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« The Only Pro in the Picture | An Informed, Thoughtful Editorial o… »

Monday, January 14, 2013

Politics The Teabagging of Paper Towels

Posted by Charles Mudede on Mon, Jan 14, 2013 at 7:37 AM

The local director SJ Chiro was rightly freaked out by the packaging of this Koch brothers product...

SJ Chiro

The properties of this political universe are so peculiar that insult can somehow be absent from an intersection of this kind—the intersection of white warriors with white paper towels.

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Wow, you really think the designers would have at least said, "ok, we need at least on black guy on here for appearences at least, this is just ridiculous."

Posted by Theodore Gorath on January 14, 2013 at 8:58 AM

I dont get it, is it the collage of white people on the cover or the support our troops labeling? Or is it the fact that you had to read about it, by someone else to feel offended?

The difficult thing about buy a competitor to Koch products, is that I have no idea what that company is like when I decide to spend twice as much for it.

Posted by Kinison

on January 14, 2013 at 8:59 AM

Do you know how hard it is to boycott products made by the Koch Industries? It's not just about giving up Brawny and Northern bathroom tissue. They're into a lot and they supply a lot of products used by other manufacturers. This boycott is not unlike the one against Proctor & Gamble several years ago (P&G refused to end animal testing). It wasn't about just giving up certain laundry brands. P&G had expanded into certain food items/coffee/over-the-counter cold medications.

I like Brawny towels. I like Northern tissue. But I will not willingly, knowingly give those goons another dime of my money.

Posted by Bauhaus I on January 14, 2013 at 9:07 AM

@1 Knowing what stages design like this go through, I guarantee that this was said more than once. In a company this big, there's no question that it was a deliberate act. And I'd bet that it wasn't just a matter of the designers not caving to a "politically correct" impulse; it was a directive, and a thumbing of the nose at... whom?

Posted by Michael of the Green on January 14, 2013 at 9:13 AM

Having bought Kirkland Signature for many years, at first I thought the Romney-on-steroids image was a recent innovation, but it turns out they dumped the mustachioed strawberry-blond doofus and the rampant-erection lettering years ago.

Posted by rob!

on January 14, 2013 at 9:13 AM

Well, at least the commercials themselves for the Wounded Warrior Project include women and people of color.

Posted by Phoebe in Wallingford on January 14, 2013 at 9:53 AM

Actually, when they retired the old mustache mascot guy they specifically chose an ambiguously biracial dude with black hair who could be caucasian or hispanic or whatever. That was a deliberate de-whitenining of their brand. Whatever you may think of the Kochs, when it comes to their consumer products they only care about one color: green.

Posted by John Scott Tynes