Pilot Me to the Internet

OK, they got me. The commercial sent me to the Internet.

You have probably seen the ad - the vacationing family is riding in a Honda Pilot and the kids start bopping and clicking, substituting their vocalizations for instruments. Soon the parents join in and everyone is making music and having a wonderful time.  

Congrats to the ad team for communicating such a strong message in thirty seconds. I remember that the car is a Honda Pilot and I get the point. Families traveling together in a Honda Pilot will have a good time. Plus, a large family fits comfortably. I associate the commercial with the product.

My family took road trips and there are many happy memories associated with those summers. We saw things that were interesting or beautiful and we even saw some places that no longer exist. I'm such a big fan of road trips that I continue the tradition as an adult.  This enormous country has so much to offer, we still haven't seen it all.  You begin to appreciate size and variety when you drive the United States. 

All that is true but what made the commercial stand out was the tune the family recreated. This happened to me before with Mitsubishi ad music. I couldn't place it. So I asked others, both older and younger than I am, if they recognized the Pilot song.  Everyone knew the ad but no one could identify the song. 

Off to the Internet. The tune is an Ozzy Osbourne song called Crazy Train. You can see it performed on YouTube and you will immediately recognize the opening guitar riff as the set up from the kids in the car.  

There's something about car ads and music. Whether it's Start the Commotion or Crazy Train, we pay attention. These ads make us smile and we associate with the product. So even if we are the wrong demographic, the commercial did its job.  We are talking about it (and writing about it) and that's communication.

Where's My Church Key?

If you've seen it once, you will see it again, redone, re-engineered, and relabeled.  It happened to me just the other day watching the commercial about Miller Lite's punch top beer can.

The idea is that with a second hole in the can, the beer will flow out faster and smoother.  Duh.  We've been punching extra holes in beer cans for years.  We used a screwdriver, an Army knife or a church key.  The only thing unique about this is that the hole in the can top is pre-drilled so it doesn't require much effort.  

If you haven't watched the television ad, check it out on YouTube or don't go to the kitchen the next time it airs.  Did you notice?  No one actually pours a beer into a glass.  Perhaps the "smoother pour" still creates a head?  I'm sure it does. A smooth pour means no glugs.  It doesn't mean no head.  Hmmm...something to thing about.

And therein lies my point.  It's a gimmick. It is a way to get you to spend your money on Miller Lite instead of Bud Lite or Coors Lite.  While I grant that it's clever marketing, will people pay extra for an additional hole they were always able and willing to punch themselves?  Still, I expect many will try it just to see what all the fuss is about.

Perhaps the can will make an appearance in science classes.  The can engineering is basic physics. The principal is even a mantra for Mike Holmes of Holmes on Holmes on HGTV.  He probably says it once each show: "Air behind water or nothing moves."  I can't help but wonder if the Miller can designer is a Mike Holmes fan or if he figured out a way to get a pay raise off something everyone was doing anyway.
  

For Washingon, No Check Means No Interest?

I figure one of the responsibilities of living in this country is to participate in the political process.  I don't march or protest but I always vote and occasionally send an email or make a phone call. 

With all the campaign hoopla about the national debt, I recently wrote about the cost of the war in the Middle East.  Now that the publicly-stated mission (getting bin Laden) has truly been accomplished, I see no reason for us to remain in an area that is, historically, untenable.  After all, if Alexander the Great, Queen Victoria, and the Russians couldn't conquer Afghanistan, it's a safe bet we won't either.  

Bringing our soldiers home would be a comfort to their families plus it would save us a ton of money - money we could use for other things including caring for our troops.  According to The Washington Post (The Washington Post article of June 21, 2011), the war in Iraq and Afghanistan has cost this country more than $3 trillion. So, a couple of months ago, I wrote to voice my opinion on this matter.

I eventually received replies.  One letter expressed an opinion on the health care bill and the other assured me of support for any legislation that put more controls on banks.

Wait - I didn't write about those topics.  I wrote about bringing our troops home and taking proper care of them when they get here. 

In sending me a form letter that has no bearing on what I wrote, my representatives' staffs indicated that they a) do not read what their constituents send, and b) are only interested in certain key issues that will be hot during the campaign.  Apparently war is not as important as other matters?  Or perhaps I am not entitled to have an opinion on that topic?  

Would it have helped if I had enclosed a big, fat check?