5 Blogs Before Lunch

Naming Rights: "George W Bush Sewage Plant" in San Francisco

The Huffington Post (via 5 Blog's Beverly Hills outpost) is blogging about Naming for the Right naming rights for a wastewater treatment facility in San Franciso. Here's the tongue-in-cheek proposal:

 "Looking to honor the forty-third President of the United States of America, George W. Bush, the recently formed Presidential Memorial Commission of San Francisco is looking to change the name of the Oceanside Wastewater Treatment Facility. It seems the group would like to rename the SF Zoo adjacent facility to the 'George W Bush Sewage Plant,'

The name change would require citizens of SF to vote on the matter. I expect a landslide victory!

Urban Dictionary Word of the Day: "Interesting"

The Urban Dictonary word for June 24 is interesting. No, I mean, the word is "interesting:"

(adj) Something which arouses no interest at all.

Used to politely avoid admitting this, which indirectly expresses your indifference.

Yes, your bottle cap collection is interesting.

Bob Garfield Shows Off His Sexist Bent: Question To Arianna Huffington: "Ginger or Mary Ann?"

I lost a lot of respect for Bob Garfield this afternoon.

I was listening to Garfield's NPR radio show "On The Media." He was interviewing Arianna Huffington on the substantive topic of the political slants of Fox News (right wing) and MSNBC (increasingly liberal).

At the end of the interview, Garfield asked Huffington; "Ginger or Mary Ann"? Referring to the stereotypes defined by characters on the 1960's TV series Gilligan's Island.

Huffington politely responded on-air  "Can't I be both?"

I suspect that off-air she might have said (and rightly so if she did) "WTF?"

Garfield proved what many supporters of Hillary Clinton have been saying about the media--SEXISTS!

It reminded me of primary debate question recently asked of Clinton: "Pearls or Diamonds?"

They're both questions that never would be asked of men.

But come to think of it, there are male sexist comments out there as well. I wonder if Garfield would ask Rupert Murdoch--"Boxers or briefs?"

Derrie-Air, Charging Passengers By The Pound

The Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News ran an ad for a new airline called Derrie-Air, which purportedly charges passengers by the pound. Visitors to the airline's website learn that Derrie-Air is the world's only carbon-neutral luxury airline, and it justifies its fare policy by saying that it takes more fuel to move heavier objects. The carrier pledges to plant trees to offset every pound of carbon its planes release into the atmosphere.

The ad's tagline: "The more you weigh, the more you pay."

Yes, the campaign is a spoof, and the airline is a fake.

Philadelphia Media Holdings spokesman Jay Devine said the goal is to "demonstrate the power of our brands in generating awareness and generating traffic for our advertisers, and put a smile on people's faces." The company will track traffic to the Derrie-Air site. Devine said there's already buzz about the campaign on online blogs.

A disclaimer labels the ad campaign "fictitious" and says it is designed "to test the results of advertising in our print and online products and to stimulate discussion on a timely environmental topic of interest to all citizens."

Dunkin' Donuts Pulls Ad Featuring Rachael Ray Because of a Keffiyeh--or maybe it is just a paisley scarf

Dunkin' Donuts has pulled an ad featuring TV chef/host Rachael. The reason: a controversy has arisen as to whether Ray is wearing a keffiyeh

A keffiyeh you say.

Yes, apparently Ray's stylist added a black-and-white silk scarf with a paisley design to her wardrobe for the ad's photo shoot. The scarf, according to some, looks a lot like a keffiyeh, a traditional headdress worn by Arab men.

And this is where the racism, stereotyping and bigotry begins.

It seems that certain individuals, including ultra-conservative Fox News commentator Michelle Malkin have decided that the keffiyeh symbolizes murderous Palestinian jihad, due to its common use by Yasser Arafat ("and a regular adornment of Muslim terrorists appearing in beheading and hostage-taking videos."), and that this has no place in a Dunkin' Donuts ad.

