moez
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:07 AM
Original message |
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I had a discussion with a co-worker today and we hit on the Geico cavemen ads.
His take was that the commercial provides a safe outlet for racist, bigoted people to laugh at people that complain about prejudice. He said that while many people would not dare laugh in public at a black person's objection to the "N word," they can safely laugh at the caveman's silly "PC" objections. His feeling was that laughing at those struggles legitimizes oppression.
... I just thought they were mildly funny commercials.... I'll take the roast duck...
What do you guys think?
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marmar
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:09 AM
Response to Original message |
1. Never quite thought of it that way....but I think the commercials are terribly UNfunny anyway.... |
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I like the British-accented gecko, but the caveman campaign is a bore.
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lse7581011
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:56 AM
Response to Reply #1 |
ShortnFiery
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:02 AM
Response to Reply #44 |
51. Too funny, I hate that freaking Geiko Gecko with a passion! |
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Edited on Fri Feb-23-07 11:04 AM by ShortnFiery
He's an arrogant and smarmy amphibian with a phony Australian accent.
I'd love him more if the neighbor's cat (my buddy for play and treats) brings me back his widdle carcass as a TROPHY gift. Sort of, "Look Mom, I destroyed that nasty gecko, just for you." Now that's love. :loveya: :puke: :loveya:
On Edit: I forgot :sarcasm:
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GoneOffShore
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:32 PM
Response to Reply #51 |
93. Not Australian - EastEnder |
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Like Grant Mitchell or Ian or Mark from EastEnders.
Cuppa tea?
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ShortnFiery
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:45 PM
Response to Reply #93 |
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:blush: Thanks for making me smart. :hi:
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GoneOffShore
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:38 PM
Response to Reply #98 |
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That accent thing can be confusing.
Care for some Gecko filet?
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The Flaming Red Head
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:22 PM
Response to Reply #51 |
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I hate that fucking lizard
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SteppingRazor
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:09 AM
Response to Original message |
2. What do I think? I think over-analyzation causes ones head to explode n/t |
LoZoccolo
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:03 PM
Response to Reply #2 |
moez
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:02 PM
Response to Reply #2 |
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if over-analysis does the same thing....
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Hosnon
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:05 PM
Response to Reply #125 |
ourbluenation
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:45 PM
Response to Reply #2 |
161. Bwahahahaaa! Good on ya! I agree. n/t |
WCGreen
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:10 AM
Response to Original message |
3. I think they are clever and poke fun at everyone involved.... |
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But I guess one can find a Bogey man where ever one chooses to look....
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acmavm
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:13 AM
Response to Reply #3 |
5. Exactly. Everything can be turned around and made to look like |
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something it isn't.
People need to quit sweating the small stuff. Save their outrage and umbrage for the really important crap.
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coznfx
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:30 AM
Response to Reply #5 |
23. Not to worry. I've got a giant steaming pile of both |
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outrage and umbrage, more than enough to spare a dollop for the small stuff!
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truedelphi
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:50 PM
Response to Reply #3 |
103. Yep I agree! And I think that the "modern day" people |
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come off like jerks - they seem to come across worse to me than the caveman
I also think that one or two of them are a critique of the talking head phenomena. Where the discussion is obviously distorted to the point that you would probably take the opposing side side if they were putting Nixon down. Where the shrillness and over-statement don't win any converts
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soothsayer
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:13 AM
Response to Original message |
4. Doesn't it actually point out racism? When the caveman pushes |
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back against his shrink, it totally points out what a bigot she is.
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Atman
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:16 AM
Response to Reply #4 |
10. That was my take on it. |
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The commercials are clever, and surprisingly well done. They may not be your cup of tea, but guess what...they're being discussed and analyzed on a message board with hundreds of thousands of viewers. That's all Geico cares about, believe me. The name is out there.
(And actually, I have Geico insurance, and they really are cheap...my rates have gone DOWN the last three billing cycles).
.
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LostinVA
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:31 AM
Response to Reply #10 |
24. I like the ads -- AND my insurance rates |
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Like you, mine has gone DOWN.
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Critters2
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:36 PM
Response to Reply #10 |
135. I had Geico. Then I had an accident (not my fault--other guy was ticketed |
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for driving too fast for conditions--rear-ended me in a snow storm). I have American Family now. There's a reason Geico is so cheap.
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cool user name
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:50 PM
Response to Reply #10 |
164. The check is in the mail. |
Mandate My Ass
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:16 AM
Response to Reply #4 |
14. That's my favorite one |
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Agreed. He nails her right to the wall.
I hate 99.9% of commercials but I do laugh at the caveman commercials.
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Patiod
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:48 PM
Response to Reply #14 |
100. I like when he ends it by saying "It's my mom |
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I should put her on speaker"
pokes fun at the analyst AND the analyzed...
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Mme. Defarge
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:23 PM
Response to Reply #14 |
Atman
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:14 AM
Response to Original message |
6. And I just got the DU slam for suggesting OSAMA/OBAMA jokes aren't funny! |
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They said I don't have a sense of humor, and that the OSAMA/OBAMA jokes are funny as long as they're on a show they really like.
Now we're analyzing whether caveman jokes are offensive?
This whole place gets offensive sometimes!
.
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moez
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:16 AM
Response to Reply #6 |
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That your outrage over the question is far more amusing than the commercials...
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kiahzero
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:43 AM
Response to Reply #6 |
30. It wasn't a joke at the expense of Obama. |
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It was a joke at the expense of morons who would get the two confused.
I guess that's too high a concept for some people to understand, though. :eyes:
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Name removed
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:08 AM
Response to Reply #30 |
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Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.
