Blue Babies

I have never eaten at Carl's Jr. which is the restuarant chain sporting the Blue Baby ad. I don't know how they do on hamburgers, but they seem to have some misguided ideas about babies.

We've all heard the expression, "blue babies," haven't we? It refers to cyanosis which may be caused by congenital heart disease or the Rhesus factor (Rh negative) and may require a blood transfusion.

So I'll bet you're as surprised as I am to see a blue baby advertisement, created by the Los Angeles agency Mendelsohn/Zien, slotted during the news hour on TV.

Now the baby in this ad is BLUE. It needs to be rushed to the hospital immediately.

But no one seems to notice the baby's complexion as they listen to it whine about spicy foods. What is wrong with these people? This baby needs immediate attention!

Yes. Yes, I know. In theory, we are seeing this baby via a sonogram in utero. I don't care. That baby's color is way off and it needs to see a doctor, at once.

One can't help but feel sorry for the mother. There are agreeable little tykes and then, there are the whiners. Many whiners start young and wallow through a whole lifetime complaining about everything from wet socks to receding hairlines. This condition usually intensifies when they are teenagers.

It's the parents who suffer, of course. After all, they are obliged to love this kid. It's theirs. And who doesn't fall head-over-heels in love with their own DNA?

One of the reasons I have missed the Carl's experience is the Golden Arches are usually right across the street, and there's no Junior associated with them. McDonald's is the Poppa Burger who started this whole fast food business. If I wanted a junior, I'd stay home and cook it myself.

The ad is too analogical to the current brouhala about abortion rights to suit me. It's as if Carl's Jr. is trying to sneak one over on me. Trying to make me believe an embryo has a personality and can talk. They might as well project that image onto a chicken egg, it'd make about as much sense. And some of us wouldn't mind blue eggs for lunch.

Now in Carl's defense, they're trying to promote their "Spicy BBQ Six Dollar Burger." But who can believe there's any tasty value there if they use a whining blue baby to advertise the product?

They should rush this one to the hospital for an immediate blood transfusion.
Blue Babies © 2005 Chaeli Sullivan