What Were They Thinking? Charleston Newspaper Ran Gun Store Ad Over Shooting Coverage

One month after a Florida newspaper called its gun show ad placement over murder coverage a “regrettable coincidence,” Charleston’s Post and Courier has trotted out the exact same excuse for a similar judgment error.

In today’s example, the South Carolina newspaper ran a sticky-note ad for a gun store over its coverage of Wednesday’s horrific killings of nine church-goers at Charleston’s Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. 

“The front-page sticky note that was attached to some home delivery newspapers on the same day as this tragedy is a deeply regrettable coincidence,” the paper told a Facebook commenter, according to Poynter. “We apologize to those who were offended.”

These apologies (especially those that seem quite literally copied and pasted from previous instances of ridiculous ad placement) do little to appease critics and, if anything, highlight the newspaper industry’s repeated inability to show common sense when it comes to ads that are 100 percent guaranteed by their very nature to appear over high-profile news stories.

While it surely wasn’t an intentional act of malice, these errant ad placements are clearly avoidable and even predictable. They’re absolutely bound to happen, and preventing these gaffes should be a daily aspect of putting out a responsible newspaper.



Swarmed by Government Drones? This Ad Suggests Blasting Them With a Silenced Shotgun

Sometimes when you watch an ad, you can’t quite believe it’s real. Then you learn about the backstory, and you watch it again, and you still can’t wrap your head around it.

Take Johnny Dronehunter, the hero in a real new commercial for a real new shotgun silencer, from a real company called SilencerCo.

If you are, like Johnny, a man who drives through the desert in aviators and a beat-up ’80s-era Cadillac, then finds himself in combat with a fleet of flying surveillance robots, then this is the shotgun silencer for you.

If your response to growing privacy concerns around the increasing use of drones by domestic law enforcement doesn’t include overtones of a paranoid dystopian fantasy in which people run around shooting drones out of the sky, then it’s still pretty amusing to watch the clever melodrama of a well-produced drone-hunting video. It even feels a bit like a Tarantino-esque take on grindhouse cinema (even though the Cohn brothers’ No Country For Old Men is more famous for its silenced shotgun, it was also quite a bit more serious).

If you were worried that Johnny Dronehunter might not be coming soon to a town near you, SilencerCo’s CEO tells Vice’s Motherboard that the brand plans to film future Johnny Dronehunter ads in cities and suburban settings, but he admits it’s harder to shoot and blow up robots in less desolate locales, because, you know, laws. 

If you’re still wondering why anyone would need a shotgun silencer in the first place (especially in the desert), it’s because shotguns are loud, which means it could give away your position to the government. Just kidding. Shotguns are incredibly loud, and a suppressor can help keep it from damaging your ears while shooting clay pigeons or hunting live animals. Though it’s generally worse for the duck.



This Epic Front-Yard Dildo Battle Suddenly Becomes a Pretty Amazing PSA

Don’t you just love an epic dildo battle? Well, yeah, as long as it’s not your kid waving them around the front yard.

This new ad from McCann New York is all about dildos. But it’s not all about dildos. Check it out, and then read my take below (where there are obviously spoilers).

Watch the spot first. Spoilers below…

Why this PSA is genius: If we make a sweeping generalization about the sort of conservative people who generally defend their Second Amendment rights, we would suggest they may also be sexually conservative. Showing some boys playing with vibrators might not be all that shocking to a liberal. Heck, it was an Ikea campaign. But to people who don’t normally think kids playing with guns is a big deal (trust me, I know these people), seeing kids play with vibrators might be shocking and memorable.

Why this PSA is necessary: It’s National Safety Month. According to Everytown for Gun Safety, two children per week were killed in 2013 in unintentional shootings, and two-thirds of those tragedies were due to unsecured guns children found in a home. That means two-thirds of those tragedies were entirely preventable. Or as Evoleve—the advertiser in the PSA above—puts it, “It’s the right to bear arms. Not the right to be a dumbass.”

“Are there any unsecured guns in your home?” is a hard thing to ask another parent before you drop your kid off. But as this ad shows, it’s necessary. Since I live in Georgia, the state with the most school shootings since Newtown, where we just passed a sweeping new open carry law that allows more guns in more places, I know I’ll be asking it of any parent I leave my child with.

Those who are weirded out by epic dildo battles might also want to ask if there are unsecured sex toys.