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kiahzero
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:19 AM
Response to Reply #60 |
69. Ad hominem attacks are fun, aren't they? |
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Sadly, they're against DU rules.
You didn't like the joke because you felt it was "drumming the "OSAMA" meme into the public's head." I, and many others, have pointed out to you that the joke was on the person conflating the two - she's regularly depicted as an out-and-out moron and both Carlson and Matthews were openly laughing *at* her after calling her stupid earlier in the segment. It was making people who would conflate the two out to be buffoons worthy of nothing more than open contempt - and you're saying it will make people more likely to conflate the two.
:eyes: indeed.
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Atman
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:25 AM
Response to Reply #69 |
72. Why couldn't you have simply said that before? You didn't. |
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You went after me personally simply because I have a difference of opinion. WTF is that all about?
.
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Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:18 PM
Response to Reply #69 |
85. Excuse me, don't you mean Ad-HOMINID attacks? Please use the correct term. |
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Edited on Fri Feb-23-07 12:19 PM by Leopolds Ghost
Thanks for using the correct terminology, I'd appreciate it.
--Cave Man
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Atman
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:26 PM
Response to Reply #85 |
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You cavemen are sooooo sensitive!
.
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Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:33 PM
Response to Reply #91 |
94. Actually, I'm not sensitive. That's another stereotype! |
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Edited on Fri Feb-23-07 12:56 PM by Leopolds Ghost
It's all an act, I'm afraid.
Er, It's a good way to pick up girls.
CAVE girls that is. I don't go in for the skinny blond types.
Well, that is to say, I really think all women are beautiful.
I don't discriminate against physical types, I just feel like CAVE women can see into my soul.
I'm really all masculine inside and secretly insensitive and brusque. Um, do women like that in a cave man?
--Cave Man
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Atman
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:06 AM
Response to Reply #6 |
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That's funnier than all of 'em put together! Are you using one of them new 'puters that places the writer's emotions, emphasis, nuance and facial expressions? Must be for you to glean such information from three sentences! :rofl: Outrage...you've obviously never read one of my "outrage" posts.
.
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moez
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:13 AM
Response to Reply #56 |
65. I'd say referring to a poster as a "dick" |
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constitutes a fair amount of "outrage" - even on my old 'puter....
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Atman
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:28 AM
Response to Reply #65 |
75. Nah, not at all. Just pointing out a fact. |
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The poster chose to attack me personally about a difference of opinion over a tv show, when he demonstrated pretty clearly in a later post that he was perfectly capable of getting his point across without resorting to name calling.
In my book, that's acting like a dick. No outrage, although if you want to picture me sitting at my desk with veins popping on my forehead and steam coming out my ears, you go right ahead.
.
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jobycom
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:14 AM
Response to Original message |
7. I thought the opposite. I thought they were mocking racists. |
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By showing the caveman trying to convince psychiatrists, news shows, and business execs that they were discriminating against him, and by the refusal of these establishment figures to understand his objections, they were showing the struggles that victims of discrimination go through.
That's odd, I think they are very clever and barely subtle criticisms or racism in America, your friend thinks the opposite. I guess they can be seen both ways. But the caveman is clearly the sympathetic character in every one of them.
I'm just glad when they stop using that stupid little talking gecko.
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Longhorn
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:22 AM
Response to Reply #7 |
18. They haven't stopped using the gecko. |
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There was a feature on the ad company that makes the commercials for Geiko on CBS Sunday Morning last Sunday. They are running three separate campaigns at once: the gecko, the caveman, and the celebrity spokesmen. Each one is aimed at a different segment of the market. The ad agency is out of Virginia, I think.
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KoKo
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:41 AM
Response to Reply #18 |
29. The geko is the only one that doesn't seem to put down people... |
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but maybe if I listened to the geko closer I might find that if one is willing to listen to a geko about insurance...even one with a charming Aussie accent...I might just be stupid enough to like the commercials so much I buy the insurance.
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SemperEadem
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:17 PM
Response to Reply #29 |
shain from kane
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:15 AM
Response to Original message |
8. Your co-worker woke up on the wrong side of the rock. |
Norquist Nemesis
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:16 AM
Response to Original message |
9. Sometimes stuff is just funny dammit! |
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I thought the Snickers ad was funny. :shrug:
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JitterbugPerfume
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:16 AM
Response to Original message |
11. I thought they exposed prejudice |
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and made everyone involved look ridiculous
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plcdude
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:23 AM
Response to Reply #11 |
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that is my take on it also and remarkably an insurance company is promoting it. Maybe Geico can develop and propose a comprehensive insurance program that does not discriminate against anyone? Also put the Australian accent back there are no geckos in England but there are in Australia.
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lectrobyte
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:16 AM
Response to Original message |
12. I actually liked the "duck with mango salsa" and thought it was clever. |
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The later ones have run it into the ground, it seems. I don't see anything offensive in the ad campaign in particular.
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deutsey
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:19 AM
Response to Original message |
15. Haven't really thought that much about these commercials |
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I kind of liked the one where they went to dinner with the Geico rep and the one with the psychiatrist.
Otherwise, I don't find them all that amusing and they certainly don't entice me to switch to Geico.
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DeepModem Mom
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:19 AM
Response to Original message |
16. I thought the cavemen were supposed to be the sympathetic characters. |
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I'm, frankly, a little in love with that main cave-guy. I think he's cool -- hangs out at a singles bar, appears at the airport with his squash racket, sees a shrink for his problems with his mother.
