Free Republic

On the corner of Patricia Avenue and San Salvador Drive in a Dunedin, Fla., neighborhood, 12-year-old T.J. Guerrero operates a lemonade stand to raise money for summer activities with his friends and family.His stand is usually open in the afternoon, and customers line up to sample his lemonade and baked goods. “I tried the strawberry before and it’s perfect,” one customer commented, according to the Tampa Bay Times. “That’s what it’s about. He’s willing to work.”Hard work and business skills are the lessons learned in this venture. “It’s all about profit,” T.J. noted. He operates his stand with a little...

The U.S. Forest Service celebrated National Roasted Marshmallow Day the only way a government agency knows how — by telling people how not to roast smores.“Never start a campfire when there are fire restrictions in place,” the jovial blog post says. “Be sure you are at least 15 feet from tent walls, trees or other flammable objects.” It also recommends keeping children at least 10 feet from the campfire, ensuring that they take no part in dangerous marshmallow melting.Once minors have been safely sequestered out of sight, “let’s get to the marshmallow basics. Use a roasting stick of at least...

CVS Caremark has followed through with its long-promised cigarette ban, as the tobacco-free pharmacy chain officially changed its name to CVS Health. "The sale of cigarettes and tobacco at CVS pharmacy stores ends today," said Larry Merlo, president and CEO of CVS, in a video statement on the company web site. "By eliminating the sale of cigarettes and tobacco products in our stores, we can make a difference in the health of all Americans." CVS (CVS) stopped selling cigarettes nearly a month earlier than expected, since the chain had previously announced the ban would go into effect by Oct. 1.

The parent of a child with a life-threatening peanut allergy is fighting for new rules to protect airline passengers who have severe food allergies.Lianne Mandelbaum, who says she was practically kicked off a United Airlines flight last year because of her son’s condition, has been lobbying for new protections for allergy sufferers.Now, more than 14,000 people are coming to her aid, petitioning lawmakers and federal regulators to establish a "buffer zone" around passengers who are allergic to certain foods.“I am not after a nut ban,” Mandelbaum said. “Just the ability to preboard, wipe down the seat area and make an...

High hopes for tax money isn’t as expected as the state’s legal marijuana industry isn’t bringing in as much money as anticipated. In fact, tax revenue is way below expectations. When voters approved recreational marijuana sales the state predicted it would pull in more than $33 million in new taxes in the first six months. The actual revenue came up more than $21 million short. The problem is that buying pot is less expensive on the streets where people don’t have to pay taxes or fees. Medical marijuana is also less expensive than recreational pot, so those with medical cards...

Eye and head tracking sensors will make it harder to text while driving General Motors is reportedly installing sensors in its next generation of cars that will detect drivers’ eye and head motions and alert drivers to prolonged moments of distraction...

Meet Melissa A. Horn. She’s the 40-year-old Wisconsin school principal who’s currently bullying an 11-year-old boy over a tiny picture of a gun and an American flag on the computer he uses only at home.The boy, Matthew, is “attending” — through distance learning, via computer — Wisconsin Virtual Learning, a 4K-12K virtual school run as an online pubic charter school by the Northern Ozaukee School District.Horn is its principal and executive director. For more on Horn, consult her LinkedIn page and her “Executive Director’s Message” in which she speaks about how, at Wisconsin Virtual Learning, “we pride ourselves in being...

President Barack Obama is asking Americans this Labor Day to think about the rights and benefits that people often take for granted. […] Obama says to strengthen the modern middle class, the U.S. must raise its minimum wage. He says states and businesses have raised wages already and Congress should, too. …

The Environmental Protection Agency’s staff has concluded that the government needs to tighten smog rules by somewhere between 7 and 20 percent. In its final recommendation in a 597-page report, the agency staff agrees with EPA’s outside scientific advisers that the 6-year-old standard for how much smog is allowed needs to be stricter, saying it will save a significant number of lives and cut hospital visits. An earlier version of the report came to a similar conclusion. Industry representatives criticized the recommendation as way too costly, while environmental activists hailed it as a public health measure. …

California lawmakers have approved a measure that would make the state the first to impose a statewide ban on single-use plastic bags. SB270 cleared the Senate on a 22-15 vote Friday and sent to Gov. Jerry Brown. It was approved by the Assembly a day earlier. …

A trade group representing the fast-growing electronic cigarette industry is contesting a new government study that claims the largely unregulated products lead teens on a path to tobacco cigarette smoking. 
 The American Vaping Association blasted this week’s study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), describing the assertion as “plain deceptive” and calling for the paper’s retraction. The industry posits that e-cigarettes can actually help smokers quit, though they are prohibited from marketing the devices as a cessation tool. “There is no evidence e-cigarettes are gateways to smoking, and in fact, for millions of Americans they are...

