Snickers (dustup)

Philadelphia Inquirer ^ | February 6, 2007 | Daniel Rubin

[Cincinatus' Wife]

We need to go back for one more bite of that Snickers Super Bowl ad.

Monday a blogstorm kicked up over the ad that showed two mechanics fighting over a Snickers bar and inadvertently kissing, with the largest gay civil rights group calling on the Mars Inc., the candy company, to pull several alternative endings and related material from its Web site.

And before the day was done, the material had been pulled, as were plans to show one of the alternate endings during the Daytona 500 telecast.

Here was Ameriblog's mid-day headline: "Snickers Superbowl Web site promotes violence against gays and lesbians. Bears & Colts players react in disgust, on camera, to gays."

The ad, which aired during Sunday's game, showed two guys working on a car. One is leaning over the hood, eating a Snickers bar. The other can't help but start chewing on the free end. They work their way toward the middle until they realize their lips have touched. Then, calling for a manly act, each rips a clump of hair from his chest.

But that wasn't the problem.

"You ain't seen nothin' yet," writes John Aravosis, a DC political consultant on his Ameriblog site. Aravosis, who had advocated against anti-gay actions in creating the StopDrLaura.com site and the Matthew Shepard Online Resources, took issue with the now-down Snickers site's showing the reactions of three Bears and two Colts players who had watched the ad. He also questioned three alternative endings to the spot.

I didn't see video of the player's reactions before the site was changed. Aravosis reports that one player said, "That ain't right." A second made a face twisted with disgust.

"These guys are role models for kids, and they're telling America's kids ... that two guys kissing ain't right," Aravosis writes.

One of the alternative endings had a third guy approaching after the close encounter. Brushing his hair from his eyes, he asked "is there room for three on this Love Boat." In another, instead of pulling out chests hair after the kiss, they drink motor oil and anti-freeze.

Aravosis writes, "They guzzle it down, screaming at the top of their lungs, making them sick to their stomachs. The ad is vaguely violent - better to die than be gay."

The next one might be worst, by Avarosis' account. After the kiss, one picks up a wrench and attacks the other. Then the second slams the hood of the car of the head of the other. Aravosis: "Yes, the appropriate reaction to a guy kissing you is to beat the crap out of the guy who kissed you. Maybe Snickers should rename this ad 'Matthew Shepard."

He concludes:

The entire thing is absolutely sickening. And while I can appreciate that Snickers didn't overtly think that promoting violence against gays and lesbians is "funny," they knew what they were doing. They were gay-bashing for fun. And they didn't just cross the line - they left the line in the dust.

My first reaction when I read this, was that he was making much ado about nothing. Particularly when the progressive blogger noted that the family that owns Mars is a big supporter of the Republican party. Leaving his feet to the throw a punch, I thought.

But what was up with showing ball player after ball player react to the video? And after watching the now-pulled alternative endings, which can still be seen here, I'm wondering what the ad agency and Mars officials were going for. Making fun of rednecks? As some Ameriblog readers concluded.

Not everyone reading Ameriblog was as outraged. A commenter, signing his opinion Just Some Guy, wrote:

Now I realize that with the new Democratic majority in Congress, and the rising liberal sentiment in this country, that some people are going to want to flex their muscles. And rightfully so.

However, wouldn't it be best to use some form of restrain, rather than picking knee-jerk fights over every little thing which may offend someone? The entire air of "political correctness" from the '80s is exactly the vehicle the neofascists rode in to power, and it's resurgence was used by GWB to rally his base.

There's a difference between a racist tirade by Michael Richards or Michelle Malkin, and a joke by Sara Silverman or Lisa Lampinelli. The difference is malice, and I just didn't see the malice in the commercial.

I would suggest shrugging off things said in jest. Otherwise you are going to end up crying wolf, and that's the same reason people are currently tuning out GWB and his fearmongering. Please, don't set yourself up to be tuned out- it weakens us all.

[dyed_in_the_wool]

"These guys are role models for kids, and they're telling America's kids ... that two guys kissing ain't right," Aravosis writes.

Er, because it ain't?

[Dosa26]

So now the gays are btchin over what might have been? All I know is after seeing that commercial I may never eat a snickers again. That was my favorite candy bar too, it just turned my stomach that much.

