I love British TV!

[fightingthecage]

...specifically, commercials.

I'll be the first to admit, I have a bizarre sense of humour. Or perhaps it's just typically British. But either way I'm glad of it because it means that I find some things side-splittingly hilarious that others don't.

There's a commercial for Tango on at the moment, which I don't believe y'all have in the States. Kinda like Fanta but slightly different, it's made by the Coca-Cola Company anyway. It involves a woman sitting in her office getting buckets of water thrown over her by random guys (whose job it is to throw said water) every time she has a drink of the new flavoured water drink. As she explains to her perplexed male boss, it's a metaphor. At which point, she has a drink, more water is thrown and a female colleague of hers walks in and says,

'Oh! Nice metaphor!'

The look on the wet!woman's face when she says, 'Thanks!' is nothing sort of genius. I die every time.

Although I do think the 'Women get it and men don't' subtext a little rude. But in this case, possibly accurate. Men don't always get the metaphors in my experience. The fact that I have yet to find a male friend who finds this commercial offensive for that reason is possibly proof of this - or perhaps they're sensible and just don't care. Ho hum.

Second - an internet car insurance company that likens telephone car insurance people to chickens wearing little headsets. By, uhh, having a commercial filled with chickens wearing little headsets. Again, I die.

And third - a magazine advertising a feature with the '160 hottest chicks in the world!' that's running this week in said publication...by having two blokes snogging passionately on a sofa. Yes yes, OK, it's just so that their girlfriends can come in and catch them and dump them, thereby leaving them free to puruse aforementioned hot chicks - but that's not the point. Men snogging! For a long time! On primetime TV and to sell a girly mag! Bwhahaha! I love my country.

Although if I was one of the girlfriends, I totally wouldn't dump the bf. I'd just watch.

So. Yes. This pointless update has been brought to you by Me. We now returned to your scheduled LJ flists. :D

Comments

[halfwest.livejournal.com]

*laughs at the first one*

And the third.... dude, I was just thinking earlier today about how I don't think I've ever seen a TV commercial featuring a same-sex couple except for the shock value in 2-second blips from Xena and that time Madonna snogged Britney Spears. Again, though, that's only chicks. Never seen one with guys.

Granted, my TV-watching is limited to science/history channels, Law and Order, and Sherlock Holmes. Although the past few nights I've watched Angel haven't had any, not that two nights of TV is indicative of much.

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

Well, the first thing I thought to myself when I saw the advert was 'Wow! Never seen that before!'

Closely followed by 'Wow! Wouldn't see that in America!'

Followed even closer by just 'Wow!'

Although if I'm honest, the third one might have come first. Hmmm. *ponders*

But yes. Borders breaking down and all that. I thank Freddie Mercury and Elton John. Freddie Mercury just because I love him so much, Elton John because he went and married his long term bf a couple of days after same-sex civil ceremonies were legalized here. Good for him!

I should also mention - as cannot shut up this morning, clearly - that we've had same-sex snogging in soap operas for a while now. And they're the most popular thing on British TV. Mainly women and it caused a furore the first time it happened about ten-fifteen years ago. But now it's passe, even though guys still don't do it that much. But yeah. We're getting a hell of a lot better at being chilled about such things. I mean the Establishment in general, not indiviuals. Like everywhere else, individuals here have been liberal since the sixties. Some of them at least. *g*

[halfwest.livejournal.com]

Every time I start to think society is liberated based on the folk I hang out with online, I overhear a conversation in the real world that makes me realize no, the country is still as homophobic as ever, possibly even more so.

I don't know about soap operas here, but I imagine we haven't got it, considering how HUGE a deal with was when Xena did it.

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

You know what? I just think that the homophobic people are more vocal. Because the rest of us who aren't bigotted and closed-minded don't feel the need to stand up and scream about being decent, fair-minded people. We just get on with stuff and accept that sometimes people love/want to shag people, not genders. Because why not? It's the ones that get righteously Outraged!!1! about things that make all the noise.

Meh, maybe I'm wrong. I do know that out of al my friends, there's only one person that thinks it's 'wrong'. She's also racist though and not the sharpest knife in the drawer, so I've given up trying to argue it with her.

*snickers* Dude, American soap operas are all women dressed in bikini's in mid-winter and buff young dudes called Enrique. Of course they don't bring the slash!