With a prominent grocery workers’ union back in support, the California Assembly voted on Thursday to impose a statewide ban on single-use plastic bags. Just days after the measure could not muster the 41 votes needing to pass, falling short at 38, it passed on a 44-29 vote. Seven Democrats who withheld votes on the previous attempt pivoted to vote aye. Lawmakers turned back Senate Bill 270 on Monday as the United Food and Commercial Workers Union withdrew crucial labor backing for the sweeping prohibition. Central to the union’s reversal was a provision allowing grocery stores to offer paper or...

Fifty years after the “war on poverty” was first waged, there are signs a new offensive is needed. Newly released Census data reveals nearly 110 million Americans – more than one-third of the country – are receiving government assistance of some kind. The number counts people receiving what are known as “means-tested” federal benefits, or subsidies based on income. This includes welfare programs ranging from food stamps to subsidized housing to the program most commonly referred to as “welfare,” Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. At the end of 2012, according to the stats, 51.5 million were on food stamps, while...

Governments should have tougher rules for electronic cigarettes—banning their use indoors and putting them off limits for minors—until more evidence can be gathered about their risks, the U.N. health agency said Tuesday. In a bid to set public policy, the World Health Organization said the popular nicotine-vapor products, particularly the fruit, candy and alcohol-drink flavors, could serve as gateway addictions for children and adolescents. It recommended governments forbid or keep to a minimum any advertising, promotion or sponsorship in a market that has mushroomed to $3 billion last year and now includes 466 different brands. …

The American Heart Association says e-cigarettes are dangerous gateway products that cause nicotine addiction and should be subject to strict federal controls for minor-aged use. The group published its statement into the journal Circulation. Among its views: Ban e-cigarettes for minors, tightly regulate the product’s marketing and ban vapors that have flavors because they entice youngsters to try the product, Medical News Today reported.

After realizing that people thought Arby’s mainly served roast beef, the company made a poster showcasing a large stack of all the meats on the menu, which includes bacon and brisket, according to The Washington Post. It worked. “People started coming in and asking, ‘Can I have that?’” Arby’s vice president of brand and corporate communications Christopher Fuller said. Arby’s decided to go with it, and the “Meat Mountain” was born. It will not be listed on the menu, but store associates will make it for the customers who request it. At $10, the sandwich includes (from the bottom up)...

An eruption of aggravation about what American schoolchildren can no longer eat in school cafeterias is never far away in the Obama era.Now, thanks to federal intervention that first lady Michelle has made her signature issue, students in all 11 taxpayer-funded public schools in Elyria, Ohio cannot enjoy the famous Elyria pink cookie anymore.This cookie is no ordinary cookie, according to The Chronicle-Telegram, the Cleveland suburb’s local newspaper.It’s a velvety, cake-like, scrumptious delicacy glazed with a huge dollop of sugary pink icing. Cleveland magazine dubbed the Elyria pink cookie the “Best Cafeteria Cookie” in 2009. Locals will even call up...

Last month, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) proposed the SWEET Act, an excise tax on sweetened beverages. The tax, which has been billed as a national soda tax, would lay a one-cent duty on every teaspoon of sugar in soft drinks and other beverages. The proposal is intended "to curb obesity, diabetes, and the resulting health care costs." Why is this a good idea? “When a two-liter cola is 99 cents and blueberries are over three dollars, something has gone very wrong,” DeLauro told attendees. For the record, a pint of blueberries contains more than 40g of sugar. That’s about as...

School children in Elyria, Ohio are mourning the demise of a 40-year tradition – the loss of their beloved pink cookie. The fabled cookie, long served in local school cafeterias, was done in by a pound of butter, six cups of powdered sugar and the Obama administration’s food police. […] The USDA “Smart Snacks in School” standards mandate that all snacks must contain less than 200 calories. It’s not exactly clear how many calories are in the pink cookie, but the recipe for the frosting calls for a pound of butter. The cookie was banished to comply with the federal...

Consumers are being urged to buy powerful vacuum cleaners while they can after it emerged that some of the most powerful models on the market will disappear in September when a new EU rule comes into force. An EU energy label, to be introduced from 1 September, means manufacturers will not be able to make or import vacuum cleaners with a motor that exceeds 1,600 watts.The Which? consumer group said many of its Best Buy models had motor sizes that exceeded this, “so if you’re in the market for a powerful vacuum, you should act quickly, before all of the...