Posted on 11/14/2005 5:50:52 PM PST by Cagey
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- Make us a slogan we can't refuse, the state of New Jersey said. We got your slogan right here, the people replied.
A push to come up with a new slogan for the Garden State has become an excuse to crack New Jersey jokes. Among the not-so-serious entries:
"New Jersey: You Got a Problem With That?"
"NJ: How You Doin'?!"
"Most of Our Elected Officials Have Not Been Indicted."
The search yielded more than 4,000 possibilities in all, many of them attempts to sum up the land of Bruce Springsteen, "The Sopranos" and smelly interstates in one pithy phrase. The deadline for submissions was Monday.
The program began last month after acting Gov. Richard J. Codey rejected a consultant's recommendation -- "New Jersey: We'll Win You Over" -- as too negative. That slogan, developed as part of a $260,000 contract by global image consultants Lippincott Mercer, was shelved a day before it was to be unveiled.
Instead, the state opened the process to the public, establishing a Web site and telephone hot line to receive suggestions, which included the lyrical ("The Ocean, The Motion, The Magic") along with the satirical.
New Jersey, which once used "New Jersey and You: Perfect Together," has not had a new marketing slogan in four years. "Get Away, Without Going Far Away" has been used in the interim, but tourism officials say it does not resonate with out-of-staters.
"We have the opportunity to craft a new message for our tourist literature to reflect the pride we have in our many parks, open spaces, farmlands, quaint villages, boardwalks and beaches and our exciting cities," Codey implored would-be slogan writers on the Web site.
The governor and the state Commerce, Economic Growth and Tourism Commission will "pare down the suggestions and go from there," said Karen Wolfe, a commission spokeswoman.
The state's musical legacy -- Frank Sinatra called New Jersey home, Springsteen still does -- led one person to suggest "From Ol' Blue Eyes to the Boss: Jersey Is Singing Your Song." Another entry: "Born to Fun."
Others found New Jersey's reputation for mobsters, toxic waste sites and lowbrow taste fair game. "Bada Bing! Choose New Jersey" was one suggestion.
The campaign was run by the state, but newspaper columnists, talk radio and "Saturday Night Live" got into the spirit, too. "New Jersey: It Always Smells Like This," one Philadelphia Inquirer reader suggested. "New Jersey: Come Glow With Us," another said.
Don't forget those big cemeteries in Essex County.
Who Cut The Cheese?
At Least We're Not Rhode Island
Like Nevada but with more taxes!
Pronounce it "Joisey"
Now with 10% less toxic waste!
We had a gay governor, so what?
'cause New York sucks
Shoot squealers, not bears.
You Have The Right To Remain Silent
You Have The Right To An Attorney
America's Punchline
New Jersey: The beautiful toxic dump.
Actually I like New Jersey. It is quite pretty in the North-Western section.
New Jersey: Our Two NFL Teams Are Ashamed Of Us!
"America's Punchline"
West Virginia would probably give you a run for your money on that one.
:_)
That isn't a slight. The first sentence is in case you can't find it on the map (and most college students can't -- not even those in Trenton).
New Jersey: plenty of parking out back.
New Jersey: The Best Deal In The Tri-State Area.
(Let's face it: that's the main reason New Yorkers go there.)
"New Jersey...Where the most corrupt candidate wins."
We raise the dead. Every election year.
"New Jersey - Once you see Camden, Hell is paradise"
New Jersey: Gateway to Pennsylvania.
I'm not trying to say NJ politics is pure or anything, but these a-holes who come on these NJ threads mocking NJ corruption need to look past the drool running down their chins and check out their own back yards. My uncle worked for 20-plus years in Tennessee government and has assured me it's as corrupt as corrupt can be. I don't doubt it's like that most places. But we've had some embarassment lately and people like to make jokes about NJ, but it's just plain ignorance and nothing more.
There's something for everyone in NJ.
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