http://web.blogads.com/advertise/liberal_blog_advertising_network
Liberal Prose BlogAds Network
Diamonds are a Dickhead's Best Friend

Check out this ad that appeared in American Rifleman, the official magazine of the NRA. Because things that sparkle and shine easily distract silly women from their deeper concerns about having a relationship that is respectful and fulfilling. Ugh.

Photobucket

Thanks to Phillip for the heads up.

Posted by Courtney - June 19, 2009, at 08:38AM | in Advertising , Sexism

0 TrackBacks

Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: Diamonds are a Dickhead's Best Friend.

TrackBack URL for this entry: http://www.feministing.com/cgi-bin/movabletype/mt-tb.fcgi/14444

41 Comments

[0+] Author Profile Page B. Atoureta said:

You know, if I were a man with half a brain, I would be incredibly insulted at these types of ads, which insinuate I have to bribe women to sleep with me.

But, then again, it's the American Rifleman. I doubt men with more than half a brain are in their target audience.

[0+] Author Profile Page Brian replied to B. Atoureta :

People internalise a lot of the gender roles they're taught, and often (usually?) (almost invariably?) don't question them. Merely being "smart" generally isn't enough to see past them anyways, especially when everyone around you is acting the role.

[0+] Author Profile Page B. Atoureta replied to Brian :

I generally don't accept those types of excuses, especially since I know people reject gender roles even when surrounded by them.

[0+] Author Profile Page gal16 replied to B. Atoureta :

My Father and Mother both read that publication and I do not believe either one of them is half brained.

[0+] Author Profile Page MiriamCT1 said:

barf

wanna get me off the couch?

screw jewelry and give me more cunnilingus.

[0+] Author Profile Page Tom replied to uberhausfrau :

Noted ;p

[0+] Author Profile Page Interior_League replied to uberhausfrau :

Why not on the couch?
I lick, I lick, ooh what's this?
Hey I found some change!

Whaaaaa ha ha ha ha! Sweet!

uberhausfrau, thank you for making me laugh out loud today.

[0+] Author Profile Page Tom said:

Noted :P

[0+] Author Profile Page Tom replied to Tom :

Ok, now that I am done with jokes, yeah these ads pretty patronizing to both sexes. But honestly I have trouble working up outrage because they are so ubiquitous that they have become part of the white noise of sexism one deals with from day to day.

[0+] Author Profile Page Christopher said:

Courtney, would you consider changing the title of this article? Conflating the staggering idiocy of the average American Rifleman reader with their genitals only reinforces the idea that the genitals are inherently bad or dirty. I think we should all try to avoid doing that.
Perhaps simply calling them assholes or misogynists will do instead?

[0+] Author Profile Page Interior_League replied to Christopher :

This insult: my right!
Can take my dickhead when pried
from my cold dead hands!

[0+] Author Profile Page Destra replied to Christopher :

I completely agree. It's not intelligent to decry sexism by using sexist terms. We don't use cunt because it equates lady parts to unsavory behavior. We shouldn't use dickhead because it equates gentlemen parts to unsavory behavior.

[0+] Author Profile Page Interior_League replied to Christopher :

Asshole or dickhead:
anatomy all the same.
Also, lighten up.

[0+] Author Profile Page Destra replied to Interior_League :

"Lighten up."

Gee, where have I heard that one from before? Oh yes, from people telling feminists to shut up and take a joke. Bigotry is not funny, and we should live up to the ideals that we are asking others to live up to.

[0+] Author Profile Page Interior_League said:

While it is true that
"Happiness is a warm gun,"
less so on the couch.

Sweetheart I bought you
ugly pink zirconia.
Open door now please?

The real shocker here:
'merican Rifleman on
Courtney's reading list.

Love the poem. As I said, reader Phillip sent it in. I'm not a big gun mag reader, as you might imagine.

[0+] Author Profile Page Interior_League replied to Courtney :

So your gun for your
civil war re-enactments:
wooden replica?

[0+] Author Profile Page Tom replied to Courtney :

well that just shatters my mental image of Courtney, next you'll tell em you don't drive a massive pickup truck or admire rodeo clowns.

[0+] Author Profile Page Interior_League replied to Courtney :

Tell us the truth now:
You prefer "Guns & Ammo"
They aren't so right-wing.

