Ray Conrad

Chainsaw wielding Honey Badger driving a bulldozer. I brake for nothing. Except pets. And children, maybe.

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Anti-Social Media Ray Conrad 1/16 '19

It seems that just as one incident of a company's marketting department blundering on the company's social media account is fading from memory, another one comes along to take its place.

The latest, Gillette, the famous razor makers, took to social media to shake its metaphysical fist at "toxic masculinity". Why? Who in their marketting department thought that by taking a cudgel to their user base they'd increase sales?

Instead, the backlash seems to be trending toward people dumping Gillette products. I bet the person who put forward this brain donor of a marketting plan is praying that it slinks away to a quiet corner to die. Adn as quickly as possible, please.

Now, Gillette is owned by Proctor and Gamble, who continued to use the Gillette brand name and sponsor Gillette Stadium, where the New England Patriots play in the NFL. Damn, that seems pretty masculine. I wonder if the marketting department knows?

Let's ignore masculinity for a moment and focus on toxic behavior. One definition of toxicity would be using your power and influence to denigrate and punish people or a person for traits and circumstances beyond their ability to control.

Using that definition, castigating an entire gender for an accident of birth seems like pretty toxic behavior.

In any event, it seems like a good time to dump your Proctor and Gamble stock.

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1/16 '19 2 Comments
I don't know if this would interest you, but there's a thoughtful analysis of the Gillette ad kerfluffle (kind of analyzing the analysis of the ad, if you will) here: https://medium.com/@remakingmanhood/the-attack-on-gillettes-integrity-is-actually-a-larger-cultural-inoculation-cd1b1732a10b?sk=1e1d449b0e70ddc154f1ab9c48854c7d

And the Twitter thread summary (a great synopsis) is here: https://twitter.com/RemakingManhood/status/1086992730109165568

I don't know what exactly I think about any of it—the ad or the chatter about the ad—but the ad didn't strike me as a condemnation of an entire gender (but then, I'm female). And it is intriguing to me that the ad, rather than sparking conversations about ally-ship, is instead spurring talk about Gillette as an evil corporate overlord.

I think we all struggle in our own ways with the cultural pressures around gender and gender identity. I'm glad we're having national conversations about it now, as difficult and unsettling and confusing as they are. My hope is that the narratives that come out of these discussions/confrontations/conflicts are ultimately helpful and not just chaotic and divisive (but then, I'm a storyteller).
Anne Mollo
Thanks for the link. I think it's interesting that Mr. Greene's article didn't take a stand, didn't make a point or take leadership, the traditional male roles. Which is kind of accepting Gillette's point, if damning it with faint praise.

I prefer Egard Watches response.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_HL0wiK4Zc
Ray Conrad
 

You know what? Never mind. Ray Conrad 11/14 '18

I was going to write a cynical, one sentence blurb about Florida's election TARFU situation. But, I realized that A) I wouldn't be adding anything positive to the situation. B) I have already resolved to sit back and enjoy the sound and fury signifying nothing. C) There is nothing I can do on the world stage. I've just got to make my little corner of it better and worry about me, my friends and family.

Carry on.

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11/14 '18 2 Comments
Oh, this. So much this. So many hands-poised-above-the-keyboard moments as current events set my mind reeling. And then I think, nope.

And a funny thing happens: I redirect my energies to all things local, and I begin to spark some of the most amazing and fruitful conversations with people around me. Conversations about race and representation, about democracy and economics, about how to be a better person enlisted in making a better (local) world. Ideas for inclusion, expressions of gratitude, opportunities for service.

It doesn't make what's happening on the national or global stage any less... frightening or awful. But it both keeps me from existing in an insulated/isolated bubble, and it's soothing and directly helpful.
Anne Mollo
Very well put, Anne. I like this. A lot.
Karen Kuhl