There's a local car dealer who pops up on my television screen practically every time I turn it on. The guy must spend a ton of money on television commercials, which means, of course, that he must be making a ton of money selling those cars.
Anyway, there a couple of things about those ads that can raise an eyebrow or two. One is the catch phrase that goes like this:
"If we make a deal we'll pay off your trade no matter how much you owe!"
Well, that sounds tempting. An easy way to get rid of some debt, right? But, surely no one is actually fooled into believing that it's not their own money that will ultimately pay it off.
But, here's the reason for this rant. Shortly after Roy of Siegfried and Roy was attacked by the tiger, we began seeing ads showing the car dealer walking a tiger on a leash through the car lot. He makes his pitch to sell cars, and that's all well and good. But then he brings his children into the act. The two kids look to be between about three and six years old, and there they are in the same scene with the tiger.
Now, if the car dealer chooses to assume whatever risk might be involved with standing next to a tiger then that's okay. He's a grown up and can make those decisions for himself. But can the kids make those decisions? I don't think so. Maybe the ad sells lots of cars, but I don't think I can ever look at him again without thinking about the risk he exposed those children to.
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