# Freedom 250 - The Great American State Fair **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 29, 2026, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470 "2026-05-29T03:08:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 43
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/841 "2026-07-09T12:48:44Z")
Tom the Dancing Bug gets it right. > **[Tom the Dancing Bug: A busy, busy day at the Freedom 250 celebration](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/7/9/800066880/cartoon/tom-the-dancing-bug-a-busy-busy-day-at-the-freedom-250-celebration/)** > > A cartoon by Ruben Bolling. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/842 "2026-07-09T12:54:43Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Global commerce is real neat in many ways. But it does have the effect of drowning out a lot of what had been local color. Yeah, I first lived in Japan in 1981 in small cities, and often we were the first foreigners that Japanese talked to. I had my mom send peanut butter by mail because we couldn’t get it anywhere. As you said, it’s all the same now, for better or worse. I don’t think the author of that article actually knows any foreigners. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/843 "2026-07-09T12:55:12Z")
Yeah, that pretty well nailed it. Great cite. Thank you! ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/844 "2026-07-09T13:33:04Z")
In addition to all the other awfulness the attendees have to endure, according to [this guy](https://www.youtube.com/shorts/RiwaC6jY3vE?feature=share) a horde of Christian missionaries have descended upon the Great American State Fail like locusts, to try to bring people to Jesus. Which, as he points out, is odd considering how few people are there, and the great majority of the ones who do show up are likely to be Conservative Christians. Kind of like trying to sell ice cubes to Inuits. > [@Biotop](#): > > Tom the Dancing Bug gets it right. Nice. In the style of Richard _ **Scary** _, amirite? (See, the actual name of the children’s book illustrator is Richard _ **Scarry** _, but I removed one of the 'R’s-- for comedy purposes!). ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/845 "2026-07-09T13:35:22Z")
Love the “Throng” ! ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/846 "2026-07-09T13:37:15Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Which, as he points out, is odd considering how few people are there, and the great majority of the ones who do show up are likely to be Conservative Christians. It’s one of those oddities that happens especially in the South. In towns where the more common question is not “if” you are Christian but “which church” you attend, there are still missionaries going around trying to “save souls”. There have always been people who are nominally Christian but were never good about going to church or anything like that. A lot of the proselytizing was historically aimed at those but now it’s just a fire hose at anybody and everybody who stops to listen ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/847 "2026-07-09T16:58:14Z")
> [@TokyoBayer](#): > > What the fuck is so special about Chick Fil-A? I took my kids there and it just seems like another fast food place. Chick-Fil-A serves quality food for a reasonable price and provides a good experience for their customers with speedy, friendly service. In some sense you’re right, they’re just another fast food place, but among their competition they stand out along with places like In and Out and Jersey Mike’s. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/848 "2026-07-09T17:07:05Z")
> [@TokyoBayer](#): > > I saw a Legal Eagle video the story of how Trump stole the show (as it were), including funding and deceiving donors. Grrrr. [What? No link?](https://youtu.be/yHSr7I9O8W0) (Liz Dye in a 30-minute video) Oh, and blood pressure warning. > [@LSLGuy](#): > > I doubt most foreign tourists are that interested in the USA Big Box phenomenon. At least not after a first glance into one. And, anyway, one of the biggest boxes of them all is Ikea which is from… Sweden. > [@Odesio](#): > > Chick-Fil-A serves quality food for a reasonable price and provides a good experience for their customers with speedy, friendly service. Meh. Back when they were being boycotted I found them easy to give up and have yet to to return. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/849 "2026-07-09T17:17:38Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > If we rewind to the e.g. 1960s, there were no big box stores. There were department stores, and Sears, and … that’s about it. Don’t underestimate the splendor and awe of a Sears store when you’re growing up never seeing a store with two floors. Even 60 years later, a friend still tells about going to The Big City\* and standing in front of the Sears store, marveling: “Then we went in, and there it was… they had… an escalator!” . \*Don’t break it to her that it was The Medium City at best. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/850 "2026-07-09T17:38:48Z")
> [@digs](#): > > there it was… they had… an escalator!” When I’d go to the Real Big City (Milwaukee) one store had…an elevator! Boy did I have fun going up and down! I mean, escalators are fun and all, but…an elevator! With buttons and lights! I felt like Buddy Elf, even though he wouldn’t be created for another 30 years. ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/851 "2026-07-09T17:48:23Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > Chick-Fil-A serves quality food for a reasonable price and provides a good experience for their customers with speedy, friendly service. The food is highly overrated. The service is generally good, but not that much better than other places. And it often comes off as that fake-ish over the top Campus Crusaders for Christ “nice” (if you’ve experienced them you know what I mean). But that’s just my opinion, I haven’t gone there in years. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/852 "2026-07-09T17:57:12Z")