:blush:
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CrispyQ
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:24 AM
Response to Reply #16 |
Dhalgren
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:58 AM
Response to Reply #16 |
45. Me too. I actually like the guy. He is a real "everyman". |
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The one where he is minding his own business, riding the moving sidewalk at the airport, looking at his tickets is a classic as far as I am concerned. There is no talking in the whole commercial, just his facial expressions and body-language (also has a great soundtrack). It is priceless...
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DeepModem Mom
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:08 AM
Response to Reply #45 |
57. I love that one, too. It also, to me, captures exactly the airport atmosphere. |
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I actually think I can recognize the exact spot it was filmed.
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Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:43 PM
Response to Reply #57 |
96. Anyone notice a reference to the opening of JACKIE BROWN? |
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Edited on Fri Feb-23-07 12:54 PM by Leopolds Ghost
Where she is walking through the airport.
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Atman
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:45 PM
Response to Reply #96 |
97. I can't see her opening at all.. |
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*ba-doom*.
Oh, wait...that was probably offensive.
.
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Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:48 PM
Response to Reply #97 |
102. "I was forced to shoot Atman, officer... I'm just a lowly flight attendant." |
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"I'm not bad... I'm just built that way."
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Atman
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:12 PM
Response to Reply #102 |
112. Do you know why cavemen drag women by the hair? |
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Sorry...this is a family web site. I can't tell you the punchline.
:hi:
Besides...that's just another caveman stereotype, I'm sure, perpetuated by old tv sitcoms. Really, really old ones.
.
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Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 02:07 PM
Response to Reply #112 |
DeepModem Mom
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Fri Feb-23-07 02:00 PM
Response to Reply #96 |
119. Hmmmm. Yes, similar! (Loved that movie. Underappreciated.) nt |
Blue_In_AK
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:26 PM
Response to Reply #45 |
133. Oh, yes, I love the soundtrack |
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I have to hum along with it every time it comes on.
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Greybnk48
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:19 AM
Response to Original message |
17. I think those ads are funny, not offensive |
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the line "it's my mother, I'll put her on speaker" got a laugh from both me and my husband. People need ot lighten up.
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Mad_Dem_X
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:46 AM
Response to Reply #17 |
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They're the only commercials I will stop and watch.
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Greybnk48
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:05 AM
Response to Reply #31 |
55. Me too, I watch them every time, |
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the body language of the main cave man is brilliant.
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Atman
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:12 AM
Response to Reply #17 |
64. I was going to post that, too...that line is brilliant. |
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The dude playing the caveman has it so down!
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ceile
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:25 PM
Response to Reply #17 |
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The airport one cracks me up every time and I love that song!
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Critters2
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:39 PM
Response to Reply #17 |
137. I love that, too. nt |
Marrah_G
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:27 AM
Response to Original message |
21. TV and Movie should be banned and people should just... |
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stop talking to each other completely. Since everything can be taken as offensive by someone then we should just revert back to nodding hello ....then again some people would find offense in that as well.
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Liberal Veteran
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:30 AM
Response to Original message |
22. I'm much more offended by that stupid CGI gecko |
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Those commercials just get on my last nerve and the stupid thing rambles on and on and on.
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WinkyDink
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:31 AM
Response to Original message |
25. OFGS. Geico comercials are the best things on TV. I love the cave-men and the gecko. |
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Edited on Fri Feb-23-07 10:33 AM by WinkyDink
When the caveman says to the therapist that he'll put his mother on speaker-phone? Brilliant!
(And that would be: Ohfergawdssake.)
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nutsnberries
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:37 AM
Response to Original message |
26. just funny. and the last new one i saw made me wonder... |
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do you think the creative team that made the first caveman commercial had any idea that the caveman would become a series of commercials?
doubt it. but evidently, enough people like the cavemen.
i like them. they aren't hysterically funny, they just make my smile. i like seeing a new one.
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longship
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:37 AM
Response to Original message |
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Edited on Fri Feb-23-07 10:45 AM by longship
The urbane, sophisticated caveman--indeed, I'll take the roast duck--goes through life seeing nothing but Geico "So easy a caveman can do it" ads. These are clever, intelligent entertainment.
A cell phone rings. "It's my mother. I'll put it on speaker," he says to his analyst who has just shined him on.
Great stuff, there.
The best one? Possibly the ad with Caveman (with squash racket) at the airport on the moving walkway tooling past a Geico Caveman ad. The timing on that ad is perfection. And not one word is spoken during the entire ad.
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tularetom
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:16 AM
Response to Reply #27 |
66. The cheesy music in the airport ad is awesome |
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as the caveman does the double take and walks back on the walkway to check out the ad.
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moez
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:18 AM
Response to Reply #66 |
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There's always something to remind me....
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PassingFair
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:43 AM
Response to Reply #67 |
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Sounds like a sofa from Ikea. My daughter is OBSESSED with them. http://www.astralwerks.com/royksopp/
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spoony
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Fri Feb-23-07 04:54 PM
Response to Reply #78 |
143. Awesome, thank you for that |
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I know a handful of people who can't get that song out of their head. At least now they'll know the whole song instead of that one or two lines :P
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PassingFair
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:02 PM
Response to Reply #143 |
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My 15-year old has their music as her alarm/ringtone, I hear it every morning/several times, but I don't mind....
The band members are kind of cute and nordic-y!
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Frank Cannon
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:24 AM
Response to Reply #27 |
70. That's some real acting talent there |
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The expressions and body language of those cavemen are perfect, and they have only a few seconds to deliver while acting past all that makeup.
I love the caveman ads. They're the only ads I watch all the way through every time they come on.
