An idea just a little before its time

DFI (dumbfuck idea) of the month award has to be given to Ford Canada in which some smartass advertising sorts thought it would be kinda cute, and maybe appealing to younger drivers if they offered the slogan, pertaining to its vehicles, ‘Drive it like you stole it!’

Isn’t that clever? You know, attract the harebrained and felonious young drivers to your product. Or, at least, the junior criminal wannabes.

What does drive it like you stole it actually mean? What did the Ford jerks think it meant? Did they think it meant that their product was so cool that a young dude would feel it verged on something one of his homies might be driving through city streets at astonishing speeds and maybe wiping out a young mom and her kids that she has just picked up from soccer practice? That is because real car thieves are known to scoff at traffic lights and the other niceties of responsible driving.

Car theft, especially by the young, is a huge problem in Canada. And car theft, via draconian Canadian jurisprudence is often punished with penalties that range from, oh, getting a darn good talking to, to perhaps something as severe as ‘conditional sentencing.’ This means staying at home of an evening playing with your probably stolen Gameboy while your buds are out lifting other people’s cars. Maybe even Fords, but probably not, since Beemers are a little more enticing.

Anyway, just when you thought society was populated by thoughtful and responsible corporate minds, I felt we needed to be set straight.

By the way, Ford decided to nix the campaign after innumerable complaints over its tastelessness and irresponsibility. Complaints especially from those ‘whiners’ who had actually lost family members due to the terrifying driving behaviors of car thieves.

Do you think the failure of the campaign will be reflected in this year’s Christmas bonuses for Ford ad execs? No, neither do I.