Absolut Vodka Running Ad Showing Southwest As Part Of Mexico

What is the world coming to when Vodka is turning against you? The Los Angeles Times had a startling report about a new Absolut Vodka Ad. The LA times wrote that "the billboard and press campaign, created by advertising agency Teran\TBWA and now running in Mexico, is a colorful map depicting what the Americas might look like in an 'Absolut' -- i.e., perfect -- world. The U.S.-Mexico border lies where it was before the Mexican-American war of 1848 when California, as we now know it, was Mexican territory and known as Alta California." (To see the ad for yourself visit stevelackner.com). I hate to say it, but perhaps a boycott of Absolut would be in order.

First and foremost, I don't want political or social commentary to come along with my liquor or my liqour ads. How about something typical, about it's smooth taste. But beyond this, I absolutely (pun intended any time that word is used in this article) object to the Swedish Vodka company's depiction of our country as belonging to Mexico. Maybe they have never heard of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. After the 1848 Mexican American war the treaty provided for the Mexican Cession, in which Mexico ceded 525,000 square miles to the United States in exchange for $15 million. In an absolute world ads that are as idiotic and sickening as this would not run.

Furthermore, Favio Ucedo is the creative director of the leading Latino advertising agency Grupo Gallegos in the U.S. He said that “Mexicans talk about how the Americans stole their land, so this is their way of reclaiming it. It’s very relevant and the Mexicans will love the idea.” I don't care about what Mexicans talk about. Absolut should feel the reprecussions of this ad in their American market. They should not indulge Mexican fantasies of taking U.S. territory at the expense of offending Americans. We should not stand for having our borders maligned. Luckily these are grandiose delusions and nothing else. Though let us not forget about how Mexicans, who apparently hold this belief according to Uleco, are illegaly crossing our border into our territory every day. But then again, maybe we are inviting this type of ad by allowing our borders to be as open and porous as they are in the first place.

Booze sells fantasies.

Usually of a sexual content.

Now of a continant rebirth.

Absolut has reached out to other groups to sell there product.

We are living in a Global society like it or not ( I loathe it) and Ad agencies are going to be at the top of the list to Globalize. JMO

This is an interesting response left on a blog from a Mexican about this Absolut mess.

Fabricio Says:
April 3, 2008 at 2:34 am

I was born and raised end educated in Mexico, this has got to be the biggest sour grapes ad ever. We lost tons of what was then OUR territory, because we were weak, stupid and corrupt, no one in Mexico cared about 2/3 of the old Nueva Espana until after they discovered gold in California and no one in Mexico cared about that territory untli the USA built it up with roads, cities, towns, services, industry in the early 20th century. Guess what, it’s the 21st century and Mexico is still weak, stupid and corrupt, socially, economically and govermentally. Instead of wroking to build a great society, instead of mexican society working as a team and building a 1st class country with the tons of human an natural resources we have, we covet jealously what we could have had, what the USA became and is, it because the Americans are smart and they have their checks and balances socially, politically and economically they built an empire out of 13 piece of dirt colonies, the Spaniards gave us an empire in term of land and as a society we pissed it away, the problem is that mexican never look at themselves as the problem, which we are, naturally we always look at some one else to blame for our own failings.

We suck as a culture, we suck as a society, we suck as a country, were a third rate wannabe leftist dictatorship aka a latina american democracy that can never get it’s act straight. I had the good fortune of marrying into an American family that embraced me regardless of my origins these social and political conservatives are some of the most generous and hard working people and some of the closest nit humans you will find, I am lucky to have left Mexico, and I will never return to Mexico, I will die for the USA and my sons will die for the USA because it has given me everything.

What has Mexico ever given me? Nada.

I toast my glass of STOLI to Fabricio! Well said my friend, well said!

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/protectourbordernow/message/42646

Poll to freep on this nonsense.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/laplaza/2008/04/your-chance-to.html

What do you think of the Absolut vodka Mexico ad?

The ad is great. I’ll buy Absolut vodka.
The ad is an affront to Americans. I’m going to boycott the product.———63.5 %

It’s funny.
It’s stupid.
Who cares?

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