I am having a hard time watching TV lately due to this fixation I have with figuring out commercials and their message. My better half and I have been noticing lately how many ads are sexist and not in a covert way. They almost relish in mocking women for being controlling, nagging beasts of burden. Dr. Zauis posted about a certain Free Credit Report commercial and it got the ball rolling.
Here are just a few of the examples of mainstream commercials that have been driving me crazy:
Snickers: So you came home really late after an all-night party doing God knows what and your wife wakes up. What do you do? Take a bite from a Snickers bar and lie your ass off that's what! Don't get me started on the blogging one. Holy shit is that a creepy commercial. "Wanna go to my place?" Ummm, no and especially not to blog!
Coors Light: What do you do when you want to go to your friend's house to have a few(10) cold ones? Hatch an elaborate plan to trick your girl into thinking something really bad has happened to your friend and your special lady friend will have to understand. Bonus points if you call her midway through your binge drinking fest to mock said woman, "I think we need to vent some more....hahahaha". By the way, do we need fucking bottles that turn blue to let us know the bottle is cold? Are we this retarded?
AT&T: These rollover minutes commercials seem innocent enough until you watch the body language. It's basically just a Mom nagging the shit out of her family for not using rollover minutes and finally the Dad just huffs and rolls his eyes and all the "men" of the family have a bonding moment, "Mom is such a bitch huh? Choose AT&T"
I'm sure there are many, many more instances and I encourage our dear readers to include examples in the thread below. These are just a few that run nonstop in my area. Oh and on a completely unrelated note, I encourage all to check out "Super High Me". Doug Benson is a stand-up comedian who had a joke about Spurlock's movie and how he'd smoke pot for 30 days straight and a filmmaker in the crowd one night took him up on the offer. Whether you dabble in the sticky or not, this was a pretty funny and moving film. The idea that a state can vote to allow a plant to be available for patients who need it and the federal government saying fuck that and shutting the clinics down is just outrageous. It's wild to watch a state policeman who has sworn to uphold the state's laws sit by and watch DEA agents close a LEGAL marijuana clinic in his state. Are state's rights even real?
8 minutes ago
17 comments:
The Beer Baroness is going to be most unhappy that you named Beers other than hers...because she is a Feminist and loves America more than any of us...
Enigma,
Heh, Sal called her the work of Hitler's greatest taxidermist.
And I stand by those words.
I think it is probably the best line descibing her that I have heard Sal.
Sexism: It's almost acceptable.
We won't acheive true equal rights until everyone is to the point where they are not offended by such bullshit.
30 days? HAR! What a piker. I once went every day for 25 years without stopping.
I find the sexism as humor tiresome. Kind of like my mother used to say to me when I would insert the word fuck into conversation.
"You only rely on that when you're not intelligent enough to come up with something clever to say."
Hillbilly, I'm not offended by these ads. They don't affect me one way or the other, I just find it sad that this kind of sexism is not only accepted but laughed at. Not being offended by something doesn't make it go away.
dcup, well said. I really don't see how this kind of shit sells products. I mean, I would have bought a six-pack of PBR but dammit if the Coors ads don't make my girl look stupid! I don't get it...
Bradda, I agree with your point to Hillbilly (who I usually agree with on most things).
OK, here's a feminist to get all feminist in my explanation. I think we can all agree that the shrubco has been pushing us in the direction of fascism, eh? If you ever read Lawrence Britt's 14 points of fascism, you will discover that in societies that are becoming or are fascist, women must be treated as chattel and second-class citizens.
It's #5 on the list (of 14):
5. Rampant sexism.
Beyond the simple fact that the political elite and the national culture were male-dominated, these regimes inevitably viewed women as second-class citizens. They were adamantly anti-abortion and also homophobic. These attitudes were usually codified in Draconian laws that enjoyed strong support by the orthodox religion of the country, thus lending the regime cover for its abuses.
Bradda, you are not imagining things. These commercials would and could NOT exist 10 years ago. Misogyny is rampant and I encounter it all the more, because I attempt to be an independent, opinionated woman (horrors!).
I appreciate the fact you bring these to light. I should do as much. :)
You can read the whole thing here if you are so inclined:
Fascism Anyone?
Just saw another one, the Totinos pizza rolls. Timid mom in a dowdy sweater/50's dress, in a shitty looking kitchen, puts the pizza rolls on the counter and a boy kids' paw comes busting through the wall to grab said pizza rolls, mom timidly tee-hees and CRINGES!!
Helen, Your comments are cherished on our blog because we are a male dominated blog and we have our heads up our asses, HEH. I am reading Naomi Klein's "No Logo" after reading her "Shock Doctrine" which was AMAZING! She finished this book around 2001 so it doesn't get into how bad it's gotten but needless to say, the "brand" has overtaken our society. I watch commercials religiously to see what they are trying to pull over on us and all I see nowadays is rampant sexism in ads. It's crazy. Everything is double and triple sponsored.
The Rapture will be brought to you by KFC/Taco Bell and of course Halliburton!
Thanks for commenting Helen.
Bradda you are so delightful! So you weathered the earthquaker? Why have we not met? We are in the same city!!! I wanna meet you & your wife. Let's meet for drinks in my 'hood, there are soooo many great places...
Helen, Word! Where in this clusterfuck of a city down you reside? Email me eh? You know the number...heh.
I gots to read me some Naomi Klein. I read excerpts all over the place, but that of course is no excuse for the whole thing.
Another anti-woman thing right now is the horrific treatment women are getting in the military. I was just reading a story on RAW where they report a woman in the armed forces is more likely to be raped than harmed in action. DISGUSTING.
Ack! How did I miss this? Thanks for the link, Bradda!
Dr. Z, Where ya been??
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