Free Republic

On nearly every long-haul road trip of my life, I've made an essential pit-stop through the Arby's drive-thru for one thing: the fast food joint's top-notch Curly Fries. Now, my obsession with the crispy coiled potato strings is hardly a controversial one. In fact, the fan-favorite has earned Arby's a Fasties Award. But, the chain's latest spin on said fries? That might raise a few brows. Arby's is entering the booze scene with the debut of two French fry-flavored vodkas, modeled after its famed Curly Fries and newly-released Crinkle-Cut Fries. "Arby's recently added a Crinkle-cut option to accompany our iconic...

There are many etymological instances of alcohol coming to be known as the “water of life.” The word “whiskey” stems from the Gaelic version of this very term; same story for “aquavit.” And so it should come as no surprise that the name “vodka” is an evolution of the Russian word for water, or вода, which is pronounced “vo-da.” Like the colorful domes of St. Basil’s Cathedral and lines of matryoshka dolls, the mind quickly wanders to Mother Russia following any mention of vodka. But how many of our modern-day associations with the spirit — like say, in the Moscow...

ANDERSON — A local woman who accepted the challenge when friends dared her to shatter the glass at the Madison County Sheriff’s Department is now facing criminal charges. Billie Jo Goodnight, 42, 1300 block of Pearl Street, is charged with Level 6 felony charges of intimidation and criminal mischief. During her initial court appearance on Monday Goodnight was granted a pretrial release by Criminal Magistrate Kevin Eads. “Somebody had me thrown into jail,” she said. According to a press release, Goodnight approached the administration offices of the Sheriff’s Department with a baseball bat about 6:20 p.m. Saturday. She proceeded...

Nick McGlashan, a 7th generation fisherman who starred in "Deadliest Catch," has died ... TMZ has learned. The Medical Examiner and family tell TMZ ... Nick passed away Sunday in Nashville. The cause of death has not been determined. Nick appeared on the show for years ... from 2013 - 2020, in 78 episodes. Nick's family has a storied tale of the sea. His great uncle worked on the first boat in the U.S. crab industry. Two of his aunts were crabbers ... one of who was lost at sea after the boat sank. As for Nick ... he started...

Young Russians are partying again, seeking a return to normal life and willing to risk a coronavirus surge. “We are people, not robots, and want to have a life,” said a bar patron (and doctor).

Capitalizing on this year's renewed interest in the worst nuclear accident in history, booze makers have introduced Atomik, the world's first vodka made from distilled grains from Chernobyl's exclusion zone. Atomik may sound misguided at first, but the distillers have good intentions. Gennady Laptev, a scientist at the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Institute and a cofounder of the Chernobyl Spirit Company, says making use of the abandoned land at the disaster site will aid in reviving the economy for struggling cities in the surrounding area.

A man was thrown off of a Southwest Airlines flight for a joke about vodka, which was allegedly directed at a surly crew member. As first reported by Fox 40, the unnamed passenger was escorted off the Wednesday flight from Sacramento, Calif., to Austin, Texas, for making a joke after a long delay that made the cabin and crew annoyed and restless.

A Russian cargo ship captain may have been slightly drunk when he veered off course and crashed into a busy South Korean bridge this afternoon. The 6,000 ton Seagrand collided with the side of the Gwangan Bridge in Busan, in the southeast of the country, at around 4.20pm local time. The ship then attempted to turn and vacate the area before it was detained by the Korea Coast Guard (KCG).

Looks like Kim Jong Un will need to toast the success of his summit with Donald Trump with something other than vodka. Dutch customs officers seized 3,000 cases of the Russian-made vodka Stolbovaya believed to be heading to North Korea for Kim Jong Un and his top generals on Friday, officials announced on Tuesday. The cargo of 90,000 bottles was discovered in ...

NICEVILLE — Responding to a house fire last week, Niceville police officers and firefighters encountered an odd sight. When firefighters got to the home around 5:30 p.m., they could see smoke coming from inside. A naked man opened the front door, said, “I’m sorry” and closed the door. Police officers arrived shortly after to assist. The man came to the door again, left it open and went back into the house. The man admitted to drinking two liters of vodka and smoking marijuana starting around 9 a.m. that morning. He was examined at the scene and had no life-threatening injuries,...