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ellacott
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:40 AM
Response to Original message |
28. I think they're clever |
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I don't find them offensive. You can go here and visit his house. You can click on different parts of the house and see how he lives. Click on the cookbook in the kitchen. :) http://www.cavemanscrib.com/
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nutsnberries
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:49 AM
Response to Reply #28 |
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oops, i clicked on the door with the tie hanging from the knob.
:rofl:
that's great - thanks!
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ellacott
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:04 AM
Response to Reply #33 |
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I clicked on the shower in the bathroom and flushed the toilet while he was in the shower. He wasn't very happy with me. :)
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Mrs. Overall
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:00 AM
Response to Reply #28 |
49. Thanks for the link! I enjoyed looking around the rooms! |
tammywammy
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:28 PM
Response to Reply #28 |
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Thanks for sharing, that's too funny! :rofl:
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RaleighNCDUer
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:48 AM
Response to Original message |
32. I think it does just the opposite - |
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it points out that nearly everyone has un-conscious prejudices. I think they are amusing.
Tho I don't really know what they have to do with insurance.
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NewJeffCT
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:50 AM
Response to Original message |
34. A really bigoted guy some friends know hates the Geico commercial |
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He's the type that thinks African Americans should be rounded up & shipped back to Africa. Only, he wouldn't use the word "African-American" or even "black" (I've never met the guy, but my friends are not one to exaggerate something like this)
But, he was complaining to these guys I know that the commercial is racist against cave men.
Since I'm only vaguely familiar with the commercial, I'd have to say that since this bigoted guy hates it, it must be okay.
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moez
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:53 AM
Response to Reply #34 |
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Edited on Fri Feb-23-07 10:57 AM by moez
I interpreted your post wrong....
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NewJeffCT
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:00 AM
Response to Reply #37 |
48. well, when I was visiting my friend |
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He's laid up after major surgery...but the guys were really mocking the bigoted guy over the Geico commercial. I think the guy's point was - if it's okay to be racist against cavemen, why is it not okay for him to be racist against n-------
:argh:
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moez
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:02 AM
Response to Reply #48 |
52. I think he's the kind of guy |
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that my buddy was targeting with his comments.
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Mrs. Overall
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:50 AM
Response to Original message |
35. I don't find them offensive at all. I am amused at the "Humor Police" |
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here on DU. I don't want anyone telling me what I can and can't chuckle at, where I can and can't find irony.
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Beelzebud
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:28 AM
Response to Reply #35 |
74. Agreed. It's not hard to see why a guy like Bill Hicks did better in the UK than the USA. |
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The people he appealed to here in the US were always too offended by his comments to give him a chance and realize he was on their side.
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Ikonoklast
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:52 AM
Response to Original message |
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As another poster noted, it did the job of getting noticed and people talking about it.
The idea of a metrosexual, educated, sensitive caveman is classic.
BTW, I have GEICO and am very happy with them and their service.
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cgrindley
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:53 AM
Response to Original message |
38. Yeah, it's ridicule and yeah, it's pretty funny |
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Edited on Fri Feb-23-07 10:55 AM by cgrindley
A lot of PC objections should be ridiculed.
edited for clarity
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donco6
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:54 AM
Response to Original message |
39. They really dance the line, but so far, so good. |
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I think they point out the bigotry more than not. And they do a pretty good job at showing what it's like to be the "caveman" (seeing the offensive poster at the airport, having your shrink question why you're upset about it, etc.) I've laughed at all of them.
Plus, I would consider Geico when my insurance cycle is up. Maybe that says something.
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ProfessorGAC
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:54 AM
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40. They're NOT Cavemen!!!!! |
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They might be neanderthal. But, they live in apartments, lofts and houses. That means they are NOT cavemen.
It's a stupid concept and if it's offensive, it's because it insults my intellgence. The Professor
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Buck Rabbit
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:32 PM
Response to Reply #40 |
154. Ha! Since I have less intelligence there is nothing at all that |
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I can be offended about then. Therefore, I just get to be entertained. You lose. I win!
Jealous of this dumb bunny now Doc?
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Morgana LaFey
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Fri Feb-23-07 06:12 PM
Response to Reply #40 |
168. Oh, goodness. If that's your standard, prepare to be |
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perpetually insulted. Doesn't pretty much all advertising insult your intelligence?
I don't blame you, but I do find it amusing.
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tinfoilinfor2005
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:54 AM
Response to Original message |
41. Personally I'm offended by the astronaut making coffee for Abe Lincoln |
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and the beaver and the sleepless guy. Everyone knows that the beaver should be the one making the coffee.
:rofl:
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Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:23 PM
Response to Reply #41 |
88. What, like they do at Beaver Liquors? |
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(ObGD: Neil Boortz once attempted to open a liquor store with that name. Don't sue me!)
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Patiod
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:56 PM
Response to Reply #41 |
104. Are those animals sitting on the stools in the diner at the end |
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of that commercial? Look really closely -- it's an ongoing debate in our house.
I love that commercial
(interesting that they don't mention WHY it's the only sleeping aid with absolutely NO potential for addiction - because it's melatonin, and it works best when your sleep cycle is messed up vs. when it's anxiety or depression or some other reason for not sleeping)
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tinfoilinfor2005
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:48 PM
Response to Reply #104 |
116. Oh, I'll have to pay more attention. I was sure there was something |
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there that I had missed, but since it's filmed from a distance, it's hard to say.
