Free Republic

Changes are brewing — and they could be a sign of a decline in living standards. Maxwell House recently announced it will be changing its name for the first time in 133 years, rebranding to “Maxwell Apartment.” While the coffee blend will remain the same with the same “taste, aroma, quality and ingredients,” the rebrand is in name only to represent the reality of today’s consumers. Nearly a third of Americans are now renting smaller places, rather than purchasing full-size homes — and the coffee giant wants to reflect that stat with its temporary rebrand. “Two-thirds of American adults drink...

A customer had some reservations about his bill at a restaurant. One frustrated customer claimed that they were charged a “quiet time surcharge” on their bill, which was added before the tip — because the restaurant they dined at was empty. The user shared on Reddit that they decided to check out a local restaurant for the first time, which seemed to be a quiet place to dine. What seemed like a good thing quickly went south. “At the end [of the meal], I check my bill and there’s an extra 20% pre-tip charge labelled ‘Quiet Time Surcharge,'” they explained....

People seem to always have beef with vegans — and scientists say they’ve figured out why. A new study published in the journal Food Quality and Preference found that your typical carnivore’s hatred of vegans might simply be due to envy. Researchers from University of Vaasa in Finland wanted to understand why a plant-based diet and the use of meat substitutes are still so frowned upon in Europe. “The consumption of meat and meat substitutes is a highly charged social phenomenon,” Roosa-Maaria Malila, an author of the study, said in a statement. “According to our research, consumers who prefer plant-based...

A 104-year-old US Marine Corps veteran wants people to share some love this Valentine’s Day. Maj. Bill White, who served in World War II and was injured in the Battle of Iwo Jima, is asking members of the public to send him cards for the Feb. 14 holiday, KTXL reports. The California native hopes to add the cards to his scrapbooks, where he keeps a lifetime’s worth of memories on bookshelves arranged by year. “I’ll save every one of them like I’ve been saving little things that have come up until right now and they’ll be a personal part of...