Two years ago, Oprah promoted on her show a KFC coupon for a free grilled chicken meal. Now the class action lawsuit the resulted after that ended in tears has settled. [More]
Government Policy
Restaurant Sues Dex Media For Making It Butt Of Leno Joke
By 9.12.11
It’s less than advantageous for a restaurant to be grouped with animal carcass removal companies. A Montana eatery suffered such an indignity two years ago in online and printed listings by by Dex Media, suffering a heavy hit to its reputation, even ending up as fodder for Jay Leno on his Headlines segment. The restaurant owner has sued for, among other charges, negligence, defamation and slander, and wants Dex to compensate the business for the money it spent building up the brand, as well as a TV commercial to set the record straight. [More]
Workers Fired For Facebook Post Get Jobs Back
By 9.12.11
According to the National Labor Relations Board, workers have the right to publicly gripe about workplace conditions without suffering retribution. An NLRB judgment in a messy case last week reaffirmed the stance. An employee at a Buffalo nonprofit complained about the work ethic of a coworker on Facebook, and coworkers piled on in comments. After the organization fired the employees, citing an anti-cyber harassment policy, one of them filed a complaint via the NLRB. [More]
Your Tax Dollars Are Hard At Work Subsidizing Video Game Companies
By 9.12.11
The government has played a part in keeping video game companies as profitable as they are, offering tax incentives that bolster the businesses’ bottom lines. Game companies have managed to benefit from a slew of arguably outdated tax credits, deductions and write-offs largely intended for other companies. Gaming companies also take advantage of a 1950s-era tax break, expanded in 1969 to include software companies, that lets businesses deduct research and experimentation costs immediately. [More]
Landlord Refuses To Rent To Single Mother Because There's No Man "To Shovel The Snow"
By 9.9.11
A Wisconsin landlord has been sued by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development after refusing to rent a property to a single mother. The landlord, who is a woman, said it was because the renter didn’t have a man “to shovel the snow.” [More]
Obama Calls For Congress To Quickly Pass Jobs Bill
By 9.9.11
Last night, President Obama addressed Congress and urged them to pass the American Jobs Act immediately. Here are some of the highlighted proposals: [More]
Woman Accused Of Stealing 2,000 Library Books
By 9.9.11
Police say a Los Angeles-area woman stole 2,000 library books, as well as a number of DVDs, and was suspected of planning to sell off the collection. Library staff notified authorities after they noticed massive numbers of books had gone missing between March and July, and that a customer was acting suspiciously. [More]
L.A. City Councilman Proposes Making Spray Paint Buyers Provide Addresses, IDs
By 9.9.11
Los Angeles is a city crawling with artists and graffiti vandals, and both sectors — as well as other folks who like to paint stuff for legitimate reasons — are big on buying spray paint. In order to keep closer tabs on the graffiti types, the L.A. City Council is proposing a law that would require anyone who buys spray paint to submit their address and identification so police can keep the information on file. [More]
U.S. Mint Officer Admits He Stole And Sold $2.4 Million In Coins
By 9.9.11
Money isn’t necessarily safe in the hands of those who mint it. A U.S. Mint employee pleaded guilty to theft of government property and tax evasion, admitting he swiped $2.4 million in coins with errors and sold them to a California coin distributor. The $1 presidential coins he admitted to stealing were missing lettering, and the convict knew he could get a premium for them because the errors gave them more value in the coin collecting market. [More]
Military Branches License Branded Cologne, Hot Sauce
By 9.9.11
The military has marched into the retail sector armed with an arsenal of unorthodox products, ranging from cologne and walking canes to hot sauce. If you’d like to smell like a Marine, you can purchase a $45 bottle of Devil Dog cologne. You can also spice up your food with some drops from a $7 bottle of U.S. Marine Corps Hot Sauce, which its bottle declares “Will Make You Stand At Attention.” [More]
Nivea Fined For Saying Skin Cream Makes You Slimmer
By 9.8.11
The distributor of Nivea in Canada has been fined nearly 400,000 Loonies for marketing the “My Silhouette” skin cream as making you slimmer. As opposed to the usually vague nonsense talk surrounding skin and beauty product pitches, this one claimed users could expect a “reduction of up to three centimetres on targeted body parts, such as thighs, hips, waist and stomach.” [More]
Federal Appeals Court In Virginia Tosses Out Challenge To Health Care Reform
By 9.8.11
The final of three federal appeals court rulings on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has come down, and this round goes to the White House. [More]
Medicare Fraud Sting Hauls In 91 Suspects
By 9.8.11
Medicare has enough sustainability problems when used by the book, so the government-subsidized healthcare plan is in no position to absorb massive fraud. In an effort to rein in misuse of the program, federal agents led a 400-plus agency national sting operation that yielded 91 arrests of alleged fraudsters. [More]
TSA Will Phase Out Making You Take Your Shoes Off
By 9.8.11
At some currently unspecified point down the road, you’ll be able to go through airport security without taking your shoes or belt off. The policy easement was announced by U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano during a forum hosted by Politico Playbook in DC. [More]
Three Topless Female Coffee Shop Employees Cited
By 9.8.11
It seems that uniforms were optional at a Vietnamese coffee shop in San Jose, Calif., where three female employees were cited after they reportedly were caught serving customers while topless. Cited on suspicion of public nudity, but not arrested, the women will be forced to appear in criminal court. [More]
DEA Set To Ban Bath Salt Drugs
By 9.8.11
Following a groundswell of state bans on stimulant drugs sold at gas stations dubbed “bath salts,” the Drug Enforcement Administration will reportedly place a temporary ban on possessing and selling the drugs. The drugs, Mephedrone, MDPV and Methylone, are sold under names such as Bliss and Purple Wave and are said to cause hallucinations and spark violence in users. [More]
White House Developing Plan To Save USPS
By 9.7.11
“I’m operating right now with a week’s worth of cash,” Postmaster General Patrick R. Donahoe told Senators on Tuesday. After the Postmaster General went to Capitol Hill to pass the hat around, the White House announced it’s a few weeks away from developing a plan to save the USPS from bankruptcy. [More]
California Court Says Guy Can't Change His Name To Web Address
By 9.7.11
If you want your name to be your website URL, you’re most likely going to have to settle for the moniker as a nickname. A man described as a marijuana activist who tried to name himself after his pot advocacy website had his name change request denied by a trial court, and the decision was affirmed by an appeals court. [More]
