Super FAIL

Last night, millions of Americans collectively dropped their jaws. Some were outraged. Others were overjoyed. And nearly all were surprised.

The Seattle Seahawks' landslide Super Bowl win was genuinely shocking. The 21st Century Know Nothings' reaction to Coca-Cola's Super Bowl commercial, however, was anything but. Why? Exhibit A is below.



"ZOMG!!! This is 'MUR'KA! SPEEK INGLESH!!!111111!!!!" Of course, that's what the usual suspects were screaming all over social media with the #BoycottCoke hashtag once this commercial aired. And they wonder why even House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) calls their beloved (Steve) King an asshole?

Ironically enough, #BoycottCoke had previously been the hashtag of choice for human rights activists denouncing Coca-Cola's tacit endorsement of Russia's state sanctioned homophobia & transphobia on the eve of the Sochi Winter Olympics. So was last night's flashy ad a mea culpa of sorts for the multinational beverage conglomerate? Or was this just an oh so convenient way to "rainbow-wash" the gruesome reality of its quest for profit at the expense of millions of Russians under constant threat of state sanctioned persecution?



So why are we now talking about soda, sports, and TV ads? Don't worry. We're getting to the point of all this.

And here it is: Actions speak louder than words. Like Coca-Cola, the Republican Party has run into "rebranding" trouble as of late. Even as some Republicans in Nevada and elsewhere have embraced LGBTQ and immigrant civil rights, the bulk of the party from the top down has not. And since the party is still so strongly tied to its "TEA" powered base, it continues doubling down in its "Culture War", even as the rest of America long ago declared that war over.

Don't believe us? Then we dare you to watch President Obama's pre-Super Bowl Fox "News" interview. We also dare you to re-read the legal brief that Governor Brian Sandoval (R-Denial) doesn't want you to remember. And while you're at it, go ahead and review the House floor vote that Rep. Joe Heck (R-??!!) doesn't want you to remember.

Perhaps because the actual Super Bowl game turned out to be such a wildly lopsided affair, we couldn't help but dig deeper into the messaging happening during the commercial breaks and on Fox's "news" channel. And we couldn't help but notice that the G-O-TEA "rebranding campaign" continues to ring as hollow as ever. And as long as party "leaders" continue their quest to "have it both ways" (by "softening their image" to the general public while simultaneously doubling down on extreme, xenophobic policy where it really matters), they'll only continue to reap the ultimate Super FAIL.