People Are Protesting Against “Liberty Biberty”

Dozens of demonstrators held a protest in front of Liberty Mutual's Boston headquarters to demand an end to the company's "Liberty Biberty" mascot. The demonstration was organized by 19-year-old Connor Harvey, with people saying they find the fluffy yellow character creepy, annoying, and overly repetitive on TV commercials. Unveiled by Liberty Mutual in July, Liberty Biberty has been called a “nasty little pest” and a “disgusting little creature” on social media. Some viewers worry that the weird furball will replace popular existing characters like LiMu Emu and Doug, though the company has confirmed that those characters will remain active. Liberty Mutual has embraced the negative attention, viewing the backlash as a massive win for their brand visibility. Instead of backing down or issuing a formal apology, executives have doubled down on the campaign. Many marketing experts believe the backlash is exactly what the company wanted — known as “rage-baiting marketing” — to keep the brand relevant during highly competitive television slots like live sports broadcasts. Perhaps it might be smart for Liberty Mutual to look at the gamble Anheuser-Bush took when they used transgender star Dylan Mulvaney to promote Bud Light. The company has never recovered from that sales drop.

 

 

Continue Reading...

UK is Launching Giant Claws to Clean up Space Junk

Defunct satellites are cluttering up the earth's orbit, and the UK is developing a first-of-its-kind mission to clean up after its space program. It could pave the way toward a long-term strategy for mitigating the risks of space debris for all nations. The UK’s Active Debris Removal (ADR) mission aims to send a refuelable spacecraft with giant robotic claws into the earth's orbit to grab two dead satellites and throw them into our planet’s atmosphere, where they will burn up. Space junk is a collision threat for other things in space, such as other satellites, spacecraft and even orbital stations like the International Space Station, so endeavoring to clean things up is a sensible mission. The spacecraft is slated to launch from Scotland in 2029 and will be built by the UK branch of ClearSpace, an in-orbit servicing company. If all goes according to plan, the roughly $80 million mission would demonstrate that a single spacecraft can successfully get rid of more than one dead satellite, which could render future missions of this sort more practical. The mission is expected to be completed by 2032.

Continue Reading...

Bride Nearly Sent Aloft by Giant Balloons During Windy Wedding Photo

This is not the way a bride wants to be swept off her feet on her wedding day. Footage captured the dramatic moment that a balloon-toting bride seemingly almost went airborne during a wedding photo shoot gone awry. The blushing bride-to-be had been posing for nuptial snaps beside the picturesque Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul, Turkey, when powerful winds buffeted the inflatable decorations. All of a sudden, a gust caught the balloons head-on, causing the bride to be dragged along toward the seawall and almost lifted off the ground. Thankfully, a photographer managed to grab her before she crashed into a building. Despite nearly getting carried away, the bride finished the photo shoot without further incident. 

 

 

Continue Reading...

Things You Could and Should Get Rid of When Decluttering

Decluttering doesn’t have to be an overwhelming weekend activity. Attacking just one item a day makes the process so much easier. Rarely does anyone need every single thing that’s collected in their home. Here are some of the things you should get rid of if you’re trying to organize your home.

• EXTRA COOKING UTENSILS: Toss any utensils that are chipped, warped, or have peeling plastic. Put the rest into a box on your kitchen counter.. As you cook, return the utensils you use to their original home in your drawer. After a week, rummage through what’s left and toss anything you can’t live without.

• FAST FOOD EXTRAS: All those extra plastic forks, condiment packets, and straws from fast food and takeout orders tend to pile up. Pick a number and cap saved items to that — like keeping 3 soy sauce packets or 6 plastic forks. 

• SPECIALTY APPLIANCES: Those specialty appliances make it oh so easy to make cake pops, quesadillas, and ice cream, but they’re rarely worth the space. If you haven’t used a gadget in a year, get rid of it.

• FOOD STORAGE CONTAINERS: Butter tubs, takeout containers, and frozen meal containers can overwhelm your cabinet space in the blink of an eye. If you have a set of dishes and a few Tupperware or Rubbermaid containers, there’s no reason to clog your cabinets with plastic containers that were not intended for storing foods.

• SPICES AND HERBS: Most people have herbs and spices that have seen their better day. Take a bit of the spice or herb in your fingers and crush it a bit. If there’s no scent, there’s no flavor. Toss the ones that are no longer going to do their job.

• PLASTIC SHOPPING BAGS: Plastic grocery bags can come in handy, but that doesn’t mean you should keep an endless stockpile. Take a moment to calculate how many you actually use in a typical week. Keep around 5 of them and toss the rest.

• EXPIRED MEDICATIONS: Drugs lose potency over time, so scan your medicine cabinet for any expired bottles. Most pharmacies, like CVS, Walgreens and Rite-Aid, have stations that you can use to drop off your expired medications. In addition, some cities allow expired medication drop-offs at the local police station.

• UNREAD BOOKS: These days, books are just a click away. That means that you may have shelves of books that you’ve read but will probably never read again. Figure out which books you can’t live without and donate those you can.

Continue Reading...