Gun Ad Featuring Michelangelo’s David Comes Under Fire From the Italian Government

The Italian government is taking aim at Illinois gun manufacturer ArmaLite, which offended Italy's entire cultural ministry by using Michelangelo's David in an ad for the AR-50A1 rifle.

Italy's culture minister, the Historical Heritage and Fine Arts Board curator, and the director of Florence’s Accademia Gallery (where David is currently on display) have all denounced the ad, and ArmaLite has been issued a legal notice to retract the image because the statue is considered government property and can't be used commercially without the proper rights and fees.

Part of me wonders if the offended party might have let this go if the ad hadn't been for an American gun manufacturer. Or if the gun in question were a bit less over-the-top. I grew up with GI Joes and even I think that thing is overdesigned.


    



‘Bribe the Senate’ Gun-Control Campaign Is Altered Because, Well, Bribes Are Illegal

A jokey-yet-serious campaign called Bribe the Senate, intended to get the U.S. Senate to at least discuss the idea of mandatory background checks on gun purchases, has hit a legal snag and its organizers are rethinking their approach—lest they end up in prison.

Four creatives at Goodby, Silverstein & Partners came up with the project (a personal one, not an agency endeavor), which was designed to raise money to offset donations from the gun lobby to six senators who could provide the swing votes to consider legislation on the topic. At midnight Thursday—100 days after the Senate voted to keep background checks from even being discussed—the campaign's website will count down to zero, at which point it was supposed to start collecting donations. Now, that won't happen.

"Honestly, we started this whole thing with the intent to fundraise for the bribes," says Simon Bruyn, one of the creatives. "But the lawyers were very adamant that this was go-to-jail illegal. Not just for us, but for anybody who donated. So we had to change our approach late in the game."

Instead, the site will simply direct tweets to the six senators and ask them to revisit their stance on the issue. Not so much as a bitcoin will change hands.

"We get it. Bribes are bad. You can't pay a politician to change their vote," says Emil Tiismann, another of the site's creators. "Next time we will form a proper political lobbying organization so that we can collect unlimited cash in order to have a meaningful political conversation with our elected officials where we strongly express our opinions."

Tiismann adds: "Please don't send us to jail for this. We'd hate to have to share a cell with a mentally ill killer who bought his murder weapon at a gun show without a background check."

Jacob Sempler and Andrew Livingston were the other two creatives who built the campaign. Check out its appeal video below.

    

Theater Regrets Having Body-Armored, Assault Rifle-Carrying Cosplayers at Iron Man 3 Premiere

A Missouri movie theater today apologized "to those who felt they were in harm’s way" when cosplayers arrived for the Iron Man 3 premiere in Jefferson City carrying fake firearms. The incident was initially described as a "publicity stunt" for the movie's opening weekend, but Capital 8 Theatres says it was simply a group of costumed fans who dressed as S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to make the premiere more entertaining. Unfortunately, several moviegoers were reportedly alarmed by the sight of a man walking into the theater with what looked like body armor and an assault rifle, which some felt was reminiscent of the Aurora, Colo., theater shooting during the 2012 opening weekend of The Dark Knight Rises. (However, some attendees and friends of the cosplayers have stated online that costumes were only worn inside the theater.) The theater has since been skewered in social media, sparking the following apology on Facebook: "We apologize and are sympathetic to those who felt they were in harm’s way with our character promotion for Iron Man 3. This was not a publicity stunt. We have worked with the Cosplacon group on many movies to dress up and help entertain our customers. We have had many complaints about the members dressed specifically as S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives carrying fake guns. We didn’t clearly tell our customers and some people didn’t realize it was for entertainment purposes only. We apologize that police were called to come out to our theater. We have a wonderful working relationship with the Jefferson City Police Department. Going forward we will take the necessary steps to make sure this doesn’t happen again. Security and safety for our customers is our number one priority. " The photo above is part of an Imgur gallery featuring shots reportedly taken at the theater the night of the premiere.