So, this leads us back to Dunkin' Donuts, who, afraid of boycotts by the ultra right wing, have pulled the ad for fear that their consumers might mistake Rachael Ray for a terrorist. The company at first pooh-poohed the complaints, claiming the black-and-white wrap was not a keffiyeh. But the right-wing drumbeat on the blogosphere continued and finally Dunkin' Donuts decided it'd be easier just to yank the ad. 

Dunkin' said in a statement: "In a recent online ad, Rachael Ray is wearing a a black-and-white silk scarf with a paisley design . It was selected by her stylist for the advertising shoot. Absolutely no symbolism was intended. However, given the possibility of misperception, we are no longer using the commercial." 

Source:  Boston.com and SF Chronicle.

Urban Dictionary Word of the Day: "Bad Fuel Day"

5 Blogs Before Lunch is having a bad fuel day:

The mood or feeling one experiences after having just filled his or her vehicle with $4.00+ per gallon gasoline. (Usually consists of a sense of great economic despair, impending doom, anger, frustration, depression and/or a combination of all the above)

"Leave me alone. I'm having a bad fuel day!"

Lindsay Lohan's Mugshot Used As The Face of Anti-Breathalizer Campaign

A full-page ad appeared in USA Today on Friday and was paid for by a trade group that supports the interests of the alcohol industry.

So where's the story here? Well, the trade group, the American Beverage Institute, is using actor/celebrity bad girl Lindsay Lohan's mug shot as the primary visual in an ad that promotes the use of in-car breathalyzers for repeat DUI offenders only.

It is an attack on devices that measure drivers' blood-alcohol level before their vehicle can start, for people who "casually" drink and drive.

Huh?

It is a bizarre claim, seemingly not worthy of a full page ad. Should the industry be anti-breathalyzers?

The ad suggests that ignition interlocks were fine for "hard-core" drunk drivers, and suggests that the wide use of such devices would bring an end to champagne toasts at weddings, wine at dinner and ballgame beers. They say the devices should only be reserved for repeat DUI offenders like the twice convicted actress. Lohan's lawyer angrily responded that "Lindsay Lohan fully endorses ignition interlock devices."

The ad reads "Ignition interlocks are a good idea for" above Lohan's mug shot from her July 24, 2007 arrest and "But a bad idea for us" above smaller photos of people drinking.

Interestingly, Lohan's camp decided to attack USA Today, not the American Beverage Institute for running the ad:

"USA Today is idiotic to run such an irresponsible advertisement suggesting that drinking and driving is some kind of American 'tradition' we should protect," Lohan's lawyer Blair Berk said in a statement. "Not identifying that this ad was paid for by the liquor and restaurant industries is profoundly reckless.

"Drunk white businessmen, drunk housewives out for girls night out and drunk wedding parties should be kept off the roads of America," Berk continued. "Lindsay Lohan fully endorses ignition interlock devices, which have been well-proven to save lives."

The American Beverage Institute stood by its use of Lohan's image.

More at CNN.com

Happy Valentines Day

5 Blogs Before Lunch will be out lookin' for love today.

Mark Malkoff's Latest Brand Adventure: Six Days and Six Nights Living in Ikea

Last year, Mark Malkoff; comedian, writer and filmmaker, produced and starred in a popular short video in which he visited and consumed purchases at all 171 Starbucks locations in Manhattan in one day.

Now, he's found his way to IKEA, and made himself comfortable...for a week.

His misadventures can be viewed on YouTube, MySpace and Facebook, and of course his website: MarkLivesInIkea.com

Mark's site claims that it is not affiliated with IKEA in anyway. Yum. Free word of mouth.

I'm not sure who wins the promotional prize for this one--IKEA, Starbucks or this enterprising filmmaker. Let's just say everyone wins.

His Starbucks video can be viewed here. According to his bio, Mark currently works as the audience coordinator on Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report." You can check out his work at www.markmalkoff.com.

Definition of Holidaze (I'm Feeling It)

From the fine folks at Urban Dictionary:

HOLIDAZE: Term that defines the feelings of confusion and excitement people have between thanksgiving and christmas; the blur one feels after/during shopping for gifts in crowded retail stores with heavy holiday traffic.

Finley sat on the couch in a holidaze, after a day of hectic Christmas shopping
on [Black Friday].