Beans from Colombia, sizes from Brobdingnag

I have noticed this bizarre trend, not only in coffee shops (though it's most obvious there) but even in fast food restaurants and stores, pretty much anywhere there is something to consume. The concept of purchasing something that is diminuitive in size is being slowly eradicated, and I'm not sure what to blame it on. I'm sure that somewhere, there is someone who has done some sort of marketing survey that suggests that people are less likely to buy a labelled-"small" thing as opposed to a labelled-"large" thing, even when the portions of the two things are identical. But is it because people, specifically Americans, have become accustomed to big portions of everything? Or is it that consumers simply subconsciously feel that buying a "big" thing provides more value for their money than a "small" thing would, even when said thing is the smallest size available?

Personally, I don't really care which it is. I just wish I could walk into a coffee shop that I've never been to, stand at the counter, and be able to accurately order the correct size of coffee-based beverage without first having to consult the cup-size hanging mobile to determine whether this particular establishment considers "large" to be bigger than "grande", or vice-versa.

I begged and I begged, I pleaded and whined, I shamelessly importuned you to vote, and whaddaya know. RAoK is now #1 on the Buzzcomix top list. You people rock. There's currently a delta of something like 30 votes or so between us and the #2 comic, which is a pretty safe distance I think, but we won't be able to maintain that without continued voting. You know the drill.

Also, would anyone be willing to point me to a good, free forum hosting service? I've been on the waiting list for a forum hosted on KeenSpace for nearly a year now, and honestly, that's pretty sad. I'd love to set up a RAoK forum so that readers of the comic can commune, but I'm no longer willing to wait on KeenSpace.