Free Republic

A McDonald's restaurant was wrong to fire a worker for giving a colleague an extra piece of cheese on a hamburger, a Dutch court ruled on Tuesday. The dismissal was too severe a measure," the district court in Leeuwarden, in the north of the Netherlands, said in a written judgment. "It is just a slice of cheese." A written warning would have been a more appropriate punishment, said the court, which ordered the fast-food chain to pay the worker the salary for the remaining five months of her contract - a total of 4,265.47 euros (£3,660).

Food and drink: two things we just can't live without. When tough economic times arrive, these two items stay in the budget while others disappear. It's a matter of priorities for most, and consumer staples almost always come out at the top of the list. In recent months, there has been increasing focus on the possibility of an impending food shortage. This would force prices upward as supply diminishes and demand continues unabated. In similar fashion to rising oil prices, most will grin and bear it. Gas retailers have been very quick to pass on any increases in costs and...

SEATTLE, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Meat from a cow with the deadly mad cow disease may have already been eaten, possibly in the form of hamburger, Washington State Deputy Director of Agriculture Bill Brookerson said on Tuesday. Asked at a press conference if it was possible that the meat had already been consumed, Brookerson replied: "It's possible."