Thursday, December 21, 2006

Hell of a Pizza

There's an old adage that says "there's no such thing as bad publicity."

This must be the approach Hell Pizza in New Zeland took when it decided to send out 170,000 condoms as well as instructions for use to households across the country to promote their pizza as well as draw attention to the high rate of teen pregnancies and STDs.

The response of the Catholic community? Condemn the action and call for a boycott. They complained to New Zeland's Advertising Standards Authority who concluded the pizzeria had "breached standards of decency and social responsibility."

Perhaps I'm not quite seeing how jocularly drawing attention to a national problem is irresponsible. Meanwhile, the Catholic church, by suppressing information vital to teens protecting themselves seems to fit the bill quite well.

But ultimately, the boycott hasn't bothered the owners.

"If the Pope himself had tried the Lust pizza he might be a converted customer."

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