New Kids-With-Dildos ‘Gun Safety’ Ad Is A Dangerous Lie
There’s a new “gun safety” PSA featuring little kids sword-fighting with dildos that has captured the imagination of every blog that wants to get “dildo” into a headline (which is to say, all of them), but the seemingly benign message behind the deliberately provocative premise is a dangerous lie.
Consider yourself trolled once you’ve watched this ad, which features the aforementioned dilduel, in full view of chagrined mom whose (pair of?) dildos made their way into little hands, with the tagline “If they find it, they’ll play with it, so always lock up your guns.”
Aside from the fact that these two kids clearly need a few weeks at Mace Windu’s Simulated Meatsaber Academy, the first thing that comes to mind is that this message is marginally more palatable than that of the NRA, which insists that it’s all about keeping guns away from kids, while also telling its members that if they lock up their guns, their families will be murdered.
This has led some commentators to forgive the group’s bullshitty “no political position” position on guns, in hopes that the ad will do some good. From Wonkette:
While we generally find the no-position position on anything, really, to be some bullshit, we’ll put up with it if it means that some timid mom or dad somewhere will actually say “oh hey, Jimmy’s Mom, could you please tell us if you have a trampoline or if you let the kids eat candy or oh also too do you keep guns in an easy-to-reach cupboard?”
This requires ignoring the vast differences between gun culture and dildo culture, because aside from their similarities as surrogate penises, there’s little common ground there. Dildo owners don’t bring their kids along for dildo-using trips, or dildo practice, and you’re not going to rent a dildo at a dildo range and have it jump in your kid’s hand and kill him. Most kids don’t know you have a dildo, and won’t spend every available minute alone looking for it.
That’s fine, though, clearly the intent here is to model something that you don’t want your kids to find and play with, in a memorable and provocative fashion. Mission accomplished, I guess, but the entire campaign ignores two crucial facts…READ MORE
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Copyright 2014 Liberaland
By: Tommy Christopher
Tommy Christopher is The Daily Banter's White House Correspondent and Political Analyst. He's been a political reporter and liberal commentator since 2007, and has covered the White House since the beginning of the Obama administration, first for PoliticsDaily, and then for Mediaite. Christopher is a frequent guest on a variety of television, radio, and online programs, and was the villain in the documentaries The Audacity of Democracy and Hating Breitbart. He's also That Guy Who Live-Tweeted His Own Heart Attack, and the only person to have ever received public apologies from both Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck.
10 responses to New Kids-With-Dildos ‘Gun Safety’ Ad Is A Dangerous Lie
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Eric Trommater June 27th, 2014 at 13:20
I think you are being too hard on Evolve. There is never going to be a way to get guns out of every house in America and this clever ad campaign that can reduce children being killed by guns by 70-73% is awesome. Runnig a series of ads saying Never Buy a Gun Ever is not going to get a lot of airtime in America right now and so it’s a false equivilency to say that Evovle had a choice between this ad and one that got your message across.
Pistol-Packing June 27th, 2014 at 16:13
Running ads saying never buy a gun, is not going to get anywhere. Running messages reminding people of safe storage will go a lot further. And the fact that they did not politically align the message. Made me willing to share it amongst my social media and remind my fellow gun owners, that they need to consider how they store their weapons.
Eric Trommater June 27th, 2014 at 13:20
I think you are being too hard on Evolve. There is never going to be a way to get guns out of every house in America and this clever ad campaign that promotes action that can reduce children being killed by guns by 70-73% is awesome. Runnig a series of ads saying Never Buy a Gun Ever is not going to get a lot of airtime in America right now and so it’s a false equivilency to say that Evovle had a choice between this ad and one that got your message across.
Pistol-Packing June 27th, 2014 at 16:13
Running ads saying never buy a gun, is not going to get anywhere. Running messages reminding people of safe storage will go a lot further. And the fact that they did not politically align the message. Made me willing to share it amongst my social media and remind my fellow gun owners, that they need to consider how they store their weapons.
R.J. Carter June 27th, 2014 at 13:32
This is intriguing.
The author argues that despite increases in education about gun safety, the danger is still there — I’m assuming because we simply can’t be educated enough about something to the point where safety is achieved.
And yet (and keeping in theme with the dildo duel of the video) when confronted with rising numbers of teen STD cases or teen pregnancies, the answer always seems to be… “more education is needed.” So I guess we can reach a point where our kids will know everything about safe sex to such a degree that we can eliminate or make negligible the number of STD or teen pregnancy cases — but we’ll never reach a point where people are gun educated enough.
R.J. Carter June 27th, 2014 at 13:32
This is intriguing.
