Beach Patrol Cracking Down On Those Big Tents Everyone Else Around You Hates

Sure, you may love taking in all the sights and sounds of the beach from the shade of your own personal tent, but let’s face it: Everyone else around you is probably annoyed that you’ve set up a portable shelter that may block others from enjoying the beach. In one oceanside city, beach police have started cracking down on these oversized tents as part of a new law.

Spurred by concerns about public safety and aesthetics, the seaside town of Rehoboth Beach, DE, recently passed a new ordinance that effectively bans the use of beach tents, with exceptions for small baby tents (no taller or wider than 36″), and special events like weddings.

Even though this rule (read all about it in this handy PDF) went into effect in May, some Rehoboth beachgoers are still trying to erect their tents on the sand. The Wall Street Journal reports that the local beach patrol is responding by enforcing the umbrellas-only policy.

According to officials, it’s easier for lifeguards and first responders to navigate around single-pole umbrellas in the event of an emergency situation in the water. Canopies with walls can also be used to conceal smoking or alcohol consumption.

Since the start of the beach season on May 27, officials have had 840 tent “takedowns” as police call them. Lifeguards can alert police if people don’t comply, but thus far officials have only written three $25 tickets.

“We keep it short and simple,” one lifeguard tasked with keeping beachgoers in line said, noting that the police captain “doesn’t want us getting into altercations.”

Not everyone is aware of the new rules, as one beachgoer who was told he had to take down his 8-by-10 foot tent called it “Freakin’ ridiculous” in response.

“New city ordinance, it’s a little bit of a learning curve,” an officer replied, noting that umbrella rentals cost just $12 per day.

Rehoboth Beach isn’t the only seaside spot cracking down on oversized tents — Myrtle Beach, SC, officials instituted a similar ban in recent years.

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

FDA Rejects Plan To Donate Dog Food Potentially Contaminated With Euthanasia Drug

Dog food company Evanger’s recently recalled some of its products that had been tainted with the euthanasia drug pentobarbital, resulting in four sick dogs and one death. Rather than throw out all that recalled food, Evanger’s proposed spot-checking it for safety and donating it to animal shelters. However, the Food and Drug Administration has nixed this suggestion.

While the idea of giving free (usually quite expensive) dog food to cash-strapped shelters is full of good intentions, the FDA concluded that spot checks of individual cans are not sufficient for determining the safety of what’s in those cans that aren’t tested.

In a warning letter sent on June 29 and released this week, this week, the FDA says it “does not agree that analyzing individual units from recalled lots and finding those units negative for pentobarbital contamination provides sufficient assurance that the remaining units are not adulterated.”

Spot-checking isn’t good enough if any one can in the batch might have enough of the drug to kill a sufficiently small dog that eats quickly enough.

“As can be observed in the samples collected by FDA, the pentobarbital contamination is not homogeneous throughout all units in a lot. Therefore, FDA does not find it acceptable to donate any recalled products and instead recommends destruction of all remaining units,” the agency said.

Pentobarbital sodium, the FDA explains, is officially used as an anesthetic in animals, and is sometimes used off-label as a euthanasia agent. However, it’s not a drug that should be used in animals that are destined for humans’ plates or dogs’ bowls.

Evanger’s is a premium brand of dog food that claims that it has “no preservatives, artificial ingredients, or harmful additives.” However, the FDA told the company in its warning letter that written “assurances” from suppliers that their meat was drug-free and came from the animal named on the package weren’t enough, and the agency recommends actually visiting suppliers.

The FDA also noted that while Evanger’s said that it had stopped dealing with the meat supplier that sold the meat used for the recalled food, the company did not have any proof for its assertion that this was the only supplier that sold it contaminated meat.

The recall also included dog food from Cocolicious and Against the Grain, other brands made in the same facility.

(via Food Safety News — Thanks, Chris!)

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Denim Retailer True Religion Files For Bankruptcy

Before recent “crimes against jeans” in which companies are charged hundreds of dollars for “window” jeans, clear jeans, and painted on mud jeans, people would spend the same amount of money on a relatively simple, if not bedazzled, pair of high-end jeans. But with changing fashion and tastes, these denim-focused retailers of yesteryear aren’t faring so well. Case in point: One-time denim darling True Religion has filed for bankruptcy. 

California-based True Religion filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection [PDF] earlier today, laying out its plan to restructure its debts and increase its focus on online shopping.

The company notes that it plans to “reinvigorate” the brand and “position the company for future growth and success.” This apparently means focusing on customers’ desire to shop online instead of in store, as the company plans to increase its online presence, The Wall Street Journal reports. 

The retailer, which sells its denim and other clothing at department stores and hundreds of True Religion boutiques around the world, says it made the decision to file as a way to reduce its liabilities, listed at $500 million.

Under the restructuring program, that debt would be reduced to $100 million, the same as the company’s listed assets, Reuters notes.

Additionally, True Religion says it will provide full payment of claims to trade creditors.

The retailer says that it will operate under a “business as usual” stance during the restructuring process, as all stores will remain open.

Consumerist has reached out to True Religion for additional details on its restructuring and stores. We’ll update this post when we hear back.

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Court Halts Chicago Soda Tax, But Some McDonald’s Restaurants Didn’t Get The Message

Only hours before a new tax on sweetened beverages was set to kick in, an Illinois judge issued a temporary injunction keeping it from going into effect. However, not everyone got that message and some McDonald’s customers in the Chicago area were charged a tax they shouldn’t have paid.

Last year, Cook County, IL, which includes the city of Chicago, approved a “Sweetened Beverage Tax” that imposes a cent-per-ounce on all bottled (and fountain) sweetened drinks — even those that use non-sugar sweeteners like aspartame or sucralose.