Vodka shots, Senate trips, and the 2008 campaign that might have been - Hillary Clinton shares fond memories of John McCain Hillary Clinton recalled drinking vodka shots with John McCain during at 2004 trip to Tallinn, Estonia 'What happens in Tallinn, stays in Tallinn,' she said Clinton said it was common for McCain to invite colleagues to travel with him She also talked about the 2008 presidential contest where she lost the Democratic nomination but McCain was the Republican nominee Clinton: 'I thought it would have been a great campaign because we both respected each other' She said she hopes...

Fast food company Burger King Russia has been forced to apologize after an advertisement offered Russian women the chance to win $47,000 and free Whoppers for life if they got impregnated by a World Cup player. The short-lived campaign was promoted in Russia on Tuesday via social media platform VK -- Russia's equivalent of Facebook -- before being pulled down after a flurry of angry responses from the public. Burger King Russia then released an apology on VK, saying they had removed all materials related to the campaign as it was 'insulting."

The mythical Fountain of Youth isn’t made of water, after all, but vodka — at least, according to Betty White. The famously spry comic actress, who turns 96 today, gave good news to those struggling to make it through January by offering some sage insight into her longevity. She told Parade magazine that she loves vodka and hot dogs, “probably in that order.” She may be on to something — a recent study found that adults who were moderate drinkers were more than 20 percent less likely to die early of any cause. White added that she’s also made it...

Russia’s health minister has said that Russians consume 80 percent less alcohol than they did five years ago, amid a decrease in smoking levels and an increase in the number of people who do sports. The latest World Health Organization figures put Russia’s alcohol consumption below that of France and Germany. “We have managed to reduce the consumption of alcoholic beverages per capita by 80 percent [in 5 years],” the Kommersant business daily cited Health Minister Veronika Skvortsova as saying Tuesday. Official statistics show average alcohol consumption in Russia plummeting by a third between 2009 and 2016. Consumer rights watchdog...

Police in California are on the hunt for three potential suspects seen on surveillance video who may have made off with more than 1,800 gallons of vodka from a distillery on Sunday. The Los Angeles Police Department is reviewing surveillance footage showing three people creeping around the property of Fog Shots distillery weeks before the business was robbed. Art Gukasyan, the company’s CEO, told Fox News that nothing was taken the night of the video. But he said he "definitely believes" those people seen on it are involved in the robbery that occurred three weeks later.

Dash confirmed she, of course, does not think white people are better than black people, or vice versa. In fact, she refuses to be reduced to “existing as just a race.” “Maybe read my autobiography and about my childhood of being exposed to drugs, violence, and abuse while growing up in the Bronx,” she concluded. “Does that make me ‘black’ enough for you and anyone else who shares this judgmental and simplistic assessment of my beliefs?” Ouch.

Distillers are fighting food waste and saving doughWhat’s old is new again. It’s a saying that applies perfectly for an idea by the owners of one of San Diego’s newest distilleries. “When we first came up with the idea, no one thought it was a good one,” said Sam Chereskin, co-owner of Misadventure and Company. His idea was to take old bread products and use them to make vodka. Once a week Chereskin takes a van to the Jacobs and Cushman San Diego food bank and picks up a load of more than a thousand pounds of bread products the...

NATURE'S BEAUTY Waves transform Russian seaside from a dumping ground for alcohol bottles into a colourful ‘pebble beach’ The Ussuri Bay used to be a dumping ground for old glass bottles and waste from a porcelain factory but the waves from the Pacific Ocean have rounded and polished the debris left behind.... Dumped glass on Ussuri Bay in Russia has been shaped into colourful pebbles Tourists of all ages are amazed by the shining shore, clean water and splendid view. The beach is particular spectacular in winter when the snow highlights the vivid colours of the glass.

I have found undeniable, irre-Putin-able proof that the Russians were Directly involved in manipulating the election. Their meddling caused Hillary Clinton to lose and Donald Trump to win bigly. Their dastardly plan was meant to hobble Hillary Clinton and weaken her campaign by making her stagger around during the campaign trying to regain her balance as she campaigned in the battleground states.... Plan outlined below:

The First Family is en route to Martha's Vineyard to begin their two-week family vacation on the Island. President Obama, the First Lady, and daughters Malia and Sasha left the White House to board Marine One on the south lawn. Marine One took off at 12:41 p.m., bound for Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. There the family boarded Air Force One for the flight to Cape Cod and the Vineyard for a 1:03 p.m. departure. Sasha and Malia were chatting with each other as they boarded first, according to pool reports, and Mr. and Mrs. Obama followed. The President was...