Entertainment For Lively Minds
The Fourth Reich
Posted by chabsy on 23 April 2010 - 9:34pm.
that is T****'s supermarket chain have pinched and copyrighted the words WORLD CUP and forbidden any other of their rivals from using it. What next? These goddamned Nazis, apart from invading every village and parish in the world now have the gall to trademark the biggest football tournament on the planet. Yes, THE WORLD CUP you Tesco Nazi book burning thought police. I'm expecting a knock at the door any minute.. but they'll never take me alive, the twats.
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Er... I thought FIFA owned the rights to the words
World Cup when used in connection with soccer?
What can we expect then....
World Cup Finest coffee
World Cup Finest bras (all sizes I assume)
World Cup a soup
If they have done this, which I seriously doubt, then puns begin.
Oh dear!
Given Tesco's origins, I find your use of the term Nazi deeply offensive.
Been
to the Gaza Strip recently have you?
Meaning?
I genuinely don't understand this remark.
Is it suggesting that what has happened subsequently in the Gaza Strip somehow justifies or diminishes the awfulness of what the Third Reich did?
Tesco
For those who find the above comment too subtle - please read below:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Cohen_(Tesco)
Its crass to liken Tesco to the fourth reich - dominant yes
It's offensive anyway
Regardless of Tesco's origins. The Nazis didn't win a large share of the retail market in an annoying way. They killed millions of people.
It's not offensive
It's offensive to you - big difference.
Offence isn't an absolute - it exists in the mind of the offendee (not a real word I know, but I couldn't think of a better one).
This isn't to disregard the offence you feel, by the way, but my point is that to say something is offensive is to make assumptions about the responses of others. As it happens, I completely "got" what the OP meant and took it as an example of the kind of exaggeration that is commonly used to make a point.
"Nazi" is used all the time to describe things that have nothing to do with National Socialism, Hitler, WWII or the Holocaust - I would argue that the word has a meaning that is distinct and means nothing more than aggressive, domineering, acquisitive etc. As does "fascist", which has the same root but is used for comedic purpose all the time.
Maybe it's an age thing?
Having been born in 1952, the word 'Nazi' isn't an abstract term to me; they were, very specifically, the people who killed a significant chunk of my immediate family. Their handiwork was all around when I was growing up, both in terms of bomb sites and the damaged people who had returned from the war with bits missing - both physically and mentally.
Perhaps those people who are of an age where the Nazis are just another group from history - along with the Romans, Visigoths, Mongols and the Armada - are less sensitive and less likely to be offended but, personally, the term 'Nazi' means something very specific and it demeans the word to use it about a supermarket chain that legitamately buys the rights to a sporting event.
Once we start to forget the reality of what the Nazis did, then it's only a matter of time before something similar happens again. Remember, we're talking about the people that did this:
That as may be
but that doesn't stop this being funny
although those who want to live in Tescos now can (sort of)
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/construc...
Hmmm
As far as I was aware, Tesco were only the official sponsors of the England world cup team (along with twenty-nine other brands, I imagine); much like Sainsbury's were the official supermarket sponsor four years ago. I wouldn't have thought it was possible to copyright the words 'World Cup' either.
Chabsy..
What's the source of your story?
I can't say Lenny
or my missus will lose her job
Mountain sculptured from molehill
http://m.guardian.co.uk/?id=102202&story=http://www.guardian.co.uk/busin...
Hardly necessary to get all Naomi Klein about it.
I work for one of the competitors...
(yes, so flay me) and as the rules stand, anything we do concerning SA 2010 is to be referred to as The Football Event.
No word of a lie. Tesco bought The World Cup, and want intellectual property on it as well.
Official supermarket
and others have other 'offical' partner status, like Carlsberg for beer. They buy the rights to use the phrase 'FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010' and no one else is supposed to imply an association with the tournament.
It's basic licencing and common practice - a point your source has either misunderstood or deliberately overlooked becasue it's a better story if you just paint Tesco as evil.
Tesco is evil, by the way.
rights holder
Tesco haven't bought the rights to the world cup - they have spent a lot of money becoming an associate sponsor and want to defend their investment.
I'm sure all the other supermarkets will ensure they advertise their wares in the run up to the World Cup - I mean who is going to stop them saying 'get your beer and food in for the World cup' ?
In the same way as (say)
Mars are the 'official snack food partner', McDonalds are the 'official fast-food partner' and Visa are the 'official credit card partner'.
If you look hard enough, you'll probably find Izal are the 'official arsewipe partner'.
Tesco have done nothing better nor worse than the hundreds of other 'official partners' who have lashed out the big bucks to be associated with the tournament.
Lawyers will
Competitors are restricted in what they can say. "World Cup" is a no-no.
what does it matter?
who will make the decision 'ahh, I'll shop at Tescos cos they are the official 'World Cup' tm supermarket. I don't want to be seen in a supermarket that doesn't support Our Lads'. Its of no concern to anyone but their competetors. Heart bleeding for Walmart yet?
although everytime I drive past their behemoth store in Slough I imagine this is getting closer
Shop Around
I have decided to get into the spirit of the tournament, and shop at Tesco once every four years, during the summer months.
Why not do it in the spirit of England at the tournament...
and only go as far as the car park.
Like the World Cup
I shall be trying my best to ignore Tescos as much as possible as shopping baskets are boring
Wouldn't shop at
Tescoes anyway - they are complete wankers.
Around 4 years ago Waitrose opened a very good branch in Lichfield. They were not allowed space on any advertising hoarding in Lichfield because Tescoes had bought all of the free space to stop them doing so.
Godwin's Law
This is the first time I've seen it invoked in an opening post.
Technically, then...
...chabsy lost the argument before he'd even started writing his post, seeing as Godwin's Law applied to the title. Good darts.
In the title
of an opening post. Do we have a winner?
This is why you're wrong
"Reductio ad Hitlerum, also argumentum ad Hitlerum, (dog Latin for "reduction to Hitler" or "argument to Hitler," respectively) is an ad hominem or ad misericordiam argument, and is an informal fallacy. It is a fallacy of irrelevance where a conclusion is suggested BASED SOLELY on something or someone's ORIGIN RATHER than its current meaning or context. This overlooks any difference to be found in the present situation, typically transferring the positive or negative esteem from the earlier context. Hence this fallacy fails to examine the claim on its merit."
I didn't base my rant against the founder of Tesco, or anyone else, just the fact that this behemoth organisation is out of control. OK "Fourth Reich" was over the top. Apologies.
I agree with chabsy.
Because it'll make me seem dead clever and that and I want to be in his gang.
They may seem evil but
Tesco are so big because people keep going to their shops and buying stuff.
because
they closed everyone else down. Tesco will spend millions to put smaller retailers out of business. It can afford to lose money for as long as it takes for the competitors to bleed to death. In places like Bristol and Inverness, the Tesco stranglehold is almost complete.
If you had to make a comparison with evil regimes of the past, the best one would I think be in the way it abuses certain words. Words like 'value', 'choice' 'local' and even 'cheap' are stretched and strained until their original meaning is obliterated, rather as 'freedom' and 'victory' have been by other empire builders.