Sunday, June 06, 2010
McDonald's gay friendly advertisement from France is quite poignant.
I like it. As the father of a gay child I have to say it may have touched me more than it might some people, but overall I found it very effective.
I understand that this video has gone viral already, but since I first saw it at Bent Alaska, I think they deserve the hat tip. And by the way they do a GREAT job of covering the LGBT community and issues here in Alaska, as well as the rest of the country so I hope you all visit there regularly.
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I thought that the ad was very sweet as well. Having seen so many people struggle so hard just to be who they are, I thought that the ad was charming.
ReplyDeleteThough it's certainly not my favorite company, McDonald's has the money and motivation to run some fine ads. My favorite featured a little boy who was a little bent out of shape because everyone was making such a fuss over his newborn sister. His dad taps him on the shoulder and asks, "You free for lunch?"
My husband shamelessly used that line with our sons as the younger ones were born.
I wish our society were mature to have McDonald's run this kind of ad here, though I fear it would not be as subtle or sensitive if geared to an average American audience.
ReplyDeleteYes, I believe our society has been dumbed-down. Not across-the-board, but the Bush years in particular have been very unkind to our national culture. Not to mention the damage down by evangelicals and uber-conservatives. They are so afraid of discussing sex that I can already hear the outrage as this French ad gets more exposure.
It is so touching, so low-key, balancing the father's stereotypical expectations with the son's needs and true self. The father isn't harsh, just unaware. The respect and patience of the son towards his father is rarely seen in American fast food commercials or sitcoms.
It leaves a hope in the heart that this loving parent and child will work things out. This gentle scenario is a wonderful role model for the public. Because advertising is such a powerful force in modeling and molding human behavior (after all, it is based on in-depth psychological studies so the product can be sold efficiently), I would like to see more of this kind of commercial showing how families, friends, and even strangers can be more civil and sensitive towards each other.
Thanks for bringing it up for discussion and giving it a wider audience, Gryphen.
- ks sunflower
i love this ad. i wish we as americans would be more receptive to it. although i have no appreciation for mcdonald's, i don't complain when they do some god in this world - will they ever get rid of that hideous clown though?!?
ReplyDeletebill o'reilly already panned the ad on his show - big surprise. such ads and honesty are anathema to fox.
thanks for giving it some extra attention.
Oh, gosh. Thank you. That was so good. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteAs a whole, Americans were well on the road to acceptance of others and their personal choices, until the Bush years where the religious right were suddenly *in your face* from all sides and every sector of society.
ReplyDeleteI lived in Germany for 3 years and the differences between their attitudes versus American's attitudes is astounding. As a whole, the country is quite religious with many holy days being holidays for the entire country. Yet, they treat sex, nudity, gay and lesbian, etc. as a simple part of life and there aren't the hang-ups that Americans seem to have. Germans have some of the lowest rates of teen pregnancies and STDs, so they must be doing something right.
The teabaggers and righties want smaller government, yet they insist on the government being involved in our bedrooms and personal lives. They treat sex as something dirty and a no-no, instead of being a natural part of human existence. We all know that as soon as a child is told they shouldn't do something, they readily do exactly the opposite!
Europe went through it's "uptight about sex" crap ages ago. They are mature, where as we are still the "giggling at porn and ashamed of it" teenager in the back of the garage. We won't grow as a nation until we grow up and out of our supposedly "puritanical" roots.
ReplyDeleteIt would be nice if we didn't have assholes like O'Reilly didn't compare gays to al-Qaida. What a fucking moron. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/06/03/bill-oreilly-compares-gay_n_599311.html
ReplyDeleteThanks for the compliments to Bent Alaska!
ReplyDelete