[BigDaddyTX]

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/354910/watch_out/

[Bryan]

It ain't. The two guys are portrayed as straight. If they were portrayed as gay, then "Ameriblog" might be right.

[saganite]

Finally something gays and straights can agree on. We all hate that commercial.

[BlessedBeGod]

"These guys are role models for kids, and they're telling America's kids ... that two guys kissing ain't right," Aravosis writes.

And the problem with that is?

[wally-balls]

This is a bit off the point but I can't resist - from now on we should only refer to these bipeds as homosexuals. Everytime we use GAY instead of HOMO we're giving up ground to these silly (but dangerous) creatures. I feel better now.

[Caipirabob]

"Yes, the appropriate reaction to a guy kissing you is to beat the crap out of the guy who kissed you."

I thought that was the correct response to an attempted sexual assault.

[philman_36]

I thought that was the correct response to an attempted sexual assault.
No, no, no...you file a lawsuit, not beat the crap out of them.
The lawyers do the beating for you.

[Joe Boucher]

Well said.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

The ad's "humor" was lost on me.

What were they thinking?

Maybe I'm not their target audience.

[SkyPilot]

Yes, the appropriate reaction to a guy kissing you is to beat the crap out of the guy who kissed you. Maybe Snickers should rename this ad 'Matthew Shepard."

Let the reeducation camps commence.

I hated the ad, because it was sick and violent. I hated all the commercials that had this "cartoon" violence. I also hated the ad because it shows two men engaged in gross behavior. Yes, homosexuality is gross and horrible. It appears that 10-year olds wrote these moronic ads.

The reaction from "gays" is now becoming Stalinesque.

First, some actor calls another actor on Grey's Anatomy a "fag" - and the guy was a homosexual - and he has to check into "rehab" to overcome his "hatefulness."

Then, we get this sick ad, and the gays are angry because the players who saw it were disgusted by the homosexual angle. Well, so were millions of Americans. Moreover, many many players on the Colts and Bears are Christians. They both have Christian coaches, and their leadership has led many of those players to Christ. I am certain this is part of the homosexual attack against the players.

The homosexuals want anyone who does not "celebrate" their dirty and disgusting acts to be sent to Soviet style mental clinics and gulags.

If we don't stand up to the homosexuals, socialists, and atheists in our midst, we will suffer a terrible fate. Thought Crimes are now a reality.

God have mercy on us.

[sneakers]

Actually, I thought it was quite funny.


But the commercial I REALLY liked (and I don't know if it was part of the Superbowl commercials), was the Burger King commercial with all the guys singing "I am Man". hilarious!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

I know what you mean about the violence.

I hate Capitol One commercials, the "what's in your wallet?" ad campaign, for that reason.

[Adder]

"These guys are role models for kids, and they're telling America's kids ... that two guys kissing ain't right," Aravosis writes.


One of the alternative endings had a third guy approaching after the close encounter. Brushing his hair from his eyes, he asked "is there room for three on this Love Boat." In another, instead of pulling out chests hair after the kiss, they drink motor oil and anti-freeze.


Aravosis writes, "They guzzle it down, screaming at the top of their lungs, making them sick to their stomachs. The ad is vaguely violent - better to die than be gay."


The next one might be worst, by Avarosis' account. After the kiss, one picks up a wrench and attacks the other. Then the second slams the hood of the car of the head of the other. Aravosis: "Yes, the appropriate reaction to a guy kissing you is to beat the crap out of the guy who kissed you. Maybe Snickers should rename this ad 'Matthew Shepard."


They all seem like reasonable responses to disgusting, sick, unnatural behavior.
Whats the problem here?

[Niteranger68]

I would have enjoyed seeing a third mechanic step in and kick both of their a$$e$. Maybe after donning a pair of latex gloves.

[ShadowDancer]

I found it completely void of humor and nasty and when I looked at my husband his faced was contorted into that disgusted look that one of the players had described in this piece. I have no idea who they were targeting with it but they sure missed their mark with middle America.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

One more point.

I dare say many "in your face" homosexuals are narcissists.

They love this attention.

[BallyBill]

They would've been better of having Bill Murray mistake their product for a turd.