Take a look for yourself (click on the image to go to the site) and tell me what you think in the comments:
It is eye-catching, I guess…
I like a jab at Coleman as much as the next sane person, but Americans Against Escalation in Iraq’s latest TV ad has me feeling a little conflicted. On the one hand I understand and endorse the point they’re trying to make, but on the other hand, kids in fatigues… it’s a very controversial visual, at best. I don’t want to give the conservatives talking points but I think this is a bit demeaning to the hard working soldiers in the field, even if the meaning was not intended as such.
I think the visual is a perfect fit for the message they are trying to get across. They aren’t saying the soldiers over there now are little kids. They are saying that if we don’t end the conflict soon, some day those that are little kids now will be the soldiers over there.
Seems pretty effective to me.
One thing to think about is that some of the soldiers over there were in Junior High/ Middle School when the war started. If this goes on another 4 or 5 years, there will be soldiers over there who were in elementary school when it all started.
That for me is terrifying to think about.
Terrible ad. Too many ways for this to be misinterpreted.
I fully understand the intention and meaning of the visual, but I still agree with Dan. There are simply too many ways to misinterpret that visual if you’re the casual observer.
I agree with Dan and Matt. The message is appropriate, in context, but the visuals are _way_ over the top.
This is one of those honest, well intentioned, ads that have the potential to produce some serious blow-back. It may end up doing more harm than good.
True, there could be some blow-back, but ultimately, it should hopefully kick up some conversation and get people talking, which is far better than ignoring it.
This is a Tacky ad that will only appeal to already
anti Military people.
@ Kollege Kid
Kick up conversation? Get people talking? Your average voter doesn’t want that. And it’s your average voter, and their poll numbers, that change Coleman’s mind. They want the decision to leave Iraq to be as clean and comfortable and guiltless as the decision to go to Iraq in the first place.
The way to sell getting out of Iraq, and have it stick, is similar to the way the initial invasion was sold. Wrap it in a flag. Give withdrawal the patriotic gloss invasion was given. Make everything about ‘the troops’ - and anyone who opposes withdrawal someone who ‘just wants our troops to die’. Stoke fear, and say withdrawal is the only thing that will salve those fears.
Then throw on the same magic that always works for Tim Pawlenty ‚ not only is it moral, it allows all that money to spent on you! Not 450 billion wasted ‚ 450 billion that could have been spent on your roads, your pills, and your tax cuts!
That’s why this ad is a bad ad. It attempts to shock and discomfort, to puncture people’s sense of normality and make them think. The lessons of the last few years of Bush and Pawlenty are simple ones: raise peoples fears, and make the call to action easy. With all the terrorists Iraq is breeding, that’s already been done. Present your alternative as the only thing that will make the fear go away. Wrap it in a flag, which shouldn’t be that hard, given that withdrawal is the right thing to do. And then say how you will not only be moral ‚ the money will be spent on you.
People can be herded out of this war as easily as they were herded in. The trick is to talk to them. Not to shock to them, but to talk to them in the language that moves them. And then withdrawal becomes as easy a choice as supporting the invasion was.
I actually like the ad. I was in middle school when this war started, and I am now in college and legally able to fight in the military, so I can really relate to the message. It’s a striking message, and I think the visuals work.
Who ever aired the add should pull it down and so should you. We have moms and dads in uniform fighting right now and this is an insult to them as well as to the honest folks who oppose the war.
I disagree with you Matt.
I think the point of the piece is very clear.
I hope it will make some pro-occupation parents with children of this age who don’t think the war on Iraq will have an impact on them think a little more.
I think it’s powerful. Give the troops and the American people some credit for being smart and really getting this ad…there will always be those who’ll bash just to bash…
The ad is false. Senator Coleman did not vote for the Iraq War resolution like the ad implies.
It makes me think of Alex at ArmyofDude. He was in high school when this most recent Iraq Invasion occurred, now he is just coming home from a tour of duty there. I remember very clearly where I was when I heard on the radio that U.S. was invading Iraq for Desert Storm, picking up my daughter from preschool. She is now a 20-year-old college junior. I also think of the generations of Iraqi youth whose world views we are shaping. This war will affect generations, even if we get out now.
Interesting comment from Michael Brodkorb - is he implying Coleman opposes continuing the war? Great.
Minnesota Democrats Exposed unveils sloppy spelling!!
“The ad is false. Senator Coleman did not vote for the Iraq War resolution like the ad implies.”
If Mikey is squealing about it… I say it should keep running…