My husband loves the part where Abe is tossing papers (cards?) at the beaver (beaver, muskrat?) "Grow up!" :spray:
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Patiod
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Fri Feb-23-07 02:57 PM
Response to Reply #116 |
124. Plus Abe's hat looks more like something from a school play |
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rather than a real stovepipe hat, but I could be reading too much into it. I like the beaver/muskrat's attitude.
I still think the figures sitting at the all-night diner have animal heads.....
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tinfoilinfor2005
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:10 PM
Response to Reply #124 |
130. Yah, caught the hat thing just last night. Looks more like it belongs |
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on a pilgrim. Heh, heh, they were pretty clever trying to recreate the bizarre places that dreams can take us. Also, my apologies to the OP...not trying to hijack Caveman by Abe Lincoln. :)
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ShortnFiery
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:56 AM
Response to Original message |
42. Hey! I'm not 100% in love with your tone right now. |
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<teasing> :rofl:
I love the Caveman Commercials! It doesn't make Geico insurance appeal to me any more and I'm happy with USAA, but I love the main caveman's facial expressions. :rofl:
My FAV is where he's walking along a people mover and passes a poster, "So Easy, a Caveman can do it? The look on the guy's face is PRECIOUS. I crack up laughing every time I see that one commercial.
Yeah, I'm a goofy broad but I love that character. :-)
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ms liberty
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:56 AM
Response to Original message |
43. I really like them, and I don't find them offensive at all... |
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The ad where he's on the talk show just slays me every time, when he responds to the blonde woman saying "sounds like somebody got up on the wrong side of the rock." He doesn't say a word, but his body language is hilarious. And the shrink, where his phone rings, and he says "it's my mother - I'll put in on speaker." mr liberty and I crack up every time.
That gecko annoys the absolute crap out of me, though.
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treestar
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:59 PM
Response to Reply #43 |
118. He is very articulate, isn't he? |
ms liberty
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Fri Feb-23-07 02:06 PM
Response to Reply #118 |
120. Yes, and he's very clean... |
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:rofl:
And before anyone gets their dander up, that's actually a reference to "A Hard Day's Night" - not anything else!
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notadmblnd
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:58 AM
Response to Original message |
46. I don't think they're funny. |
Sammy Pepys
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Fri Feb-23-07 10:59 AM
Response to Original message |
47. I think that is exactly the sort of thing... |
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...Geico is subtley poking fun at.
But let's be real: their main goal is to advertise the ease of having a Geico policy, not to make social commentary.
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ellie
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:01 AM
Response to Original message |
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where he is in the airport and sees the poster. I think they are funny.
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Dorian Gray
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:03 AM
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Richard Steele
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:08 AM
Response to Original message |
58. The commercials are open to interpretation; they can be enjoyed by liberals and racists alike. |
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I enjoy the humor inherent in portraying the cavemen as far more 'evolved' than the people running large corporations & the media.
But I'm sure a RACIST could enjoy the fact that the cavemen are constantly belittled and never get a break; the commercials could be seen as mocking those "touchy, thin-skinned cavemen who can't take a joke".
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Guaranteed
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:04 PM
Response to Reply #58 |
126. I think so too. I think they realize that people will interpret it the |
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way they want to, so they give opportunities to interpret them in multiple, different ways and appeal to the broadest audience possible.
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frogmarch
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:08 AM
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59. I like the gecko ads and |
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the caveman ads - but in the latter, where are the cavewomen?
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Zavulon
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:09 AM
Response to Original message |
61. They're not funny, but they're not offensive (to me, anyway) and they're better than the gecko. |
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That gecko was never amusing, but always annoying.
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onecent
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:11 AM
Response to Original message |
62. I love the Geico caveman. Especially the one where he is |
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on the people mover moving past a picture of himself. For God's sake, let them chew on the Anna Nicole/Brittany saga for awhile.
Tell 'em to get a life.
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KittyWampus
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:38 AM
Response to Reply #62 |
77. a picture of himself? OMG! Do you really think all Neanderthals look alike... |
Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:58 PM
Response to Reply #77 |
105. They all look the same to me. |
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In the ads, I mean. Just sayin' :shrug:
:evilgrin:
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Bridget Burke
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:11 AM
Response to Original message |
63. I love the Caveman Commercials... |
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Well, as much as I "love" any commercials. They're funny on several levels.
I'm also fond of the Capital One Barbarians & hope for a commercial in which they pummel David Spade--another Capital One spokesman.
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BreweryYardRat
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Fri Feb-23-07 04:01 PM
Response to Reply #63 |
141. Oh please oh please oh please... |
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Watching the barbarians beat the crap out of Spade would be awesome.
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Beelzebud
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:19 AM
Response to Original message |
68. Another example of hyper-sensitivity... Every caveman I know is OUTRAGED! |
treestar
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:57 PM
Response to Reply #68 |
117. And only the cave men can say whether they find it offensive or not! |
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Who are these other people telling them to lighten up?
:rofl:
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Beelzebud
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:09 PM
Original message |
berni_mccoy
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:24 AM
Response to Original message |
71. I try not to watch too much T.V. and avoid watching comercials altogether. |
mwb970
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:28 AM
Response to Original message |
73. I love the Geico commercials! |
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Those and the Mac/PC ones are the only commercials I will stop fast-scanning and back up to see while watching something I've recorded.
The objections you mention would never have occurred to me, and I am adequately sensitive.
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zbdent
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:34 AM
Response to Original message |
76. I'm still not sure about the one where they're at a party, and the one's |
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sulking out on the balcony.
I don't quite get it ... is he mad at the people at the party, or what?
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moez
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:47 AM
Response to Reply #76 |
79. Oddly enough, that's one of my favorites... |
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I've been there...
