The change is about theft, but I've seen kids fill their cup to the point of submerging the nozzle, then do it again when they go for a refill after drinking it. Self-serve should never have been a thing.

I'm not sure what you're complaining about here. People using a service that they paid for? How is that theft? Further, any "theft" of soda from a soda fountain would be only costing the company pennies basically.

The change is about McDonald's not wanting to staff enough to have people actually in the restaurants. They're slow rolling a change to only take out.

And if that's what you care about, do you think an unskilled laborer will be much more hygienically-responsible with his low-wage role? I've seen pickles that fell on the kitchen floor continue to be used if the "floor was cleaned recently". The bar of "acceptable behvaior" between a layperson and an unskilled laborer is negligible.