Free Republic

Starbucks has issued an apology to customers after the release of its limited-edition teddy bear–shaped holiday cup sparked chaos. The Seattle-based coffee giant launched its 2025 holiday menu and merchandise on Thursday, including the Glass Starbucks Bearista Cold Cup, which retails for $29.95. The collectible cup — shaped like a bear and topped with a green beanie lid — went viral online and sold out quickly, leaving fans scrambling to get their hands on one. "The excitement for our merchandise exceeded even our biggest expectations and, despite shipping more Bearista cups to coffeehouses than almost any other merchandise item this...

George Galloway on the lions of Britain’s armed forces and the donkeys in charge of them. The politicians who are stuck in the 19th century and don’t realise the empire can now strike back.

FYI Wisconsin Update -Wisconsin Legislature to introduce resolution to decert state and award it to Trump on Thursday; first order or business. -Resolution does NOT require Governor signature. -Already posted online

Blockchain is more than just a buzzword. It truly has the potential to turn entire industries on their heads. In many ways, the energy sector has been slow to adopt this new tech, but things are finally beginning to change. As ‘Big Energy’ begins to catch up, many market leaders and investors are looking towards blockchain for a more transparent and efficient energy future. Just one of these capabilities would be to enable the energy industry to adopt a peer-to-peer trading model, completely revolutionizing the way energy is bought and sold.

It is ironic that one consequence of global warming is that Europe might plunge into a deep freeze. This possibility stimulated an unusual research project at the University of Alberta. Dr. Peter Flynn, the Poole Chair in Management for Engineers in the U of A Department of Mechanical Engineering, has studied whether down-welling ocean currents can carry more dissolved carbon into the deep ocean. He learned they can't, but in the course of this research he found some evidence that the ocean currents that bring warm water to the oceans off northern Europe may be weakening. The results of the...