The World Cup, like no other sporting event on the planet, can turn even the most reasonable people into raving xenophobic bufoons. I am not immune to this desire. I have been known to give myself over to the dark side and baselessly despise an entire country based entirely on my 3rd or 4th favorite sport. Perhaps the slogan for the World Cup should be something like: We Make Racism Acceptable Once Every Four Years or Doesn’t Jingoism Feel Good?
With that said, even in a week where the world is whipped up into a hatred soaked frenzy, this commercial I saw on TV for regional cell phone provider Pocket Wireless may just take it a few steps over the line.
Call me Captain Politically Correct but the portrayal of South Africans as spear-chucking savages hoping to feed their foe to non-specific wild animals of varying origin probably isn’t the best way to represent the host country. The Mexico jersey next to the Last Supper painting is a nice touch though.
I can only pray for a return to the day that this commercial would feature a drunken Irishman.