Partially drunk and way too serious in a deep discussion with a friend at a party. Then someone had the unmitigated gall to interrupt and I went for his throat...
... happened a few times in college when I was way too involved with my own importance.
I was actually kind of impressed at the way they captured the moment.
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Marrah_G
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:00 PM
Response to Reply #76 |
81. he's mad because the other party people are mad at him! |
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Product A is offensive to group B
Group B decides to Boycott product A
Member of group B breaks the boycott and buys product A anyway
Group B is mad at the wayward member.
Wayward member is mad at group B because they are mad at him.
oyyyyyyyyyy......... I need coffee and an Advil now.
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ieoeja
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Fri Feb-23-07 11:50 AM
Response to Original message |
80. Best commercial in FAVOR of PC. |
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The way he turns it around on the therapist. She wants him to just "lighten up", but when he asks her to place herself in his position, she can not. Thereby proving his point.
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fishwax
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:07 PM
Response to Reply #80 |
145. i agree--i think the therapist ad shows the blind spots of privilege |
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"well, that commercial wouldn't make any sense to me."
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Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:14 PM
Response to Original message |
82. Let's go back, way back, Back into time. When the only people that existed were TROGLODYTES! |
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Note: While there is a pounding beat in the background, the song is spoken rather than sung
What we're gonna do right here is go back, way back, back into time. When the only people that existed were troglodytes...cave men... cave WOMEN!...Neanderthal!...TROGLODYTES...! Let's take the average cave man at home, listening to his stereo. Sometimes he'd get up, try to do his thing. He'd begin to move, something like this: "Dance...dance". When he got tired of dancing alone, he'd look in the mirror: "Gotta find a woman gotta find a woman gotta find a woman gotta find a woman". He'd go down to the lake where all the woman would be swimming or washing clothes or something. He'd look around and just reach in, and grab one. "Come here...come here".
He'd grab her by the hair. You can't do that today, fellas, cause it might come off. You'd have a piece of hair in your hand and she'd be swimming away from you (ha-ha). This one woman just lay there, wet and frightened. He said: "Move...move". She got up. She was a big woman. BIG woman. Her name was Bertha. Bertha Butt. She was one of the Butt sisters. He didn't care. He looked up at her and said: "Sock it to me sock it to me sock it to me sock it to me sock it to me sock it to me sock it to me sock it to me!". She looked down on him. She was ready to crush him, but she began to like him. She said (falsetto): "I'll sock it to ya, Daddy". He said: "WHUh?". She said (falsetto): "I'll sock it to ya, Daddy". You know what he said? He started it WAY back then. I wouldn't lie to you. When she said (falsetto) "I'll sock it to ya, Daddy" he said "Right on! Right on! Hotpants! Hotpants! Ugh...ugh...ugh".
UGH...UGH...YEAH!
TROGLODYTE (CAVE MAN) by Jimmy Castor
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Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:02 PM
Response to Reply #82 |
107. "He gets up. He grabs her by the hair! You can't do that today, fellas..." |
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Edited on Fri Feb-23-07 01:04 PM by Leopolds Ghost
Note the appalling misogyny and insensitivity towards cave WOMEN here.
More evidence that "cave man lyrics" are just plain WRONG
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HiFructosePronSyrup
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:16 PM
Response to Original message |
83. The original commercial was sort of that way. |
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The gag was on political correctness and how hypersensitive minorities are.
But the last dozen or so commercials has people sympathizing with the cavemen.
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Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:27 PM
Response to Reply #83 |
92. I thot it was a high-concept dig on FOX news. |
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The show being parodied was obviously O'Reilly.
Oh, wait, you mean the ad exec one.
No, I think that was a reference to real-life events in which white people dressed up as Indians were used as mascots and campaign spokesmen, etc.
and the promoters said "I'm sorry, I had no idea you guys were still around" when real-life Native Americans complained. There are still people who think their ancestors successfully killed off all the Indians so they don't need to feel bad about it.
"After all, they are a defeated people", as the homecoming queen of a small North Dakota high school recently said, when asked why the Lakota students were not invited to the homecoming celebration.
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fishwax
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:09 PM
Response to Reply #92 |
146. that's a great point about the mascots |
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"After all, they are a defeated people", as the homecoming queen of a small North Dakota high school recently said, when asked why the Lakota students were not invited to the homecoming celebration.
One argument I heard repeatedly with respect to the recently removed Chief Illiniwek of the U of Illinois was: "They should be happy--if it weren't the chief, nobody would even remember them" :eyes:
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Guaranteed
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:07 PM
Response to Reply #83 |
128. Yup, the one with the executive sitting down to dinner with the two |
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cavemen? That one was definitely a dig at being offended.
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OmmmSweetOmmm
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:17 PM
Response to Original message |
84. I get a kick out of them and love that the ad campaign denounces stereotyping. eom |
leftofthedial
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:22 PM
Response to Original message |
86. I am outraged by the commercials. |
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In fact, all literature, television, movies, music, religion and humor reflect and promote the bigoted, hateful, oppressive attitudes that victimize everyone in our culture except straight white males, who even when they are the targets of hate speech are laughing all the way to the bank. THEY are the real cavemen, aren't they?
We should ban all speech everywhere PREEMPTIVELY, before it has the chance to offend some helpless oppressed person.
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LibertyLover
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:22 PM
Response to Original message |
87. To paraphrase Groucho Marks, |
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sometimes a commercial is just a commercial.
