Regardless of your political views, we all have to agree that Iraq is currently an unsafe place for a long list of things. That list now includes Coke and Pepsi.

Ayatollah Sheikh Qasim Attayi issued a fatwa calling for all Muslims to cease consuming, selling or importing the cooler case staples.

Despite what it might look like, this isn’t a new strain of anti-Americanism. Though Pepsi and Coke are fantastic symbols of U.S. consumerism, Attayi called for the Fatwa after a study allegedly confirmed that Pepsin – a key ingredient in both drinks – is extracted from pig intestines.

While the idea of pig-intestine extract in our beverage might make most of us queasy, it’s downright forbidden for Muslims to consume pig products. Hence, fatwa.

Coke is already test-marketing aluminum bottles, (see what they look like here) but Coke also has a different aluminum bottle design (shown at right) listed at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The trademark, filed in July of 2005, specifies the silver bottle and white text - a color combination that isn’t present in any of the test-marketed bottles.

Does anyone know anything about this?

This is fantastic. Courtesy of WTAE TV in Pittsburgh. Remember — shelf space is one thing, but a broken nose is another.

INDIANA COUNTY, Pa. — Pepsi or Coke? The battle continues.State police in Indiana, Pa., are investigation after a Pepsi employee allegedly assaulted a Coca-Cola employee while making a delivery at a Wal-Mart in White Township on Oct. 1.According to police, Robert Koscho, 48, of Ebensburg, and the Pepsi employee, who has not been identified, were bickering back and forth while making their deliveries at the Oakland Avenue store.

As Koscho left the store, police said, the Pepsi employee called him over and punched him three times in the face, breaking Koscho’s nose and giving him a black eye. A Coca-Cola representative told WTAE Channel 4 Action News that the fight started over shelf space in the aisles of the store. Shelf position is very important to companies that sell their products at Wal-Mart, according to a former store manager who spoke with Channel 4 Action News.At this time, police continue to investigate the incident.

According to an SEC filing on September 21, Bravo Brands has filed a voluntary petition in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida pursuant to Chapter 7 of Title 11 of the United States Code.   Robert C. Furr, Esq. has been appointed Trustee in this case.

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Word from British tech bloggers is that Coke is developing a bottling and vending machine technology for Sprite bottles — and eventually Coke, Diet Coke, etc. — that will freeze some of the liquid into cubes inside the bottle when the cap opens.

Initial attention is focused on the fact that the drinks won’t be diluted by water. Forget that! Attention should be focused on the fact that doing that would be really, really, really neat. Why give it to the Brits first, though? Isn’t the right to be really neat what we fought the American Revolution for?

• “Plus” is an awful name choice. It’s bland and boring. What does it really mean anyway? “Plus” extra caffeine or energy might have been a more interesting entry
• It has 10-15% RDA of several vitamins. Hardly meaningful.
• Furthermore, consumers aren’t reducing their CSD consumption due to lack of vitamin content…and vitamin content in a cola doesn’t all of a sudden make it feel healthy.
• It’s bad looking…like a C2 style logo with a rainbow color scheme on top of what appears to be a normal Diet Coke label. Not attractive.
• It’s confusing. This doesn’t taste like Diet Coke and it uses a sweetener blend that’s different than Diet Coke. So it’s not really Diet Coke Plus Vitamins & Minerals. It’s really Diet Coke Reformulated. Confusion might just make consumers go somewhere else…like to a non CSD.

Overall, I think this one will definitely go the way of C2. A quick hit for the early part of the summer and then out to pasture by the end of the year.

So, what do you think?