Day, not the summer solstice, not the last day of school. My summer starts the moment my teeth snap through the natural casing of a juicy, fresh-from-the-grill hot dog and my nose fills with the sharpness of mustard and pungent onion. I love the personality a grill gives all sorts of food, but when the mercury approaches 80, I crave hot dogs lined up over medium heat. A little charred, a little uneven, with a little personality you'll never get from a bath in water...