[0+] Author Profile Page courtship dating said:

So the idea is to use a salacious title to grab the reader's attention? "Diamonds are a Dickhead's Best Friend"?

Perhaps if you used the title "Diamonds are a Cunt's Aphrodisiac", you'd attract even more attention.

[0+] Author Profile Page BodyPart replied to courtship dating :

Is a woman calling a man "Dickhead" not as bad as a man calling a woman "Cunt"?

[0+] Author Profile Page lauren automatic replied to BodyPart :

No... not it is not. It doesn't have the same sting behind it.

[0+] Author Profile Page BodyPart replied to lauren automatic :

Why not? Doesn't the sting lie in the eye of the beholder (recipient) so to say?

Or is it because of "power dynamics" between the two genders? In that case how would you compare a white woman calling a black man "Dickhead" to a black man calling a white woman "Cunt"?

[0+] Author Profile Page electrictoaster replied to BodyPart :

When you're using gendered insults, the key power imbalance is the gender, imo. A better comparison would be a white woman calling a black man a n*****, since she'd be using her white privilege in the same way he'd be using his male privilege. Even then, I really dislike questions that try to pit different oppressed groups against each other. At the end of the day, they're still both oppressed, and it'd be better to spend energy trying to fight the oppression than wasting it arguing about who has it worse.

[0+] Author Profile Page Interior_League replied to courtship dating :

Whoa there, that's not cool.
You shouldn't just through around
the C-word like that.

This comment offends.
I'd like the "I did not Like"
button back for this.

[0+] Author Profile Page Interior_League replied to Interior_League :

ugh THROW
what an idiot

[0+] Author Profile Page allegra replied to courtship dating :

A "salacious title" on the blog entry? I'll be nice and assume you're kidding.

It is dickhead-ish of any person to assume they can get sex by buying shit for said other person - or to expect sex or feel they're owed sex for buying shit. This is called being coercive and treating sex (not to mention a human being, the female partner) like a commodity that can be bought and sold. This is sick, thoughtless, and disrespectful. Get it? Perhaps you need a human relations 101 class?

It's also fairly safe to assume the majority of _Rifleman_ readers are men; statistically, about half of men will own a gun at some point in their lives. For women, it's less than 15 percent (http://www.vpc.org/studies/myth.htm ; http://books.google.com/books?id=WOug0pzW6_IC&pg=PA438&lpg=PA438&dq=gun+ownership+gender&source=bl&ots=b2-kC5pl9K&sig=sZDQ6RwxazF-m1LvnZ51PnodqA0&hl=en&ei=CDs9SvGVNJjEMbT94aQO&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3 ). The NRA doesn't compile demographic information on its members, but I'll assume the demographics follow roughly along ownership lines. And the ad was obviously targeted at straight males. So get a grip.

[0+] Author Profile Page homebird said:

Courtney the subtext for me is much more disturbing. All women are essentially prostitutes who will let you in their bed for a little something.

[0+] Author Profile Page cattrack2 said:

Really don't we think "dickhead" is a little strong here for what's everyday behavior? Its a friggin ad, I hardly think its trying to distill a relationship therapy guide to a single page of American Rifleman. But that's just my humble attempt at common sense.

[0+] Author Profile Page arias said:

I think that what was written below the picture in this ad was even more offensive:

"Don't just TELL her you're sorry, SHOW her with the Stauer Apology Stone Ring and FREE earrings!

Whoever said 'True love means never having to say you're sorry' has obviously never been married. Nobody's perfect. Everybody make mistakes. Change that... YOU make mistakes. That's just human nature. Unfortunately, as men, our "husband nature" forces us to make mistakes more often. Believe me, we've all been there.

You need to know that at Stauer, we feel your pain. That's why we've created an impressive pink peace offering that's guaranteed to get you off the sofa and back into the bedroom in no time. Our elegant lab-created Apology Stone Ring features a stunning 4-3/4 carats worth of "forgiveness," specifically designed to bring out her mercy and compassion.

And for the next time you get into trouble, we are including a stunning pair of matching 1 ctw lab-created DiamondAura® stud earrings ABSOLUTELY FREE!

