Free Republic

A state judge threw out a portion of a Seattle ordinance requiring garbage collectors to snoop through residents’ trash in search of food waste, calling the provision unconstitutional. King County Superior Court Judge Beth M. Andrus issued an injunction against the garbage inspections but not Seattle’s residential food-waste ban, which forbids throwing away food scraps and compostable paper.

At Monday night's school board meeting, members voted to opt-out of the National School Lunch Program. The federally-funded program gives money to school districts who follow strict guidelines on what foods have to be served and the portion sizes of those foods. "I don't buy lunch because I prefer the choices I can have from home, and the choices here don't look very appetizing to me," senior Emily Graziano said. "I see the food, too, and it's not high quality. That's one of the reasons why I pack my lunch," sophomore Evan Portman said. The high school will lose the...

A proposed “distracted walking” bill in New Jersey would ban pedestrians from walking and texting simultaneously, with the possibility of a $50 fine or even a short jail sentence. The measure, which has been proposed by New Jersey Assembly Congresswoman Pamela Lampitt, is to try and reduce pedestrian deaths as a result of distraction from mobile devices. The law would ban people from walking while texting on any form of electronic communication device unless it is totally hands free. Those caught could face fines of up to $50, 15 days imprisonment, or both, which is the same penalty as jaywalking.

Rep. John Yarmuth (D-Ky.) was critical of budget battles within the GOP saying, Republicans “want to emasculate government at every possible turn” and “want to starve the beast.” Yarmuth made the statements at a press conference Tuesday while discussing the lack of the Republican conferences to produce a budget. …

The Maryland state senate begins hearings Wednesday on the “Maryland Healthy Vending Act.” The bill requires 75% of the items in vending machines on property owned or managed by the state to meet healthy standards. […] The legislation not only mandates the carrying of healthy snack choices, but also mandates the stocking of the vending machine in a manner where healthy options are “in a position with the highest selling potential.” …

Looks like the city is spoiling for a new fight with restaurateurs: A bill being introduced today by Brooklyn city council member Inez Barron would force them to warn customers that foods with too much sugar and carbs are dangerous to people with diabetes. If it’s passed, restaurants would be required to hang a poster created by the Department of Health that spells out the “risks of excessive sugar and other carbohydrate intake for diabetic and pre-diabetic individuals.” Barron says the city has “an obligation” to provide consumers with this information just like it has with calorie counts. …

Students at Penn-Trafford High School aren't buying that lunches prepared under federal guidelines that restrict calories, sodium and portions are their best option. So they literally are not buying them. "I would say, on average, we've lost about $20,000 a year each of the last five years," Penn-Trafford business manager Brett Lago said. "We are not in the food service industry to make money, but we don't want to lose it." School lunch participation nationally dropped from 31.6 million students in 2012 to 30.4 million in 2014, according to the federal Department of Agriculture. Pennsylvania statistics show school lunch participation...

The Australian Advertising Standards Bureau (ASB) has bullied a car service company into discontinuing its advertisement because the “sexist” portrayal of women allegedly results in the “vilification of women.” ABC Australia reports Ultra Tune’s “Unexpected Situation” advertisement has been pulled after the ASB determined the ad violates a “code of ethics” pertaining to “discrimination against women.” The 15-second advertisement in question features two women caught on train tracks and then panicking as a train approaches them. In order to “avoid unexpected situations” like getting caught on train tracks, the ad suggests people should “get your car serviced at Ultra Tune.” Although the advertisement ends...

Kentucky State Representative Mary Lou Marzian (D-Louisville) has introduced legislation (HB396) that would impose tighter restrictions on the availability of Viagra. If passed, the law would limit Viagra availability to married men who have their spouse's written permission. "Right now erectile dysfunction is a woman's first line of defense against rape," Marzian declared. "We should not tear down this barrier willy-nilly by allowing any man who can get a doctor to write him a prescription have this drug. Ideally, we should put something in the water that negates every man's capability to get an erection. This would practically eliminate the...

A proposed bill in New York seeks to require that all smartphones sold in the state can be decrypted or unlocked and proposes hefty fines for vendors failing to comply.The proposed law marks the latest effort by lawmakers to make it easier for law enforcement to access and read encrypted data stored on smartphones. Should the proposed bill successfully pass through New York's state assembly and senate, Apple and Google could face fines of $2,500 per device sold in the state after January 1, 2016, if a retailer knowingly sold a smartphone that could not be unlocked or decrypted by...

