Whoa, put the phone down! Don't be calling my psychologist just yet! This is just yet another rambling, I must vent this out before I go crazy, post!
With that said, AFN commercials here are friggin' RIDICULOUS!! I understand that there needs to be a way to get the word out to the masses about:
* the Domestic Abuse Help Line. This is an important one for me, I mean it's hard enuf for people to get out of those kind of relationships when they are in the US only a drive away from family. Here they would really have no where to go, I get it.
* the different ways you can take off the big old "I'm a Stupid American" sign hanging around our necks. Face it, we're loud, demanding, irritating people and stick out like a sore thumb most of the time!
* German laws. There really is a speed limit here people.
* How not to be a sucker. I personally am not really sure that you can actually teach this to people. It's kinda like common sense, you either have it or you don't!
Luckily they are changing the commercials for the kids shows. We were watching Seasame Street and a commercial came on with a guy talking about his heroic actions during battle, with a mini-reinactment! Really?? Do you think small children need to hear how he pulled a burning man from the humvee and they both barely survived??? Being a kid connected to the military is hard enuf, why should they be worrying about their daddy's (in our case) safety? I talk really loud and jump up to make the kids pick up their things during a commercial. They probably are starting to think I'm psychotic!
Now they just show the little girl playing with Barbie and Ken saying "You can't do anything right, your ugly and useless" and making Ken hit Barbie. Then the speaker comes on and says something like "Domestic abuse hurts everyone". THAT was a lovely conversation in our house explaining how not everyone lives in a nice happy house like ours and it's meant to remind the mommies and daddies that their children are the most important thing to them.
These commercials have sparked SO many conversations in the car with sweet pea and corn niblet! Luckily I tell them the truth, and explain things as detailed as possible in a kid oriented way. J Man would just say crazy things like "the stork brought you!"!! So we've had the stranger danger talk, mommy will always love you talk, no one can hurt mommy talk, domestic abuse talk, and so many more!
So anyway, I don't mean to belittle the public messages, they are really needed. But when that's the ONLY type of commercials you see................
............you'll be ready to kick something around and sit on your couch in a state of depression!! Why do they have the opposite effect they intended?
Here's a little sample, I tried to get one that wasn't controversial, just stupid.
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