When 'I'm Sorry' isn't enough

My wife and I have been together for more than 20 years, so I've learned from experience. I only have two kinds of guy friends: those who know how to apologize and those who got divorced.

Show, don't tell.

Words are cheap and the longer you're married, the cheaper they get. Showing is much better than telling. You want to make it up to her? Get the Stauer Apology Stone Ring, wait for the right moment and show her how much she means to you. She'll be left speechless by the magnificent 4-carat, pink DiamondAura®. The multi-faceted pink oval is set between a twinkling pair of trillion-cut DiamondAura® and set in a spectacular setting of .925 sterling silver."

source: http://www.stauer.com/item/Apology-Ring-With-FREE-DiamondAura-Studs/17236/14

[0+] Author Profile Page Interior_League replied to arias :

I picked some daisies
from a field not for sorry
because I love you

[0+] Author Profile Page homebird said:

Ugh and then right after this I get treated to this.
http://maybeyoushouldntbuythat.com/post/119969372/women-love-purses-women-also-love-forcing-men#disqus_thread

For those who don't want to link apparently - "Women love purses. Women also love forcing men into making ridiculous purchases in the hopes that they’ll be able to finagle sex."

[0+] Author Profile Page Sehnsucht said:

Diamonds are evil anyway. Most people don't even know where the hell they come from and what kind of slavery and cruelty (of mostly Black Africans) is used to extract them from the Earth by the rich (mostly White Americans/Europeans) jewel barons who own these companies. Lots of people die every day to get those shiny little rocks, which, in my opinion, are tacky and cliche anyway.

[0+] Author Profile Page Liz B. replied to Sehnsucht :

I agree with you about the diamonds, but any jewels advertised in American Rifleman haven't ever been in the ground. These puppies are definitely lab created.

[0+] Author Profile Page Lisa said:

I think talking would be a lot cheaper than buying a ring for your wife every time you piss her off. Probably more effective long term as well.

The haiku comments alone made this post worth while.

[0+] Author Profile Page allegra said:

Huh? Was this in a recent - like, 2000s - issue, or an '80s issue? For some reason it looks totally '70s or '80s to me. What kind of morons would even publish ads like this today?

"Back in the bedroom"?! LMAO. I'm with homebird - the ad implies all a guy needs to do to get laid is buy a woman some cheap sparkly shit.

Perhaps the "rifleman" could instead consider buying a nice firearm for his dear "riflewoman"? But misogynist NRA d-bags would probably frown upon women using guns, since that would just go against all their natural sexist expectations about the silly emotional prostitutes.

Wow, a sexist ad to buy diamonds. An artificially scarce status symbol whose trade funds war. And the ad is in the NRA magazine. That is perfect storm if I've ever seen one.

[0+] Author Profile Page BelevolentDictatorOfAndrogyny said:

And... dickheads isn't innately sexist? I mean, I agree, jewelry, perfumes, and other *shiny*, *porcelain* gifts are superficial and lodge people into categories based on stereotypical gender roles. "Dickheads", though? Seriously? Are you working for or against your cause?

[0+] Author Profile Page BeastlyKitty said:

Aww, Interior_league, your hikus make me happy! You are so creative!

and yeah, that ad is incrediablely stupid.

Leave a comment


Search Feministing
Related Posts
Related Community Posts
Upcoming Events
  • Jessica Valenti discussion "The Purity Myth" hosted by Paradigm Shift
    Tuesday, 23 February 2010 07:00 PM to 10:00 PM
    The Tank
    New York, NY
  • Colgate University Vagina Monologues
    Thursday, 25 February 2010 08:00 PM to 10:00 PM
    Palace Theater
    Hamilton, NY
  • National Young Feminist Leadership Conference
    Saturday, 20 March 2010 09:00 AM to 07:00 PM
    University of the District of Columbia
    Washington, DC
  • National Young Feminist Leadership Conference
    Sunday, 21 March 2010 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM
    University of the District of Columbia
    Washington, DC
  • NYFLC: Congressional Day of Action
    Monday, 22 March 2010 10:00 AM to 04:00 PM
    Capitol Hill
    Washington, DC

Recent Comments
Feministing As You Like It
Get involved with Feministing by joining our networks on:
Subscribe to Feministing