    

Ad for My First Rifle, Used to Kill 2-Year-Old, Is Way Too Much Like Any Other Toy Commercial

The problem with this 30-second spot for Crickett's My First Rifle .22-caliber single-shot gun is that it basically markets it as a toy. We see a school-age boy wide-eyed with excitement when he gets his shiny new weapon—"My first rifle," the voiceover enthuses, "a moment you never forget!"—while his chum is glum because he has to make do with a soccer ball. Sis gets a pretty pink Crickett, and the whole happy, gun-toting clan shoot together at the range. (That kid's ear protection is bigger than his head!) The commercial plays like an anti-firearms parody forged by left-wingers … but feels cruelly ironic in the wake of the accidental fatal shooting of a 2-year-old Kentucky girl by her 5-year-old brother, who'd received a Crickett rifle as a gift the previous year. The most troubling aspect of the ad is its attempt to portray the main kid as a miniature adult, even dressing him in shooting vest and matching cap (with Crickett's logo and tagline clearly visible). Guns should be for those who are old enough to appreciate what life and death really are, and who can take responsibility for their actions, never mistaking a potentially deadly weapon for a toy. Crickett—which removed its website after the shooting—stresses learning gun safety at an early age in the spot, which is all well and good. But accidents happen, even in supervised situations. Besides, kids aren't exactly known for their impulse control, or for always following rules, and I doubt many of them, especially at the age shown here, can truly understand the awesome obligation that comes with pulling a trigger. Expecting them to do so assumes an unreasonable level of maturity and seems horribly unfair; it strips away a bit of their innocence best left intact for a few years more. Via Slate.

    

Arranged Collections by Jim Golden

Le photographe américain Jim Golden réalise de magnifiques images en réunissant de véritables collections d’objets selon différentes thématiques. Ces clichés étalent des dizaines d’appareils photos, des instruments de musiques ou encore des armes à feu. L’ensemble est à découvrir dans la suite de l’article.

Arranged Collections by Jim Golden7
Arranged Collections by Jim Golden6
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Arranged Collections by Jim Golden
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Guns n’ Roses: 25 anos de apetite!

O antológico disco de estreia do Guns n’ Roses – Appetite For Destruction – completou 25 anos nesta semana. E, mesmo não sendo um mega fã da banda, e principalmente do rumo que ela e seu líder Axl Rose tomaram nos últimos anos, é impossível não reconhecer o valor e a importância incontestáveis desse álbum.

São raros os casos de primeiros discos que conseguem redefinir um estilo no mercado musical, e trazer de volta o interesse das massas para um gênero definido. O Appetite For Destruction chegou com tanta personalidade, tanta crueza, tanto vigor e tantas, mas tantas músicas simplesmente muito boas que conseguiu essa façanha logo de cara.

Foi um dos discos que fez o hard rock voltar a viver dias de glória e a reconquistar o grande público. Bandas já consagradas como Aerosmith e Def Leppard faziam sua parte lançando ótimos discos (Permanent Vacation, Hysteria), mas foi com o Appetite que o mundo voltou a prestar atenção no rock n roll pesado novamente.

Axl Rose, Slash, Izzy Stradlin, Duff McKagan e Steven Adler conseguiram fazer um disco visceral, sem frescuras e direto ao ponto. Aqui, todas as faixas vêm com dois pés no peito pra cima de você, sem exageros, sem clichés que facilmente seriam armadilhas dentro dos temas que o disco aborda e – principalmente – com uma visao melódica ímpar e uma fúria instrumental que há tempos os fãs de rock estavam ansiosos para ouvir.

Aquelas eram músicas com M maiúsculo.

Welcome To The Jungle, Mr Brownstone, Paradise City e Sweet Child O Mine viraram hinos do Guns não apenas por possuírem ideias e refrões bem pensados e que não desgrudavam da cabeça, mas também porque transbordavam atitude. E mesmo as baladas ganhavam uma firmeza e uma rispidez únicas, como Sweet Child O Mine, onde Axl Rose não precisava da sucralose dos dias de November Rain para dar seu recado.

Tudo era uma empolgante novidade na nova banda que chegava para conquistar o mundo: a guitarra estonteante de Slash, os vocais impressionantemente rápidos e inimitáveis de Axl e toda a base que os sustentava, deixando claro bem claro que aquele era um som novo, sujo, cruel, pesado e perigoso.

E que, em 1987, isso era a coisa mais legal do mundo.


Brainstorm9Post originalmente publicado no Brainstorm #9
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One more shot? / Coup pour coup!

2005leoburnettitalia
barillet2009
THE ORIGINAL ?
Pampero Against Drunk Driving  – 2005
“Driving loaded kills”
Source : Cannes Archive Online,
Agency : Leo Burnett (Italy)
LESS ORIGINAL :
Russian Ice “best shot ever” – 2009
Source : Adsoftheworld
Agency : Yirmiyedi Istanbul (Turkey)
Un coup pour rien? D’autant que l’utilisation du barillet était plus judicieuse dans la 1ere, ou le message est plus subtil et plus engagé.