Raising the bar for other cities throughout the country, New York City announced "strong" and "bold" protections for transgender and gender non-conforming individuals. The new legal guidance, issued Dec. 21 by the New York City Commission on Human Rights, came as part of an expansion of the city's 2002 Human Rights Law, which protects against discrimination in a range of categories. The updated policy specifically protects transgender and gender non-conforming individuals from discrimination in areas of employment, public accommodation, and housing.

New federal dietary guidelines, which were released early Thursday morning, tell Americans to follow a healthy eating pattern that includes a variety of vegetables, fruit, grains, fat-free dairy, oils and a variety of proteins, including lean meats. The recommendations for what Americans should and shouldn't be eating, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) update together every five years, created unprecedented controversy in 2015 when the federally appointed panel of nutritionists that helps draft them considered environmental concerns in recommending that people should eat less meat. The USDA and HHS relented...

The political left has been trying to run other people's lives for centuries. So we should not be surprised to see the Obama administration now trying to force neighborhoods across America to have the mix of people the government wants them to have. There are not enough poor people living in middle class neighborhoods to suit the political left. Not enough blacks in white neighborhoods. Not enough Hispanics here, not enough Asians there. Nowhere in the Constitution does it grant the federal government the power to dictate such things. But places that do not mix and match people the way...

INDIANAPOLIS — Maintaining the state’s roads and bridges is work fraught with obstacles and hazards. It doesn’t daunt Ed Soliday, a retired pilot and safety expert who loves telling stories and spinning metaphors. “I’m evangelist, and may 1,000 angels sing when somebody comes to see the light,” said Soliday, Republican chairman of the House Roads and Transportation Committee, who aims to convince fellow lawmakers to set aside politics in search of sustainable road funding. Don’t queue the music just yet. Soliday’s ideas for raising cash for deteriorating roads and bridges include some politically unpalatable proposals, such as tax hikes and...

Over the years the American longing to form their own communities free from European -style clusters of apartment renters shuffling to and from work on state-devised public transport lines, confined to nearby schools and shops, has been possible because of widespread private ownership of cars. Like household appliances, cars have as well liberated women to join the workforce, allowing more flexible scheduling to fit each family's needs. Mothers can work and still do the shopping, drop the kids off at schools and to their countless activities. Urban planners -- likely singles who had a semester abroad and been bedazzled by...

The federal government said Friday it would ban minors from using indoor tanning beds, taking action on an issue that many states are already handling. The Food and Drug Administration said the proposed measure was in response to 1.6 million minors using indoor tanning beds each year, according to 2013 federal data. The problem is that indoor tanning is a "known contributor to skin cancer," the agency said. People who have been exposed to radiation from tanning beds are 59 percent more likely to develop melanoma, a dangerous form of skin cancer, than those who never have used the beds,...

Having solved all other problems plaguing our society, New York Times opinion author (and food journalist) Mark Bittman has his eye on the big prize. Taking a page from Michael Bloomberg’s big government playbook, Mark is looking for a new way stop people from drinking soda. Since efforts to ban sales of any sort fell flat in the courts (pun intended) the author is looking for more of a generational change, and the way to do that is to stop kids from getting in the habit of drinking the sugary beverages at an early age. How do we do that?...

Imagine if you were faced with this situation. Your doctor, after running a battery of tests on your six year-old daughter, tells you that she is suffering from a rare cancer that is almost invariably fatal. "But there must be something doctor," you blurt out. "Aren't there some new drugs available that work in at least some cases?" The doctor replies, "Yes, there are some drugs that do show promise in treating your daughter's cancer. The problem is that they have not yet been approved by the Food and Drug Administration and therefore I can't get any of them. And...

CHICAGO (AP) — Nearly two years after Illinois decided medical marijuana users shouldn't be prohibited from owning guns, several patients received letters from state police telling them their firearms cards were being revoked. Although the agency insists the letters were sent to just four people before the mistake was corrected, some cannabis supporters say the error signifies an underlying ambivalence about medical marijuana in the 23 states where it's now legal.

Sandbar Lounge, a downtown Casper institution, will close for good Saturday, and its owner says the city's recently imposed smoking ban is to blame. “The smoking ban destroyed the bar, as I foretold it would,” Nancy Goddard wrote Monday in a post on the Sandbar's Facebook page. “I have cried a million tears and will probably cry a million more again. I apologize. I tried and failed. God bless.” Casper residents voted Nov. 3 to reinstate a 2012 smoking ban on bars. More than 6,000 voters cast ballots, with 54 percent voting in favor of the ban. Ban supporters, such...