And the portions are so small, amirite? The food is fine, especially at the price point. The service is a little overrated. And at some, driving around the lines that form during lunch can be a pain. But the real issue is that at the end of the day, it’s still just a fast food place. Better than average as those go, but hardly some exemplar of dining. Are people expecting some sort of orgiastic experience there? ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/853 "2026-07-09T17:58:26Z")
Someone should do a poll to see the most liked fast food places. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/854 "2026-07-09T18:24:17Z")
> [@Great\_Antibob](#): > > The food is fine, especially at the price point. Food is subjective. I’ve found a couple of items at Chick-Fil-A to be fantastic. Their basic chicken sandwich, which is just a piece of chicken on a bun with a couple of pickles, is somehow perfect. You don’t need condiments or cheese or anything fancy, they just got that right. They also have (or _had_ maybe, I haven’t been there for a while) a breakfast bowl with hash browns, eggs, chicken nuggets, cheese, and some kind of jalapeno salsa packet you could put over it. One of the best fast-food breakfast items I’ve ever had. (Low bar, for sure, but still.) Everything else on the menu I’ve found to either be “okay” or awful. I don’t like any of their sides, especially their floppy, undercooked, unseasoned waffle fries that lack the excitement of plain rice cakes. They have milkshakes which are okay, but it’s hard to screw up a milkshake. They have some other chicken sandwiches aside from the basic one that are pretty good, especially the grilled chicken club, but to me nothing else approaches their basic chicken sandwich. But all of that is just going by my personal tastes, and is not in any way an objective measurement of their quality as a fast-food place. ---
**Author:** ![bobsmom101](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobsmom101/32/2867_2.png) [@bobsmom101](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobsmom101)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/855 "2026-07-09T18:39:46Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > With buttons and lights! I recall elevators in department stores in the big city (Chicago in this case) being driven by elderly “colored” (as we used to call them when we were being polite, god help us 😳 ) individuals who sat on a tiny stool by the door and pushed the floor buttons and operated a lever to open and close the doors. They also announced each floor and the wares it displayed ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/856 "2026-07-09T19:15:56Z")
ISTM that the breading they use on their chicken is about 50% flour and 50% sugar. I’m sure that makes many people think it tastes great. To me it tastes … inedible. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/857 "2026-07-09T19:22:05Z")
> [@SuntanLotion](#): > > Someone should do a poll to see the most liked fast food places. Ask, and ye shall receive: > [@Polls only: No discussion](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polls-only-no-discussion/953642/6885): > > According to [this article from QSR Magazine](https://www.qsrmagazine.com/story/top-50-fast-food-chains-ranked-2025/) (the trade magazine for the fast-food industry), below are the top 30 U.S. fast-food restaurants (based on revenue) for 2025. At which, if any, of these restaurants would you happily eat a meal? Note: some of you might argue “that place isn’t fast food!” Take it up with QSR Magazine. wink[poll](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polls-only-no-discussion/953642/6885) I did a second poll, as well, for fast-food places that you wouldn’t willingly go to. ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/858 "2026-07-09T19:22:52Z")
Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/859 "2026-07-09T19:30:58Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > ISTM that the breading they use on their chicken is about 50% flour and 50% sugar. I’m no chemist or culinary expert, but cornstarch, while still a refined complex carbohydrate, has zero sugar in it. I believe their breading recipe starts with nearly half-and-half flour and cornstarch (something like 2 parts corn starch to 3 parts flour). If your point though is that cornstarch is unhealthy, yes, it can be. It is a substance with practically no nutritional value that _can_ cause a rapid spike in blood sugar if you eat too much of it at once. And again, if it tastes gross to you, that’s understandable since tastes will vary by individual. I, personally, think it tastes great, but that’s just me. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2026, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470/860 "2026-07-09T19:38:21Z")
Yes, that’s all fine, but my point remains it’s still just a fast food joint. Sure, one that is considered better than average, but still just a fast food joint at the end of the day. And there’s no reason to contemplate a fast food joint with wonder or to think somebody is some effete snob if it’s not at the forefront of their mind as some pinnacle of American culture that must be shared with others. It’s just some place to go eat and pretty good for the price if they’re budget conscious. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470.md?page=42) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freedom-250-the-great-american-state-fair/1030470.md?page=44)