Archive for the ‘American Spirit’ Category

Salute: High praise for garbagemen … really!

May 24, 2017

Remember when Nancy Pelosi was lauding how ObamaCare was “liberating millions of Americans from the burden of working at jobs they don’t like.”

Simple thesis: just hang on the couch and let taxpayers foot the bill for your food, phone and, now, health insurance.

Why work?

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The issue is front & center again.

According to the Washington Post:

“Making (able-bodied) low-income Americans work to qualify for so-called welfare programs is a key theme of the Trump budget proposal … imposing more stringent work requirements — similar to those in effect in Maine and other states.”

Of course, WaPo thinks that’s a bad thing.

Evidence: a couple of heart-wrenching anecdotes of genuinely destitute folks who the Post asserts (wrongly) would be thrown out in the cold.

Memo to WaPo: The plural of “anecdotes” in not “data”.

Right when I  was about to get terminally discouraged (again), I headed out to run some errands.

On the road, my faith in the American spirit was refreshed.

(more…)

Posted in American Spirit, Employment - Jobs, Motivation, Work Ethic | Leave a Comment »

Maybe, the best commercial ever … n’est-ce pas?

March 11, 2014

Have you seen the new Cadillac commercial?

At several levels, I think it’s a great ad.

At a broad level, it’s creating an incredible level of buzz.

As AdAge puts it:

Fans on the political right see . . . an unapologetic ode to American values.

Critics on the political left see it as Ugly American chest thumping at its worst.

What’s got folks so stirred up?

Here’s the ad’s punch line:

“We’re crazy, driven, hard-working believers. . . . . You work hard. You create your own luck.

And you’ve gotta believe anything is possible.

As for all the stuff?

That’s the upside of only taking two weeks off in August, n’est ce pas?”

Crass ugly American materialism … or the American Dream?

Watch the commercial and draw your own conclusion.

One of my favorite reactions was from a “Manhattan brand consultant” who quipped:

The spot is well-done but philosophically odious.

The surprising thing strategically is that they would choose to play to their base instead of trying to expand it.

Say, what?

First, what’s odious about reaping some benefits from hard work ?

Sure, it’s ironic that the commercial is coming from Government Motors … but should the company be touting the progressive mantra “liberation from work” ?

I don’t think so.

Re: “playing to the base” …

I thought Cadillac’s base was NFL-NBA players and urban-based chemical distributors.

Who else rolls in Sclades ?

Note: I probably shouldn’t generalize from personal experience, but an NFL player lives a mile or two from our house.  During the season, there are always 12 or more black Escalades parked in his circular drive.  Place looks like a Caddy showroom.

They are trying to “expand the base”.

The Caddy ad caught my attention ….

…. just like C.C. Catch did in the 80s with her hit “In the Backside of Your Cadillac”

I may go car shopping this evening …

Posted in Advertising, American Spirit, Autos - Travel, Commercials | 2 Comments »

Salute: High praise for garbagemen … really!

February 20, 2014

Last week, Pelosi. et. al., were lauding how ObamaCare was “liberating millions of Americans from the burden of working at jobs they don’t like.”

Simple thesis: just hang on the couch and let taxpayers foot the bill for your food, phone and, now, health insurance.

Why work?

image

Right when I  was about to get terminally discouraged, I decided to go fetch our mail … on one of those windy, below-zero days.

At the mailbox, my faith in the American spirit was refreshed.

(more…)

Posted in American Spirit, Employment - Jobs, Motivation, Work Ethic | 3 Comments »