Does anyone else find the new Pontiac ad campaign creepy?

[Neecy]

It kicked off last week with some blonde woman who heads up one of those uber-patriotic groups that sends thank you cards to soldiers.

She teamed up with Pontiac to deliver gaily decorated red white and blue collection boxes to their dealerships so we lowly proles could stop in and drop off our thank you notes. The ad showed her giddy and grinning driving around in her SUV dropping off these collection boxes at various Pontiac showrooms.

Now Pontiac wants to 'thank us' for our overwhelming response to their thank you card promotion by having a Memorial Day sale. We can get a great deal on an SUV - c'mon in!

Okay, so a lot of places have Memorial Day sales, tasteless as that is. But to tie it together with this trumped up "thank you notes to soldiers" that you drop off while buying a gas-guzzling SUV on Memorial Day, a day that honors our war dead, whips up thoughts of the Kick Their Ass and Steal Their Gas gang and all together it just seems creepy, wrong, and sick.

Maybe I'm just getting too jaded about this whole thing after yesterday's vote. But I saw it again this morning and I wanted to throw something at the television.

[acmavm]

1. Oh yeah! Talk about capitalizing on a national tragedy. I'm

surprised they didn't show planes flying into the WTC in the background.

[Clark2008]

2. No - why would I find activism "creepy?"

Just because we don't support the war doesn't mean that we shouldn't thank those who voluteered to go fight in wars - even the misguided and idiotic wars created by civilian leaders who simply want perks.

[Neecy]

6. activism, on it's own, is fine

But to tie it to buying a massive SUV on Memorial Day just seems creepy to me.

[PA Democrat]

3. Great. People can feel good about "supporting the troops"

by taking 2 minutes to send a shitty thank-you card. Hey as long as the people who enabled Bush to get his wargasm on feel good about themselves, I guess it's OK that the carnage continues. Sickening.

[blondeatlast]

4. While we're buying that shiny new, made-in-Mexico Pontiac, we are creating more dead Americans

to remember.

How patriotic can you get?

I share your view--it's creepy as hell.

[ThomWV]

5. I didn't even know Pontiac still existed.

Buick either ....

[SammyWinstonJack]

8. Oldsmobile is the one that doesn't. Pontiac and Buick still "exist".

[European Socialist]

7. Glad you mentioned it--creepy and worthless--K&R.

[soothsayer]

9. No, I thought it was crummy of pontiac to just put her boxes in there for 1 month

why not ALWAYS?

[Octafish]

10. Remember what Andy Card said...

...about invading Iraq:

"From a marketing point of view, you don't introduce new products in August."

Before running up the stairs to get the hospitalized Ashcan to sign off on more Bush treason,
the guy was Sec of Transporation under Poppy and later CEO of the American Automobile Manufacturers Association (AAMA).
So, yeah. Andy luvs Big Oil.

[CrispyQ]

11. Who comes up with ideas like this?

I completely agree with you how inappropriate this is. I haven't seen the ad, but I will be sending Pontiac a different type of note.

Thanks for this post.

[MistressOverdone]

12. Kind of tacky

but predictable. They don't have a small car line?

[Javaman]

13. Somehow I think those cards end up getting shredded then dumped in a

land fill.

Frankly, I think at this point, a soldier would really appreciate food and good equipment than a smarmy thank you card from a car maker.

[stanwyck]

17. Considering the AP and USA Today stories

yesterday about how the Marines were granted less than 10% of their requests for much needed equipment, I'm thinking you're 100% correct.
Forget the cards. How about protection against explosive devices? The technology exists. But the money isn't being spend to get it to our troops.
But, hey, they ARE getting cheery little cards.

[durablend]

14. But I've gotta ask...

Do you get a free "SUPPORT THE TROOPS" magnet with every SUV purchased?

Cuz that could make or break the deal!

:sarcasm:

[Mind_your_head]

16. I was thinking the exact same thing! n/t

[JPZenger]

15. They Fight So We can Drive Suburban Assault Vehicles

One commentator noted that during WWII, no one was allowed to buy a new car, so that all of the resources could go to defeating the enemy.

Today, we send our troops off to war so that they is enough gasoline so civilians can drive military-style vehicles.

Ironic, huh?

---
Then remember what was the single thing that George Bush asked the American public to do after 9/11?
Answer: "Go Shopping".