Funny Advertisement

After our discussion last week about advertisements in our society, I saw a commercial that cracked me up. I had seen the commercial for the first time in last year's superbowl, but had never really thought about its message. The commercial I am refering to of course is the one for Planters peanuts that stars an unatractive woman who uses Planters peanuts to become attractive. If you haven't seen this commercial, it is definately worth seeing on Youtube. The commercial preaches that even over-weight women with unibrows can pick up men if they use this product. The first time I saw this commercial, I remember that I couldn't stop laughing. The marketing department at Planters is either amazing or crazy.

I admit that after watching this commercial I definately did not want to eat peanuts. So what's the point? I believe that many companies use humor so that viewers will remember their product. Although I do not know if this commercial helped sell the product, I am certain it got people talking. After the Superbowl, I remember watching this commercial, among others, in business class because it used the marketing technique of "secret ingredient." After just seeing it again today, I laughed for a different reason: will this commercial help sell peanuts?? This proves another example of how advertisement is used in our country. And although I don't feel like eating peanuts after watching it, I am very intrigued by the goals of many modern day commercials.

What Went Into Making My Watch?

Wow! When I bought my watch last summer for $7.oo at Walmart, I thought: What a steal! I never considered what had to happen in order for me to obtain the watch, how much work went into assembling it and obtaining the parts. For homework last weekend, we had to find out information about the thing that we said in class that we always have with us. Obviously I said my watch, and I was so shocked to find out what Walmart actually does that I felt the need to blog about it. I was aware that walmart had sweatshops and that they didn't pay their employees very well, but I was shocked to find out how bad it is.

I found an article on UFCW's website, which is a website promoting unionization that was quite shocking. Some walmart employees in foreign nations such as Bangladesh make as little as 9 cents an hour! Many of the issues that we saw in the video about the Triangle Factory are still apparent in Walmarts accross the world. In foreign factories: bathrooms are locked, employees are foced to work overtime, there are starvation wages, no health care and workers are fired if they try to defend their rights. Walmart has also been implemented in child labor violations, which is another serious problem!

So next time you go to a Walmart, remember this asterisk: What had to happen in order for me to buy this? And although I love my watch, I feel guilty that someone may have received little money and had to work overtime without being able to go to the bathroom in order for me to have it. That's not right. Walmart needs to stop this and manufacture its goods the right way.

Should We All Be Veggies?

As far as I can remember, I have always loved eating meat products. Chicken, steak, bacon, sausage, seafood, etc. I loved protein! It was not until we watched the video about industrialization and pork that I even began to think about what has to happen in order for me to enjoy a cheeseburger. Hearing those pigs scream was torture in itself. One of my tablemates couldn't even bear the film and refused to watch! And although I have never considered giving up meat, this is the first time that the idea has even crossed my mind!

The video we watched in class sparked my interest, so I decided to find out more about animal cruelty. I found an article in the Chicago Tribune about the ways in which animals are being slaughtered for fast food industries. Some industries shock the animals and then slit their throats, yet PETA is pushing for industries to gas the animals. Is this more humane? Maybe. But it is all pretty cruel. Now, I no longer blame my frienda Jesse and Gen for being vegetarians, rather I applaud them. Why do these animals deserve to die, especially in ways such as gassing and decapitation for us? Quite frankly, it's a little appauling. Although I don't think I'm capable of giving up meat, I strongly stress that people should be aware of what is going on.