Some groups, Cartoon characters.
Some groups, eh?
Tony the Tiger, and Snap, Crackle and Pop have been branded "cartoon villains" by a U.K. consumer watchdog called Which? for failing to promote healthy eating in children.I defy you to name the second group, and justify the use of the plural.
Would you like to compare the number of "groups" going after cartoon characters which promote obesity to the number of groups who actively promoted the complete falsehood that Barack Obama was a Muslim in an attempt to frighten people into voting for John McCain?
While we're at it, we can discuss the relative harm of the two "groups".
Also, I suspect Pastor Martin Niemöller would never stop throwing up if he knew how Mallard was trivializing his famous quote.
15 comments:
First they came for the people making wildly inappropriate Nazi comparisons, and I did not speak out, because seriously, fuck those guys.
But seriously: Tinsley has clearly lost it for good and all. What the HELL, man?
Wait... the Taco Bell Chihuahua isn't a cartoon character, and he hasn't been in an ad for nearly a decade. Way to be topical, Mallard.
Also, Godwin's Law.
I'm not sure what is wrong here besides apparently a free market.
It is up to the business how they advertise. They are not being sued, they are being criticized. It is the right of the consumer to criticize.
If they chose to listen to criticism that may reflect a broader consumer base's opinions, that is up to them. Most chose to follow it, though in the case of the Taco Bell dog it only after it's popularity has died down.
There are no laws or lawsuits occurring here, so I'm not sure exactly why Mallard feels prosecuted, except that he is pudgy and must hate anti-obesity trends.
He thinks that a cartoon advertising mascot is the equivalent of a victim of the Holocaust...
He thinks that a cartoon advertising mascot is the equivalent of a victim of the Holocaust!
I'd like to point out that my word verification for this post is "TARDE." How apropos.
He thinks that a cartoon advertising mascot is the equivalent of a victim of the Holocaust...
Furthermore, he thinks freely speaking out against the cynical use of cartoon advertising mascots is exactly like Nazi oppression.
The Frito Bandito was un-PC*. He made fun of Mexicans.
Tony the Tiger is being accused of not promoting healthy eating.
Neither is good, but they're not exactly the same.
But let's just liken them all to Holocaust victims, why don't we!
*I officially hate the phrase "Politically Correct". The definition makes it seem great, something polite, but in practice, it seems worse to be called PC than to be called a racist.
If Tinsley can't be bothered to put any effort into these strips, it's hard to justify working any harder in critiquing them, so let's just quickly summarize the more obvious points:
1] As others have pointed out, trivialization of genuine Nazi persecution.
2] Standard avoidance of the actual topic (can use of cartoon characters cause real problems) by standard wingnut dismissive ridicule as "political correctness"
3] Why wasn't, say, "Joe Camel" used as an example?
nlc - Joe Camel was too old.
And he would have made complete sense, as a cartoon figure that sold an unhealthy product, with no "PC" issues involved.
And making sense is scary.
Factnista, you also failed to point out that the Frito Bandito was about three decades (rounded figure) before the Taco Bell chihuahuah so he's really reaching back. I wait for him to bemoan the closing of the Sambo's restaurant chain as well.
Of course once we get to the post election strips, we'll really hear some whining from our favorite fowl mouthed crybaby.
The "Frito Bandito?" Who the hell under 45 remembers that? Kee-rist, he was deemed un-PC FORTY YEARS AGO!
"...I'm not sure exactly why Mallard feels prosecuted..."
The essence of reichwing anger is the feeling of being oppressed, which justifies attacks on objectively innocent parties. This feeling has nothing to do with objective reality; first they have the feeling, then they look around for someone to blame.
Ironically, the origin of the feeling may in part be dietary; foods like Sugar-Frosted Flakes can give you a blood sugar spike followed by a crash; the crash often leads to negative emotions. OTOH, Tinkley may just be a natural jerk.
Either way, in today's strip, Mallard is blaming his feeling of being persecuted on people who don't like the epidemic of obesity among our children. He doesn't question the role of Tony the Tiger in sickening our youth for profit; he just thinks the pusher should not be responsible for the poison.
Next week: Mallard complains that today's youth are fat and lazy.
Why wasn't, say, "Joe Camel" used as an example?
first they came for the smokers...
actually makes a hell of a lot more sense seeing as the Nazis were the first to have anti-smoking laws
He HAS in the past done strips about obese kids, hasn't he? What a funny little man he is.
Barely veiled subtext: "How come nobody wants to license 'Mallard Fillmore' as a commercial mascot? Sob."
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