Gillette Commercial

Normally I do not discuss such current events in my piddly little blog - I think it is akin to making the main character in an otherwise timeless novel call someone on their cell phone. Not that I claim to be timeless, but I just think it has a big impact on how shallowly you read the following. It pulls the reader out. A mass of people can suddenly relate less. Unsavory.

However, I have been given the gift of time, and I have a thought about something, and that - for better or for worse - IS the formula of my entries. So here goes.

I watched the ad. I found it on my own, watched it on my own, and refused to read the comments below. I have barely heard an entire comprehensible assessment of this ad, and as such I was able to make my own assessment. My immediate thought was that it was a sweet sentiment. Like those tragic commercials I will hear on the radio about how you can "be a hero in a child's life" by praising them for "at least one thing they did right".

Have you ever heard of a better time for contraception? Who needs to be told this? Who are these commercials for? At any rate.

My next thought was something to the effect of "well that was an odd topic for a razor company to take on". But! Then I remembered PSA's from my childhood, from the stars of Full House on being kind. From Friends on drug abuse. From the Cosby Show on unwanted touching.

...

My point is that if some regular person posts a video on facebook about women's rights, you are likely to scroll past that individual because you do not know their face. You do not care about them, not really, anyway. Why should you pause your scroll for them? Especially with so many people posting so many opinions on every little topic, most of which you have no use for. NOW. If you swap that regular person for, say, Lady Gaga. Tom Hanks. The stars from GoT (an odd choice, but hear me out), you will stop. You will at least stop to read the title. Maybe catch a bit of the caption. Maybe even decide to listen to the whole thing. Maybe even decide to...

CARE.

So, with that in mind, I suppose I came to the conclusion that it is not that odd. Not odd at all, even. Celebrities and brands have an incredible opportunity to take stands for things. Right or Wrong. We will listen. We are listening right now. And most of them are getting handsomely paid for whatever work they're doing, which gives them even further opportunity to take action. Having said that, I will say, in the interest of covering all ground and keeping in my realistic views, this topic-taking-on was not likely out of the kindness of Gillette's collective hearts. It is more likely that Gillette was feeling threatened by the impending doom of $5 razor club and ensembles of the like. Brilliant marketing. I mean, at the end of the day... we are talking about Gillette more now than before they created this ad. At least I know I am.

Final thought: This commercial was about men treating men & women (everyone) better, and it was not about equal rights in the specific way of seeing men & women as the same creatures. I feel as though we sway so clumsily between the two with our personal opinions.