Free Republic

Canadian Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre on Monday rolled out his “Canada First” response to President Donald Trump’s tariffs, borrowing Trump’s branding strategy while insisting his tariffs on Canadian goods are “unjustified.” Part of Poilievre’s strategy includes faulting the Liberal Party of outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for doing “nothing” to make Canada less dependent upon the U.S. economy, even though the threat of Trump’s tariffs was painfully clear. “They’ve left us helpless,” Poilievre complained before debuting his own strategy, blasting the Liberals for weakening the Canadian economy with high taxes and heavy regulations that pushed Canadian businesses across the border...

COMAL COUNTY, Texas - For the first time, a Texas jury classified a woman as a sexually violent predator. A Comal County jury determined Desiree Hamm, a 37-year-old from San Diego, should be classified as a sexually violent predator under Texas law. Kidnapping and abuse conviction The backstory: Desiree Hamm, 37, has served 15 years of a 20-year sentence after pleading guilty to 13 counts of sexual performance by a child, aggravated kidnapping and sexual abuse of a child. She was also sentenced to 10 years probation after her release. In late 2009, Hamm began online relationships with two teen...

Kylan Darnell has already spent close to $100,000 to be in an elite sorority at the University of Alabama... At Darnell's sorority fees alone can cost around $30,000 a year. For those joining the sorority for the first time a lump payment of $4,581 is charged in the fall semester for new member fees, followed by another $4,441 in the Spring semester. On top of that are ‘dues’, fees paid to cover the activities of the sorority. These are around $1,400 every month. For members that choose to live in the sorority’s mansion a fee of $10,422 is charged each...

Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Is Officially Changing Its Name The logo, packaging, and other details are also getting an update.Spelling people's names, you gotta be careful: Mark Wahlberg is different than Mark Walberg. (Which you prefer is up to you.) But with brands, you have a bit more leeway. If I were to write out In 'N' Out instead of their preferred In-N-Out, you'd likely still know I'm talking about the Southern Californian burger chain. But I prefer to go with a brand's preferred spelling. If Dunkin' wants to drop their Donuts or Jamba wants to ax their Juice, we...

The hazing antics of two New York City high school students during a school trip stop at a New Jersey motel last year that included branding a fellow student’s buttocks have landed them a two year prison sentence, officials said. The students, whose names were not released because of their age, pleaded guilty earlier this month to two counts of aggravated assault, aggravated hazing and three counts of hazing, the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office announced Friday. The Queens-based Francis Lewis High School students will serve their time at the New Jersey Training School in Monroe Township, prosecutors said. “We believe...

Billionaire heiress Clare Bronfman fainted in court after being asked by the judge if she had secretly hired Michael Avenatti as her attorney. She was taken out of a federal courtroom on a stretcher and the hearing was rescheduled for today. The Seagrams heiress is on trial for offenses related to her involvement in the SEX-SLAVE CULT DOS. She is reportedly a leader of the controversial NXIVM sex cult. Bronfman was joined in court by lawyer Mark Geragos who sources say is the co-conspirator in Avenatti’s Nike extortion case. Although Avenatti has not submitted paperwork attesting to being an attorney...

Seagrams heiress Clare Bronfman is [paying] for lawyers representing her five co-defendants, accused fellow Nxivm cult members, in federal court. [Vanguard] Keith Raniere, who allegedly ran the upstate New York sex sect...Raniere’s attorneys Marc Agnifilo and Paul DerOhannesian are being paid by an irrevocable trust fund set up by Clare Bronfman. At a hearing in Brooklyn Federal Court Thursday, U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis said he would be “hard pressed” to recall another case in which a legal defense fund of its kind existed. Bronfman has set up a second trust for Raniere’s infant son, court documents revealed. Charges against...

Payless Shoesource pranked VIP shoppers into paying markups of up to 1,800 percent for the bargain retailer's shoes as part of a viral advertising campaign designed to shift consumers' perceptions of the brand. Creating a fake luxury brand — Palessi — Payless built a temporary store and filled it with fashionistas. So-called fashion influencers – essentially trendsetters that regular consumers look to for style cues — paid up to $645 for footwear that usually retails for between $19.99 and $39.99, the company said. The fashion insiders were captured remarking on the quality of the shoes' design and fabrication – before...

IHOP stands for International House of Pancakes. The chain has been around for 60 years and has used the IHOP acronym since 1973. So what in the name of a Rooty Tooty Fresh 'N Fruity is IHOP thinking by changing its name to IHOb? IHOP tweeted and posted to its Facebook page on Tuesday that it plans to "flip" the "P" in its name on June 11. The announcement clearly got people talking. People started to wonder if the b stood for breakfast, brunch or bacon, which would make sense. ihop ihob But some had more amusing suggestions, such as...