Just like the similar tax in Philadelphia, the Cook County tax is now the subject of legal action by businesses that would be directly affected by higher prices for sweetened drinks.

With the tax set to take effect on July 1, a Cook County circuit court judge issued a temporary restraining order [PDF], noting that while the tax is important for the county’s budget, it is “necessary to maintain the status quo in order to protect the interests of all consumers, all taxpayers, and the effected [sic] merchants.”

If the court had allowed the tax to go into effect only to later find it unlawful, the plaintiff merchants “will be irreparably harmed” and “will suffer from greatly increased administrative and overhead costs which could not be recouped.”

Just ask the McDonald’s franchisee who operates nearly two dozen fast food locations in the Chicago area, and who didn’t get the message that the soda tax was on hold.

Some customers told the Chicago Tribune that they were charged the tax even after bringing it to the attention of store employees.

The owner of those locations says the problem, which he dubbed a “technical issue,” has been fixed and that customers who were charged the tax can get a refund if they have a receipt.

The Illinois Retail Merchants Association, the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit, said the McDonald’s incident is evidence that “The county has not properly communicated with retailers throughout this entire process.”

Later this month, the judge will decide whether to issue a longer injunction that would halt the ban until the merchants’ lawsuit is resolved.

[h/t Courthouse News]

by Chris Morran via Consumerist

Alibaba Goes After Amazon Echo With $73 Voice-Activated Speaker

Amazon’s Echo is about to have some more competition in the digital assistant arena: China’s e-commerce giant Alibaba will start selling a $73 voice-activated speaker.

The Tmall Genie X1 will be available for 499 yuan ($73) to the first 1,000 people who buy it during a one-month trial, the company announced on Wednesday. It may prove an attractive alternative to the more expensive Echo — which sells for about $180, or Apple’s recently launched $349 HomePod.

Among other things, users can tell the speaker to play music or read the news, add events to the calendar, or locate their phone.

The limited public beta starts today, with the official on-sale date set for Aug. 8. For the moment, the virtual assistant can only support commands in Chinese, which will keep it from threatening the likes of Amazon in other countries for the time being.

But it’s an increasingly crowded field in China, with competitors like Tencent, Baidu, and JD.com introducing their own speakers with digital assistants, points out CNBC.

There could be even more competition on the horizon, as The Wall Street Journal reports that Samsung is working on its own voice-activated speaker powered by its digital assistant Bixby.

At the moment, the voice-activated home speaker market is dominated by Amazon, which sold about 88% of the 4.2 million units sold in the fourth quarter, notes Bloomberg, while Google has about a 10% share of the action.

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Volvo Will Begin Transitioning To All Electric Vehicles In 2019

Starting in 2019, all new Volvo car lines will have either full electric or hybrid engines, with plans to introduce five such vehicles by 2021.

Volvo — now owned by China’s Zhejiang Geely, which purchased the brand from Ford in 2010 — announced today that these new electric engine models will come from both the Volvo brand and its Polestar performance line.

The decision to go all-electric came after demand from customers, Volvo CEO Håkan Samuelson said in a statement, noting that the company wanted to meet customers’ current and future needs.

The carmaker says that the new cars, which will cover a range of models, will be supplemented by a range of petrol and diesel plug in hybrid and mild hybrid options.

By 2025, Volvo hopes to have sold a total of one million electric cars and use climate neutral manufacturing operations.

“When we said it we meant it. This is how we are going to do it,” Samuelsson said in a statement.

Volvo says the ultimate goal is to replace all of its internal combustion vehicles with electric or hybrid engines.

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

No More Laptop Ban For U.S.-Bound Flights On Emirates, Turkish Airlines

Good news for travelers flying on certain airlines to the U.S.: The Department of Homeland Security has lifted the ban on laptops and other personal electronics put in place in March for anyone traveling on Emirates and Turkish Airlines.

Passengers flying Emirates from Dubai, or from Istanbul on Turkish Airlines will again be able to stow their laptops, tablets, e-readers, cameras, portable DVD players, travel printers/scanners, and “electronic game units larger than a smartphone” in the cabin with them them now that the airlines have met U.S. security requirements.

“Emirates has been working hard in coordination with various aviation stakeholders and the local authorities to implement heightened security measures and protocols that meet the requirements of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s new security guidelines for all U.S. bound flights,” Emirates said in a statement. The carrier also confirmed the news on Twitter:

Effective immediately laptops & electronic devices can be taken onboard all Emirates flights from Dubai to the US https://t.co/ii805S5mkN http://pic.twitter.com/iU7WCFKSq1

— Emirates airline (@emirates) July 5, 2017

Turkish Airlines chimed in with its own updated for passengers about the end of the ban:

Dear Passengers, #WelcomeOnBoard to our US-bound flight. Please fasten your seatbelts and enjoy your own electronic devices. http://pic.twitter.com/WbcZwNPhrf

— Turkish Airlines (@TurkishAirlines) July 4, 2017

The two airlines join Etihad Airways, which announced earlier this week that passengers on its flights from Abu Dhabi to the U.S. will no longer be subject to the personal electronics ban after implementing new security measures:

Have you heard? #ElectronicsBan #EtihadAirways

Share your pictures from onboard using your own device and our inflight Wi-Fi. http://pic.twitter.com/qgI7M0rnhx

— Etihad Airways (@EtihadAirways) July 3, 2017

At the end of June, DHS announced that airports around the world could be subject to a carry-on electronics ban for U.S.-bound flights if they fall afoul of new security standards designed to raise “the global baseline of global aviation security.”

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist