Keep an eye on the brewing feud between the national leadership of SEIU and some of the locals in California.
Some background on the fight here. The latest details are here, including the national leadership working with local staff to violate union rules in support of their preferred outcome.
Classy.
Now if some of that could just spill over into the Evergreen State, where the purple shirts are a seemingly ubiquitous presence in local campaigns.
Posted by Eric Earling at April 06, 2008 02:45 PM | Email ThisSince the Seattle Times has chose the poor plight of an apprehended and deported illegal, how about a thread on the Absolut vodka company running an ad in Mexico wherein Mexico owns the US up to the Wash Oregon border?
Posted by: pbj on April 6, 2008 03:51 PMUPI has the story :now:http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Entertainment/2008/04/06/absolut_campaign_sparks_controversy/8090/
Heaven forbid you ran a controversial topic not put on your lap by the liberal biased lapdogs.
My kids attend Issaquah school district and there was an obese woman with such as sign two days ago in front of the school. I thought I saw SEIU but I could be mistaken.
Imagine that, healthcare costs getting higher and higher in this nation of grossly obese and under-exercised people, and obese union school employees who can't stand the thought of picking up a jumprope themselves.
Posted by: GV Ranch on April 6, 2008 08:08 PMUnions long ago stopped being about the workers and the customers that pay the bills. It is all about, however, union elite power and money. God help anybody that gets between them and the monies involved here. Just remember the teamster violence of yesteryear for a clue to where this is heading.
Unions have outlived their usefulness in the 21st century.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/04062008/news/nationalnews/a_painful_lie_105295.htm
It's amazing the legngths this mutt will go to get elected.
Posted by: Rick D. on April 7, 2008 07:17 AMBeing in a union myself (fire fighters) I just love it when they send me their monthly rag about how CEO's are making to much money. They fail to understand that the board sets the money that the CEO makes, not the CEO.
Yet look at some of our top union leaders and I know damn well, they are not living like the rest of us. Not even close.
You remember the old saying about not buying an American car that was built on Mondays or Fridays...
Posted by: Army Medic/Vet on April 7, 2008 08:57 AMControversy or quality advertising strategy? I'm sure Absolut had the bean counters calculate number of drinkers lost vs. effectiveness of viral internet Ad campaign. Their strategy seems to be paying off as a copy of the ad was posted up on the Drudge Report.
Are you saying the 'Do as I say but not as I do' mantra exists outside of the diminishing ranks of the Republican Party? WOW!
My Fav was the letter to Michelle Malkin where they bar owner said they would keep the ad in a frame above the Kettle One brand.
Now people will get a look at that Ad and see the Absolut brand name every time they buy a drink at the bar.
In a week or two people will be outraged about some other thing, but that Ad will still remain sitting a frame above the bar. I don't think you can buy that kind of exposure. :)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"Yeah" if it works for you, or against??
Lets face it, because they said they were sorry it must of made someone re-thing this ad.
Posted by: Army Medic/Vet on April 7, 2008 12:27 PMAt $400, that would mean $760,000,000 a year into SEIU coffers.
Some unions have strike funds, but since government workers aren't allowed to strike, this would not need to be a big account.
Contract negotiations? How expensive is it to negotiate with politicians?
Lobbying? How many lobbyists or politicians can you buy for a portion of $760,000,000 (every year)?
How are contract negotiations different from lobbying when the workers are government employees?
Pensions? The workers get their pensions from the employers, not the unions.
Democratic Party financial aid packages - ok, this can use up a big portion of the dues...
Trial Lawyer financial aid packages - ok, this can use up a big portion of the dues...
Where does the rest of the money go?
Shouldn't "big unions" leave more money with the workers instead?
No Israel...
Posted by: Bob R on April 7, 2008 12:54 PMNo Israel...
Posted by: Bob R on April 7, 2008 12:54 PMIt is never good advertising strategy - aka, marketing - to deliberately piss off a major portion of your potential customer base for no good reason. Especially when there are numerous available alternatives.
And honestly, do you really think the vodka market is that strong in Mexico? Probably on par with the tequila market in Russia. It will not outweigh their loss of US market share. I guarantee you. That's why they've come out with a second, more 'sincere' apology.
Problem is, it's already too late.
Extremely poor decision by the ad gurus who created it and an even worse decision by the execs who thought it would be a good idea.
Posted by: jimg on April 7, 2008 02:28 PMWhat base is that, the Freepers and people who are outraged by trivial and insignificant things?
It will not outweigh their loss of US market share. I guarantee you.
Doubt it, give it a week or two. The cries of outrage will pass and you will find that no one will give a damn. It may be remembered as a failed campaign but their brand awareness went way up and people rarely change their drinking habits based on a single ad.
What base is that, the Freepers and people who are outraged by trivial and insignificant things?
No. People who pay no attention to politics and blogs who brought it to my attention. Regular Joes and Janes who couldn't name either of their senators.
Doubt it, give it a week or two. The cries of outrage will pass and you will find that no one will give a damn. It may be remembered as a failed campaign but their brand awareness went way up and people rarely change their drinking habits based on a single ad.
Spoken like a person who doesn't know the first thing about marketing, PR and communications.
It's not the initial outrage that creates the impact; it's the long-term actions by people who don't say a word but pay attention and act accordingly.
Believe me, I know die-hard beer drinkers who don't even vote ... but to this day won't touch a drop of Miller because of their sponsorship of illegal immigration rallies in the past.
You can dismiss it, Cato. It's no skin off your nose, but you need to get out more and find out there a lot of people who don't spend their time on blogs who are fed up with how illegal immigration is being dealt with in this country and how they feel they are powerless to stop it.
Give them an outlet to voice their opinion - even one as 'trivial' as this - and they'll grab onto it.
And never forget - if a business does something good, people will more than likely share that experience. Do something bad and they will go out of their way to tell everybody they know.
Posted by: jimg on April 7, 2008 04:40 PMI see, that's why Abercrombie & Fitch is still successful? Controversial ad campaign gets them in hot water, they scale back but still use three-quarters naked people in store windows and billboards.
but to this day won't touch a drop of Miller because of their sponsorship of illegal immigration rallies in the past.
That's you, you going to stop buying Absolut because they had an ad in poor taste? It's one thing to sponsor illegal activities, it's another to create a viral marketing campaign that strikes off a firestorm on the internet and pumps up your name recognition.
there a lot of people who don't spend their time on blogs who are fed up with how illegal immigration is being dealt with in this country and how they feel they are powerless to stop it.
They may be blatantly offended that the border lines were drawn different than reality but that's still a far cry from Absolut encouraging and aiding illegal immigration.
Do something bad and they will go out of their way to tell everybody they know.
So you will boycott Absolut because they drew the borders from before the Mexican-American war on a single ad that you might not even have known about had it not been for the Internet?
"Spoken like a person who doesn't know the first thing about marketing, PR and communications."
Welcome to typical Cato speak.
And of course you are right JimG. A disgruntled customer will tell 100 people. A satisfied customer may tell 5 people. That is a basic rule that I am sure Cato has never heard about.
Posted by: pbj on April 8, 2008 03:03 PM