Bud beer, Wokeness, and Corporate Marketing

 

I'm not sure what consumer product companies should do about their advertising. The US has become so polarized that we now have Republican beer and Democrat beer. Republican lumber and Democrat lumber. I know a lot of people who would never eat at Chik-Fil-A (I won't, partly because of their owner's far-right politics, and partly because their food is poisonous, at least to me), and some who don't shop at Home Depot (I do), or will shop only at Lowe's (I shop there sometimes, but it's not as convenient a location, and I think THD is by a slight margin the better-run store). 

It's interesting. The hate seems to be mostly coming from the Right side. Maybe I'm just missing it, but I don't see liberal groups espousing hatred and violence against various factions of the Republicans (OK, I know one woman who wants to pee on Sen. McConnell's grave, but he won't know, and that will probably just help the flowers there. It doesn't seem quite as hateful as "Hang Mike Pence!").

But if you measure "Rightness" or "Leftness" by how many owners and senior officers donate to a political party, Chick-Fil-A is hardly on the map. A much higher percentage of restaurant owners and senior officers gives to the Republican party at Buffalo Wild Wings, Taco Bell, Wendys, Jimmie Johns, and KFC. On the left side, almost all the Starbucks higher-ups (97%) give to the Dems. Is SBUX so "woke" that Repubs won't drink their coffee? (I try not to, myself, as their coffee is really horrible.)

My spouse works at Kaiser Permanente, and plays a big role in their marketing, such as showing different kinds of people in the brochure photos, such as different skin colors, different ethnic groups, different ages, different degrees of visible physical impairment, and different genders, including same-gender couples. So far as I know, the Right-most "mob of hate" hasn't targeted KP yet for providing healthcare to gay people, but perhaps they will get to it eventually. Our daughter works for Proctor & Gamble, which has to face this issue on a huge level every day, as it turns out that African Americans use laundry soap, too! Imagine the arguments inside those P&G meetings, as the mob of hate is discussed!

Not sure what to say about poor InBev, which owns Bud Light brand. The conglomerate is hurting anyway (Mexican beer is eating American beer's lunch), and now this! Poor Budweiser--all they wanted to do was be friends with both sides. But in America, the land of the free, which was established so that you could peacefully seek your own version of a good life, about 20% of the people will threaten and boycott you for trying to do just that. 

Is there a politically-independent beer? Is it safe to drink?

What a great country.

By the way, if "woke" means "aware" or "thinking" or "tolerant," then I'm all for it ;)



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