...secretive group in upstate New York...videotaped ceremonies where they were branded in their pelvic area with a symbol featuring Raniere’s initials. “During the branding ceremonies, slaves were required to be fully naked, and the master would order one slave to film while the other held down the slave being branded,” the complaint says...“slaves” had to stick to very low-calorie diets...“forced to wear fake cow udders over their breasts while people called them derogatory names,” or threatened with being put in cages,...Raniere has been bankrolled by Clare Bronfman, an heiress to the Seagram’s liquor fortune. Bronfman gave millions of dollars covering...

Simon Bramhall, 53, has pleaded guilty to assault of two patients, for, yes, branding his initials onto their organs during surgery. He is going to be sentenced on Jan. 12. The Associated Press reports that a prosecutor called the case "without legal precedent in criminal law." "Bramhall used an argon beam coagulator, which seals bleeding blood vessels with an electric beam, to mark his initials on the organs," the AP writes. The internal graffiti very likely did not cause any damage, The Guardian reports: "The marks left by argon are not thought to impair the organ's function and usually disappear...

For years luxury brands have mesmerized us with highly desirable products and services. They inspire us to dream bigger and leave us desiring more. You can learn so much about attracting ideal clients from these dream building brands. I had a client (let’s call the brand was called “Arnanda”) this client had on their list On the outside, it seemed that this client was a success but this client was struggling financially to reach more high-end clients and make a profit. On the other hand, another one of my clients from Italy, who had worked as a consultant for Salvatore...

In his recent visit to major cities of Pakistan, American marketing expert Dr Terence Jackson explains entrepreneurial marketing to students and entrepreneurs. It is more than advertising, it is a message, a constant communication about a lifestyle built around your product, he says After finding comfort in a corner seat at the lobby of Karachi’s Pearl Continental Hotel, CEO and Managing Partner of Jackson Consulting Group Dr Terence Jackson speaks to this scribe about his Pakistan trip that ends with this meeting. A middle-aged pianist is busy entertaining the audience, but Dr Jackson attentively watches the TV screen, taking a...

When Donald Trump ran for president he put his clear, simple message on the front of bright red hats. The message was perfect. The choice of a hat instead of a t-shirt or other garment was perfect. The color red was perfect for his message – bold, sexy, and important. The hats were a master class in branding and influence. Political historians will be referring to Trump’s hats for ages. Compare that to the Million Woman March. They chose pink because – I assume – it is a bit of an ironic color for women who are fighting for their...

CNN Money has reported that Smith & Wesson might be in for a name change. Why would this 164-year-old gun business want to change it’s name now? “We believe that changing our corporate name to American Outdoor Brands Corporation will better reflect our strategic focus on the shooting, hunting, and rugged outdoor markets,” Smith & Wesson stated. Will the changing of Smith & Wesson‘s name to American Outdoors Brand change S&W forever? Only time will tell.

Trump's branding acumen may have been crucial to his upset victory on Tuesday. From July to September, Gallup asked Americans what they had heard, read, or seen about presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. A few obvious trends emerged in the word clouds published by Gallup in September and formed from 30,000 interviews. .....

Trump is a guy a lot of people dislike.  How many times have I read comments on FR about Trump being "full of himself", "an ego maniac", a "blowhard bragger", and so forth. And yet his fans see the opposite.  They enjoy listened to Trump talk about his accomplishments and at the rallies they laugh with him about his braggadocious ways.  They enjoy seeing his handsome family, his opulent apartment, the Trump jet, the helicopter -- even the Darth Trump parody which makes fun of Trump's bragging style. So what's going on?  What do Trump's fans see that his...

Excerpted from The Daily Caller: The fleur de lis, a French symbol used by royal families dating back to the 13th century, and emblazoned on the New Orleans Saints helmet, is now being called a symbol of slavery, drawing comparisons to the recent uproar against the Confederate battle flag.“As an African I find it painful, and I think people whose ancestors were enslaved here may feel it even harder than I do as an African,” said slave historian Dr. Ibrahima Seck to WWLTV.He connects the usage of the fleur de lis, to “code noir,” or black code, which was...

Foreign fighters who claim allegiance to Islamic State are gathering dozens of recruits in eastern Afghanistan, luring would-be jihadis with generous resources and the group’s powerful brand, according to a Taliban fighter who has met several of their commanders. The rapid and dramatic victories clocked up by Isis in Iraq, Syria and Libya have attracted some young men with specific grievances against government or foreign forces, who simply want the strongest possible allies. Others seem drawn by the novelty of an upstart force, the Taliban veteran said, or by the apparently deep pockets of a group that boasts laptops, benevolent...

If Wendy Davis wanted to achieve the goal of becoming the first Democrat to win statewide office in 20 years, she needed to run an extremely well-funded and nearly flawless campaign. While the Wendy Davis campaign has received plenty of funding, its execution has been anything but flawless. Since Wendy Davis’ announcement to run in October 2013, the campaign has had a number of missteps along the way. A few of these include Wendy Davis getting caught misrepresenting the truth about her past, claiming to be “pro-life”, claiming she supports a ban on abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, and...