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ShortnFiery
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:46 PM
Response to Reply #87 |
99. Or the late Sigmund Freud ... |
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Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. :shrug:
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Connie_Corleone
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:23 PM
Response to Original message |
89. They're not offensive. |
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They're funny and make fun of racists.
Even a caveman can see that!
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TahitiNut
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:42 PM
Response to Original message |
95. I wouldn't use the word "offensive" ... but ... |
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I don't regard them as humorous, either. While I'm not a fan of taking offense where none is intended, I'm also not in favor of reducing the whole notion of ethnically demeaning characterizations to a joke. It's my view that those ads are, in some part, indicative of an advertising industry wishing to give itself license to exploit ethnic stereotypes in service to profit. The ads have absolutely nothing to do with GEICO and everything to do with a "public disservice" commercial saying "stop busting our chops for making fun of minorities."
So, I see them as a form of meta-exploitation - anything in service to corporatism.
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ShortnFiery
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:48 PM
Response to Reply #95 |
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that you won't join us? Tina's here and we're all getting together? :shrug: :yoiks:
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Morgana LaFey
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Fri Feb-23-07 06:21 PM
Response to Reply #95 |
171. I would agree with you if I thought that they in any way served to |
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normalize racism and bigotry. I don't think they do.
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Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 12:59 PM
Response to Original message |
106. Is it TWOO what they say about cave men? |
Leopolds Ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 02:09 PM
Response to Reply #106 |
122. It's Twoo! It's Twoo! Oh my! |
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UGGH!! AAAARGHH!
"Aiiiiiii - oh, sweet mystery of Geico, at last I've found you..."
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noonwitch
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:04 PM
Response to Original message |
109. I think that they are funny. |
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Anyone who is offended just underscores the point of the ad-that we are all way oversensitive.
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fishwax
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:12 PM
Response to Reply #109 |
147. I think the point of the ad is that people who belittle other people's reactions tend to be clueless |
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I think it can be taken different ways, depending on the ads in question, but the "News Show" ad and the "Therapist" ad, in particular, seem to critique the insensitive, rather than the "oversensitive."
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Atman
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:07 PM
Response to Original message |
110. Oh, the irony...just got off the phone with Geico |
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I went outside and my car was dead as a doornail. No juice at all. To top it off, when I tried to turn the key back to off, it wouldn't go. Now it's stuck in the ignition in the "on" position. Good thing the battery is already dead. Damned car has power everything, even mirror de-icers. This is why I hate power everything.
Anyway, it got worse...the hood wouldn't unlatch when I went to take the battery out! Suddenly, this silly Geico thread came to mind, and I thought "what the heck, might as well give it a try" and called and talked to a small British lizard. Oh, no, wait...it was a very nice woman with a heavy Southern accent. She put me on hold for a sec and came to inform me that they were sending out a repair truck, no out of pocket to me! She was extremely nice. And like I said in another post, my rate has gone DOWN the last three billings. I like Geico. Cavemen or not.
.
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live love laugh
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:09 PM
Response to Reply #110 |
129. Yes I have GEICO too - had a flat tire, got a free repair truck to change it in 10 mins. |
hyphenate
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:09 PM
Response to Original message |
111. I don't read a lot into the |
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Geico commercials other than they're unique, and I only wish more of "mankind" was as intelligent, conscientious and empathic. They're a lot of fun as well. I think that in one way they seem to have an interesting take on evolution: as scientists are now showing that Neanderthal Man's evolution paralleled that of what is considered as Homo Sapiens, the Neanderthal eventually became extinct because they were not as savage, had higher brain functions and were definitely non-aggressive in comparison with HS.
The Geico guys pretty much show that if Neanderthal Man managed to survive, they would be a lot more acceptable in many situations than some of the knuckledraggers we know and despise. :)
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OPERATIONMINDCRIME
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:31 PM
Response to Original message |
113. I Think The Commercials Are Hilarious And That Your Co-Worker Is In Serious Need Of Lightening Up. |
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My god due some people look into things wayyyyy too deeply. Sheesh.
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Seabiscuit
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Fri Feb-23-07 02:17 PM
Response to Reply #113 |
123. Agreed. Every time I see the one in the shrink's office I crack up. |
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The joke in that one's not on the caveman, it's on the shrink.
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nadinbrzezinski
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Fri Feb-23-07 01:45 PM
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115. I don't like those commercials |
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hell I find them mildly offensive, and your friend put the finger of why I find them milady offensive
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bklyncowgirl
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:14 PM
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131. I like the Geico cavemen |
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The point is that the ad pokes fun a a bigoted ad campeign "So easy a caveman could do it". I thought it was rather clever, myself.
Next thing you know someone will be complaining about the Capital One Barbarians setting bad examples for children.
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ecstatic
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:16 PM
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132. it's definitely poking fun at something... and I think your friend |
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hit the nail on the head.
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Madspirit
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:32 PM
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I think they are mildly funny and I never thought they meant anything particularly deep or insulting and I still don't. Lee
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gravity
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:37 PM
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136. I thought it was making fun of stereotypes |
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The cavemens reactions were funny because they were the total opposite from what you would expect, based on my previous cavement predjudices :)
The commericals also show the caveman as intelligent and sophisticated while the people suggesting cavemen are stupid appear to be ignorant.
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The Straight Story
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:40 PM
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138. give that caveman a snickers bar, dinner at olive garden, and incandescent bulbs |
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and watch it all blow up :)
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Beelzebud
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:53 PM
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neverforget
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Fri Feb-23-07 03:41 PM
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139. I find the one with the caveman being interviewed on some talk show |
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hilarious. The face the caveman makes when the lady says "it sounds like someone woke up on the wrong side of the cave" is priceless! I'm laughing just thinking about it...