The author argues that despite increases in education about gun safety, the danger is still there — I’m assuming because we simply can’t be educated enough about something to the point where safety is achieved.
And yet (and keeping in theme with the dildo duel of the video) when confronted with rising numbers of teen STD cases or teen pregnancies, the answer always seems to be… “more education is needed.” So I guess we can reach a point where our kids will know everything about safe sex to such a degree that we can eliminate or make negligible the number of STD or teen pregnancy cases — but we’ll never reach a point where people are gun educated enough.
Pistol-Packing June 27th, 2014 at 16:08
As a Gun owner, I find nothing wrong with this PSA. If anything I thought it was funny and provocative enough to make me think how I store my weapons. That being said, I do store my weapons safely, but it is a friendly reminder that kids will find things… I think this author of the article is wrong in so many ways. But hey, each to their own opinion. And if we want to talk education, then why are we not teaching firearm safety in our classrooms. We teach kids how to put on condoms??
Yeah way July 10th, 2014 at 23:35
Agreed. My mom, a Quaker peace activist of almost 80 years of age, was on her marksmanship team in high school, where there was a supervised rifle range in the basement.
Bring supervised gun clubs back into schools and two things will happen: 1) would-be gang bangers will have another outlet to assuage their natural curiosity about an object that plays such a huge role in our collective history, and entertainment industry. Otherwise, unless they come from a firearm-friendly background, I guarantee they will find another way to get access. gangs.
Instead, they can be told “stay on the straight and narrow, and you can be a LEGAL gun owner and pehaps even a champion marksman!”
and, 2) since kids in wealthy private schools already HAVE access to rifle and shooting and skeet clubs etc (one private school uses my local range), what exactly are we saying to inner-city youth when we deny them the same outlets??
Sorry, you guys don’t get to learn how to shoot, and safely handle a firearm, or study the history and mechanics of the firearm -that’s only for the privileged kids??
No, thank you. As a liberal, I want to see equal opportunity for ALL our children to learn, if they so desire, the wonderful and satisfying skills sets involved in becoming a safe and responsible marksman.
It’s a wonderful “heritage” sport, as is hunting. Inner city kids don’t get to do THAT either…EVER. There should be opportunities for them to try it, even squirrels with a single shot .22, or maybe varmints from a local farmer’s field outside the city…
Firearm safety, school gun clubs and closely supervised range days. It just might amaze some parents how responsible kids can learn to be, given the chance.
Or, they can go out and join a gang, I don’t care. I live 3 miles back in the woods, on an island in a tiny lake. But I still lock up my guns. Twice.
Pistol-Packing June 27th, 2014 at 16:08
As a Gun owner, I find nothing wrong with this PSA. If anything I thought it was funny and provocative enough to make me think how I store my weapons. That being said, I do store my weapons safely, but it is a friendly reminder that kids will find things… I think this author of the article is wrong in so many ways. But hey, each to their own opinion. And if we want to talk education, then why are we not teaching firearm safety in our classrooms. We teach kids how to put on condoms??
Yeah way July 10th, 2014 at 23:35
Agreed. My mom, a Quaker peace activist of almost 80 years of age, was on her marksmanship team in high school, where there was a supervised rifle range in the basement.
Bring supervised gun clubs back into schools and two things will happen: 1) would-be gang bangers will have another outlet to assuage their natural curiosity about an object that plays such a huge role in our collective history, and entertainment industry. Otherwise, unless they come from a firearm-friendly background, I guarantee they will find another way to get access. gangs.
Instead, they can be told “stay on the straight and narrow, and you can be a LEGAL gun owner and pehaps even a champion marksman!”
and, 2) since kids in wealthy private schools already HAVE access to rifle and shooting and skeet clubs etc (one private school uses my local range), what exactly are we saying to inner-city youth when we deny them the same outlets??
Sorry, you guys don’t get to learn how to shoot, and safely handle a firearm, or study the history and mechanics of the firearm -that’s only for the privileged kids??
No, thank you. As a liberal, I want to see equal opportunity for ALL our children to learn, if they so desire, the wonderful and satisfying skills sets involved in becoming a safe and responsible marksman.
It’s a wonderful “heritage” sport, as is hunting. Inner city kids don’t get to do THAT either…EVER. There should be opportunities for them to try it, even squirrels with a single shot .22, or maybe varmints from a local farmer’s field outside the city…
Firearm safety, school gun clubs and closely supervised range days. It just might amaze some parents how responsible kids can learn to be, given the chance.
Or, they can go out and join a gang, I don’t care. I live 3 miles back in the woods, on an island in a tiny lake. But I still lock up my guns. Twice.