Burger King as a missionary/ sexual encounter

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The BK “Whopper Virgin” ad campaign is “as real as Borat” wrote one reader, and “no innocents are actually being exploited except by the concept that Whoppers are good for all, the idea of Burger King as a missionary/ sexual encounter.” Many readers had strong feelings about the Burger King “Whopper Virgin” ad campaign and protests against it. Some comments dismissed Minnesotan Seng Vang’s criticism of the campaign — “This person complaining is being to foolish…. Its a commercial and has nothing to do with Hmong people. I am Hmong and quite proud with this exposure of our people.” Continue Reading

Tou Saiko Lee on the BK “Whopper Virgin” campaign

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December 24, 2008. “In the remote Hill tribe villages of Thailand, they do know what hamburgers are but they do not like to eat them at all and know how unhealthy they are. My brief take on the Burger King commercial that had Hill Tribe villagers trying Burgers for the first time is that yes it is exploitation and made the tribal folks out to not know too much but it was also seeing Hmong people on national television in such a way that I hope peeks the interest of young Hmong Americans to explore how we lived as Hill Tribes in the mountains and how much our people have struggled and are still in those conditions…” From Travel in Spirals, blog of Tou Saiko Lee
Tou SaiKo Lee is a spoken word and hip hop artist/activist, born on a refugee camp in Thailand raised in New York and currently residing in Minnesota. He is part of a dynamic hip hop duo called Delicious Venom and lead MC for a socially conscious funk, hip hop band called PosNoSys: Post Nomadic Syndrome. Tou Saiko Lee is currently traveling in Thailand, looking for Hmong artists, musicians and traditional poets and family members, and exploring the Hmong way of life in Thailand. Continue Reading

Advise and Dissent: Luis Pacheco

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What would you like to tell president-elect Barack Obama? Advise and Dissent features opinions on what the new president should be thinking and doing. This opinion came from Your Turn — Teens advise the next president on what youth need.Immigration: I want Barack Obama to open the border for three reasons. First, most of the Latinos want jobs. Second they want a life that Mexico can’t give us. Continue Reading

Advise and Dissent: Noel Nix

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What would you like to tell president-elect Barack Obama? Advise and Dissent features Minnesota opinions on what the new president should be thinking and doing.Mr. President, this country needs you to truly govern in a bipartisan way–even when it gets hard and everyone from the left or from the right is attacking you–in order to bring about a change in the tone of politics. That’s easier said than done, I know. “Bipartisan” has become something of a cliché term, but true bipartisanship is something that we desperately need right now, to help us remember that we are part of something bigger than ourselves, bigger than just the group of people who agree with us. Continue Reading

Advise and Dissent: Sparkle Jones

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What would you like to tell president-elect Barack Obama? Advise and Dissent features opinions on what the new president should be thinking and doing. This opinion came from Your Turn — Teens advise the next president on what youth need.Abortion: I believe taking away a woman’s right to abortion is taking away her freedom. There are diverse reasons why abortion is the best option. There may be rape; few people want a reminder of a traumatic event. Continue Reading

Advise and Dissent: Bethany Gustafson

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What would you like to tell president-elect Barack Obama? Advise and Dissent features Minnesota opinions on what the new president should be thinking and doing.Mr. President-elect, because you were elected on the hope for change, I ask you to seek advice from a wide variety of people, to look to people who have experience as well as to new voices outside of Washington and outside of the corporate establishment. Also, since energy is an important issue right now, I would advise you to look at long term solutions and do very careful analysis of the costs and benefits of new forms of energy. Make sure that new forms of energy truly are saving energy (unlike ethanol from corn, which takes a great deal of energy and water to produce), and make sure they are sustainable for the long term. Continue Reading

Advise and Dissent: Harvey Monaghan

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What would you like to tell president-elect Barack Obama? Advise and Dissent features opinions on what the new president should be thinking and doing.Dear President Obama: America needs a dream and a person to sell the dream. Thankfully, in you, America now has the person, and inimitable hope that there will be positive change in the country’s financial, social and political direction. America, however, still needs a dream that will galvanize its citizens – a goal that is intellectually elite, but simply stated; one that is ambitious and far reaching but within our grasp; and one that will reclaim America’s place as world leader in ideology as well as action. Harvey Monaghan is an Australian who is now living and working in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China. Continue Reading

Advise and Dissent: Kiara Hill

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What would you like to tell president-elect Barack Obama? Advise and Dissent features opinions on what the new president should be thinking and doing. This opinion came from Your Turn — Teens advise the next president on what youth need.Better role models: Young Americans need … better role models. Not role models like Lil’ Wayne, and Lil’ Kim but more professional role models, like Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, and Hilary Clinton. By running for the presidential nomination, Hilary Clinton showed what women can do. Continue Reading

Advise and Dissent: Lee Potter

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What would you like to tell president-elect Barack Obama? Advise and Dissent features opinions on what the new president should be thinking and doing. This opinion came from Your Turn — Teens advise the next president on what youth need.End teen homelessness: I would tell him to do something about teen hunger and homelessness in America. I would present him with facts like 1.3 million homeless and run-away teens are on the streets every night. Every year 5,000 homeless teens die of illness, assault, or suicide. Continue Reading