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LanternWaste
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Fri Feb-23-07 04:38 PM
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142. Maybe each one of us puts our own, personal sacred-cow into the persona of the caveman |
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I've been amused by the ad campaign. I see it as low-grade satire. The campaigns satirizes our own guilts and neuroses by contrasting them against a neutral non-sequiter.
For example, your co-worker said the campaign is legitimizing oppression against black people. My first instinct was that it directed against the mentally-challenged. My mom's first impression was that it ridiculed the elderly.
Maybe each one of us puts our own, personal sacred-cow into the persona of the caveman and will feel at once both humor and guilt for feeling that humor.
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fishwax
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:23 PM
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150. I think the ads make fun of insensitivity, rather than oversensitivity |
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After all, the caveman clearly has a point, and the campaign clearly misrepresents who cavemen are in our society. The people who don't get it, who make comments like "looks like someone got up on the wrong side of the rock" or "that commercial just wouldn't make sense to me" or "we had no idea you guys were still around" are the ones who come off poorly--remarkably similar, in my mind, to those who cried "get over it" or "you're overreacting" during the Biden/Snickers fiascoes. They're the real targets of the commercials, I think.
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terrya
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:27 PM
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152. I don't understand what cavemen have to do with auto insurance. |
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I think it's a stupid ad campaign, myself.
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kittykitty
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:35 PM
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155. The Cavemen have a great interactrive website! The cavemen are very sophisticated--check it out |
yurbud
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:35 PM
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156. Patrick Swayze & Ron Perlman look like cavemen, so they should be offended PIC |
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Perlman played a caveman in QUEST FOR FIRE without make up.
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Truthseeker013
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:37 PM
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157. Geico caveman offensive? |
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I don't think so. As a mixed-race lifeform on this planet, I've run into similar stuff.
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fishwax
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:44 PM
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you've run into stuff similar to what the cavemen have to put up with? (Or that you've run into lots of stuff similar to the campaign itself, and so it doesn't really offend you?)
Personally, I think the ad campaign makes fun of people who are insensitive and are blind to their own privilege/insensitivities. I think some of the commercials (esp. the therapist and news show clips) are pretty close to brilliant. :)
Welcome to DU :hi:
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Cleita
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:39 PM
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158. I think that they are cute considering that they are so |
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much more sophisticated and metrosexual than the so-called more advanced homo sapiens sapiens. So flame me.
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Morgana LaFey
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:44 PM
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160. Mildy funny, mildly interesting, mildly instructive |
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for those who are willing to BE instructed, of course.
I do NOT think they're intended to be an outlet for racism.
Personally, I think they drive home how hurtful bigotry can be, without offending anyone since Caveman is not a protected group anywhere. For instance, who can fail to get it that it wouldn't make sense to use therapists in the commercial ("so easy a therapist could do it") because (unlike cavemen) therapists are SMART? Who can fail to get it when the caveman is patronized in the cable-style news show talk segment ("someone got up on the wrong side of the rock")?
I think they're pretty interesting, both in content and concept.
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cool user name
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:48 PM
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162. I love those commercials. |
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Sometimes people just read in to things too much.
Sit back and enjoy life for awhile.
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DireStrike
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:48 PM
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163. What?! The commercials BRING UP standard race issues, not mask them |
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PC is sort of at issue here, but only in a very broad sense. The entire human practice of stereotyping is highlighted, and the cavemen make a pretty good showing for themselves.
One of the first things I did when viewing them was to mentally replace the cave men with black men, and the word caveman with "nigger". Viciously unsettling, yet one could imagine that sort of thing happening 75 years ago or something.
The cavemen are sympathetic characters, if you take any time to analyze it. Most people don't, so it just comes out as... mildly funny commercials.
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fishwax
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Fri Feb-23-07 06:08 PM
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167. regarding your scenario |
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One of the first things I did when viewing them was to mentally replace the cave men with black men, and the word caveman with "nigger". Viciously unsettling, yet one could imagine that sort of thing happening 75 years ago or something.
Or, more recently, people being offended by something like, oh, a democratic presidential candidate calling Obama the first mainstream African American candidate who is bright and articulate and clean, etc.--then, when they express frustration at those remarks, other people shouting them down, calling them oversensitive, telling them to get over it, etc. I think the ads are definitely illustrating and critiquing that sort of blindness/insensitivity.
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DireStrike
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Fri Feb-23-07 06:17 PM
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Blue-Jay
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Fri Feb-23-07 05:52 PM
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165. I have a feeling that your friend LOOKS for new ways to be offended. |
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And I'm glad that most DUers called "bullshit" on that commercial being actually offensive.
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kittykitty
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Fri Feb-23-07 06:07 PM
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166. Visit them at http://www.cavemanscrib.com You're invited to their party! |
marions ghost
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Fri Feb-23-07 06:16 PM
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169. the Geico ads are very clever |
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they are designed to appeal to the individualists among us, those who don't quite fit the mold, those with flexibility and imagination (ie. those who could easily imagine switching their insurance company).
The Gekko and the cavemen have in common that they are both funny offbeat renegade characters, mildly naughty in an endearing kind of way. They reflect a psychological profile that lots of Americans can identify with or laugh at. They touch our sense of the ridiculous. That sassy little lizard with attitude and the crabby urbane caveman...got your attention didn't they?
Be different. Go with the company that has no fixed address.:)
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yurbud
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Fri Feb-23-07 09:10 PM
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172. If they had a commercial making fun of Stephen Hawking, that would be wrong. |
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