LOWE'S: ALL-AMERICAN BIGOTS
Lowe’s – a home improvement store in the United States that will never get my business – has just pulled its advertising from a new television show on the TLC network called ‘All American Muslim.” TLC – for those of you not watching the news, as this story is everywhere - began as a learning channel with the aim of educating the public. We'll come back to this little gem of information later.
It is also important to note that on this same network, and ones like it, are shows about chefs, bigamists, polygamists, vertically challenged individuals (what is the correct term these days?), geeks, addicts and of course just plain and simple reality-based programming demonstrating your garden-variety idiot. And yet, and this is a big YET, Lowe’s has a problem with All-American Muslim because it is about just that, Muslims.
According to their spokesperson, and I quote: "Lowe's has received a significant amount of communication on this program, from every perspective possible. Individuals and groups have strong political and societal views on this topic, and this program became a lightning rod for many of those views. As a result we did pull our advertising on this program. We believe it is best to respectfully defer to communities, individuals and groups to discuss and consider such issues of importance."
Okay then. So clearly my first question is what about the Muslim community? Don’t they deserve Lowe’s deference? (I know the answer to that one. A chimp knows the answer to that one). The main bringer of heat – shall we say – that is urging companies that bought ad space on this program to reconsider is The Conservative Florida Family Association. This lovely ‘family friendly’ bunch of bigots (sorry are my feelings showing?) called 'All-American Muslim' "propaganda that riskily hides the Islamic agenda's clear and present danger to American liberties and traditional values." Cause the conservative Florida Family Association holds my liberal, unmarried, multi-racial child-producing, pro-choice liberties in high regard. Ahem, I don’t think SO.
So despite the show’s very intention and aim – to educate the nation about the lives of an average Muslim family - it is frighteningly evident that many in America are still impervious to education. And we wonder why we have problems around the globe. And to cement this point into forever more, Lowe’s feels compelled to bow down to their equally ignorant and bigoted public and pull their advertising because the pressure from the uneducated masses is just too great.
Let me explain this in terms everyone can understand; the show is NOT called All-American Jihadist or All-American Terrorist. The show is called All-American Muslim [they are NOT, I repeat, NOT one in the same]. It is like an American who happens to be Jewish, or Catholic or Baptist - and god knows there are plenty of those in our country trying to undercut my liberties and inflict their religion upon me. Are you following me on this, cause I can slow down? The show is in fact following several American families who are just that, American citizens (for those of you griping about that, you may want to go look up the history of our country in a book somewhere) who are proud and hardworking, and trying to show the rest of the country that Muslims are just like you and me. They just happen follow a different faith. To confuse these families with fundamentalists or subversives trying to undercut our value system is just plain moronic....come to think of it, I have an idea for a show that Lowe’s can sponsor, how about All-American bigoted uninformed idiots? Now that may fit their advertising slate.
Happily – cause it's important to end on a positive isn't it – as I post this, Russell Simmons (a philanthropic, multimillionaire, business magnate and voice of reason) has just announced that he has bought up all the ad space Lowe’s dropped. Stuff it Lowe’s. I’m going to Home Depot with Russell Simmons.