*is closed minded and bigotted about American soap operas, clearly*

[halfwest.livejournal.com]

Racism is just retarded beyond all retardedness. I've only met one racist in my life and the only reason I didn't kick his ass is because he's my grampa and was alive before all that equality stuff started. Anyway he's too old now to try to relearn all that. And it's not like he's going out and screaming at black people. He does at least know not to say it in public.

HATES Tiger Woods, though. I think it's kind of funny.

But I do know lots of homophobes, and even for example my ENTIRE family -- only my dad is vocally anti-gay. My mum and siblings don't speak against it, but I know they're not comfortable with the idea either.

American soap operas are retarded too. And I don't even watch them.

The Spanish ones are funny though. They feature old horny dudes having daydreams about Indian bellydancers and the dialogue is mostly

"NO, MARIA!"

"POR FAVOR!"

"NOOOOO, MARIA!"

"POR FAVOOOR!!!"

"NO MARIA!" *slap slap!*

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

*DIES with laughter*

'Slap slap!' BWHAHAHAHAHA! I must watch some of these next time I'm over. HEEEE!

As for racism - a hearty AMEN! It's just the stupidest thing ever. Actually, speaking of family, my mother is 'not comfortable' with the idea either. She grew up in N. Ireland which is still very predominantly white but you'd think that being there of all places would teach something about the futility of racial/religious hatred. But no. She'd never be rude to a black/asian person etc, she's just said to me in the past 'Don't bring a black man home!' - but in more a kind of, 'I'd be weirded out by you marrying a black guy' more than 'DON'T OR I'M NEVER TALKING TO YOU AGAIN!' type way. Er. If that makes sense. I've never told her that I find men of colour insanely attractive, heh.

But yes. It's just a completely pointless thing. I will never understand it, ever. And hopefully, it'll die out more with every generation that passes.

[halfwest.livejournal.com]

On the one hand, any amount of racism is too much.

On the other hand, I think we're doing pretty good considering my MOM can remember schools not being segregated, and I've been in schools where the black and white kids don't mix, and I've been in a school where I was one of two white kids in my class (for the record, I never spoke to the other -- he was weirder than I was), and I graduated from a class that had only one black girl, who I spent HOURS of every day with since she livedso close to me.

An interesting tidbit is the only black girl in the grade below me was Maya Keyes, who either quit or got kicked out of the school and has recently come out as a lesbian in a very public news thing.

I'd tell you about the school I graduated from and the shit they did to me because they THOUGHT I was gay but that's a loooooong story and I may have told you before.

As far as I know, my parents would have no problem with me dating or even marrying a colored man. They were perfectly fine when in middle school I had kind of a Thing with this guy from Angola. Whether that was natural lack of racism or because his dad was the president of the country, though, I'll never be sure. At any rate my best friend in kindergarden was an asian girl, and my mum and hers got along swimmingly. So I doubt it's a problem with them.

Also... yeah, black guys are totally hot. XD So are Indians, as in from India.

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

You did tell me about your school! It sounds...both horrifying and bizarre. But also, I am slightly envious that you managed to have a place where you could totally get back at them by having your secret underground army of fellow students. *wants own private army a la Fight Club*

The high school I went to only had one black kid ever and he was three years older than me. So when he left, there were no other black/asian kids at all. And apart from my friend, I'm still to find one racist person among those I went to school with. I guess it has a lot to do with popular culture and parents influence - football is like a religion over here and so many of the top players are black and from every country in the world etc, it seriously wouldn't occur to many kids these days to be racist. Same for other athletes/musicians etc. It can only be a good thing I reckon.

You dated the President of Angola's son? *falls over* Bwhahaha! Good goin'! :D

[halfwest.livejournal.com]

Not dated. Just hung out exclusively with because nobody else in the school could stand either of us. There is a difference. It was a quasi-romance of necessity.

Besides, he was about as openly, flamingly gay as it is possible to be at the age of 14. And I would NEVER have fit into his world. I'm about as perpetually casual and scruffy as it is possible to be. I went to his place ONCE and I think his aunt thought I was there to be a gardener or something.

big, BIIIIG culture gap. IMMENSE culture gap.

