Did George Washington Clip Coupons, Too?
Did George Washington Clip Coupons, Too?
Folks, it’s definitely the end of history!
On March 20, the Sioux City Journal reached a historic low in poor taste. Page A12 was devoted to a most ridiculous full-page ad. The main tag line read: “What made freedom of the press so important to the Founders? Maybe it was the coupons.” The ad showed an elephant (always with the Republican symbolism!) carrying a banner ad for some overpriced and gaudy wedding rings, while floating above in a winged basket (someone will have to explain the symbolism of THAT to me) could be seen Founding Fathers Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin with approving looks on their faces. The ad, needless to say, was meant to entice more advertising in the Sioux City Journal.
But were they really intending to so trivialize the concept of freedom of the press by equating it with the simple act of clipping coupons? Did they expect us to take pride in their exploitation of Thomas (“Have I got a deal for you!”) Jefferson and Benjamin (“Buy more to save more!”) Franklin as unwilling shills for overpriced jewelry? Can’t you just picture General George Washington whiling away the lonely hours at Valley Forge during the winter of 1777, sorting coupons and thinking thoughts of eventual victory?
Well, you’ve got to give the Sioux City Journal credit for voluntarily highlighting its status as a glorified ad sheet. In fact, I remember when I first moved to town and got a sales call from the people at the Journal. “Buy it for the Sunday coupons,” the salesperson stressed. I did, and although I have continued my subscription ever since, I harbor no illusions as to either the quality of news coverage (frustratingly low) or the paper’s obvious political slant (staunchly conservative). Molly Ivins quietly disappeared from its pages recently, and I notice that I get less and less in the way of manufacturer’s coupons on Sunday. Nevertheless, I endure our local rag. I fear my stoicism has everything to do with my Catholic upbringing, because as the good Bishop back home used to remind us alter boys, “it’s our lot in life to suffer.”
Alas, I don’t think clipping coupons on Sundays provides me much spiritual solace. I trust our Founding Fathers fared better in this regard.
Peace!
Historian
3 Comments:
Alas and alackaday, I do not receive the Sioux City Journal. Not because the news is terribly tilted to the right - I can read between the lines well enough to get the real story. No, it's simply due to the fact that in the Bush economy I had to make a choice. A right-wing newspaper that's usually a dollar short and a day late, or an Internet portal to the world...
I chose the world.
Unfortunately, I do miss out on a lot of local news. By the way, does anyone know when Spring Cleaning Day is this year? I have a lot of junk in my garage...
The concept of freedom has been so trivialized and bastardized by the junta that it might as well be the equivalent of clipping coupons.
Chris - try selling your junk on ebay. :-)
Makes me wonder just when we turned our founding fathers into caricatures and cartoons in the first place.
Regarding the stuff I wanna throw away, should the city opt to let me know when Spring Cleaning Day is this year - how do you market junk? "For sale - one pile of garbage that I can't find anyone to haul to the dump..." Someone on e-bay'd probably buy it, then I'd need to figure out how to ship trash...
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