And yeah, these days it's hard to consider being racist in a lot of ways. Although what you DO get around here is a very definite seperation of cultures. The black people act different, talk different, and for the most part kind of group themselves apart. I hold that it's not something at least MY generation is forcing them to do. There seems to be a widespread victim complex among the blacks in my city. It kind of annoys me. I will admit it's possible there are things going on I don't see because I'm naive or I'm in the wrong part of town or something, but I just... DON'T SEE IT. Don't hear it. Don't experience it. I dunno if a lot of it is carried over from their parents who remember when there WAS widespread racism or what. In my experience, racism in my generation is 100% learned from PARENTS or peers who learned it from parents. On very, very rare occasions I've seen it learned from a media source, but in truth those ones I've only heard of in passing from friends of mine.

In a lot of ways, it almost seems to me as if racism is more a problem among the blacks than whites. Like they're beating THEMSELVES down, or holding something against us that we're not doing.

I also think part of it is people trying to overcompensate for wrongs that haven't been done. It's getting to be a real problem in schools these days where if you get into a good university, people will often say "it's just because he/she is black" and it will often be TRUE because universities are required to accept a certain percentage of culturally diverse students every year. Same with jobs.

Plus a thing I heard is that employers, even though lawfully required not to consider race when hiring, will often not look as closely at resumes of people with obviously racial names like Laquisha, which you get a lot of around here.

Apparently it's cultural. I dunno. Find me an African named Laquisha and I'll believe you.

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

*stares* Yes. Yes, we have the same arguments here. 'Only employed because of their colour' etc.

Thing is, I never see that. Just like you. I mean, I'm not immersed in the black community obviously. Hell, I'm not immersed in the white community at this point. But...yeah.

Man, I feel like I should know more. I just don't.

[halfwest.livejournal.com]

Yyyyyyep.


I talk a lot tonight too obviously. :P

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

We win! *high fives*

[halfwest.livejournal.com]

*dances with you*

How did we get from racism to cybertango?

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

Woot! *dances too*

Ummm...because we're ace?

*dips you*

Started off with metaphorical buckets of water and snogging men in commercials actually, but racism clearly needed to be discussed as well. And now I think I might go and Google the President of Angola's son and see if he's been caught in any random gay strip joint or anything. Heh.

[halfwest.livejournal.com]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jose_Eduardo_dos_Santos


That's his dad. He has the same name. I haven't found MY Jose yet, and I never met his dad, but his mum was really nice.

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

Rarr! Brilliant. He's still President then? That's awesome. You should totally go see him mum and get matey again, and then try and Influence the country. That would be so cool!

[halfwest.livejournal.com]

AHAHAHA. Yeah maybe. The article says he's stepping down though. Also, it looks like Angola is one of those wary places. I don't think I really want to go there.

I'd help him with his gardening if he wanted, though. That's about the extent of my cultural snootiness.

[zippitgood.livejournal.com]

If I may interject, there is a lesbian couple on one of the daytime soaps. One Life to Live, I think the show's called, just whichever one has Shannon Luci on it.

And there was a right hubbub concerning the revealtion about that.

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

Rarr, an interjection! That's cool - were people outraged? Or did they just think it was neat?

[zippitgood.livejournal.com]

From what I remember since I'm not in that fandom, was that all the actress playing Bianca was worried that they'd only be seen as doing it for ratings and wanted to show that it was a real relationship. Producers were worried too I think.

For the most part I think people thought it was neat. But then there was also worry about upsetting the status quo on soap operas with this new element added. Think once it aired and after a few episodes it was okay.

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

Heh, that's bizarre. Since when do people ever take anything seriously in soaps anyway? Odd.

...actually yeah, they do here. We're sad that way. I hate the frickin' things, yuk.

[zippitgood.livejournal.com]

Hate 'em too. Though I was obsessed with one a few years back. Was my actual introduction into fandom. Odd,yes?

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

Totally! I was just sucked into the 24 fandom because 24 kicks ass. And Now I CAN'T LEAVE!!! *cries*

[zippitgood.livejournal.com]

Me neither! And I always pick up the rarepairs. Drives me nuts with lack of fic.

[fightingthecage.livejournal.com]

Ugh yeah, I hear that. Which was`why I started writing Jack/Tony, cos no one else was! Grrr! Not so much fun when you have to do it yourself.