McDonalds Commercial Blatantly Stereotyping Irish During the 1980's

I'm just shocked to see that McDonald's made a commercial at some point that wasn't all black people. I just assumed that's the way they've advertised since the beginning of time.

It's amazing to think that McDonald's made it out of this alive. Sure it helped that it was made in the 1980's before Twitter came around and everyone had a forum to bitch about all their injustices, but I think it's more than just that.  It's the way the Irish are, they don't take offense and flip out about every little political injustice. 

Characterize them as alcoholics, leprechauns, a bunch of funny looking gingers, hobbits, potato eaters, doesn't matter, they'll laugh with you, probably curse you under your breath and share a pint with you.  Life's too short to care. 

The rest of the world could take a lesson here, like can you imagine if this footage was McDonald's throwing a yarmulke as a lid on a soft-drink? Or some kid finding a dradel in his Happy Meal?  You'd hear outrage from Manhattan to Hollywood all day until the ad was pulled.   

Or how about if the voice over was speaking in an Italian Mob accent over a cup of McDonald's Coffee?  Every guinea politician would be up in arms crying foul more than they already do over the Jersey Shore. 

No excuse me while I go get my Irish on and find a seat at the bar, big day off for the CW, basketball and pints starting at noon. 

Woman Thought Her 9 Pound Baby Was "Just A Stomach Ache"

Fox News - A 35-year-old mother-of-two – who had no idea that she was pregnant with her third child – delivered a healthy 9-pound baby boy after going to the hospital with a severe stomachache, The Daily Mail reported.  Lesley Nicholl from England said she was amazed when she was told she was carrying a baby who was already a few days overdue. Hours later, she gave birth via cesarean section at Homerton Hospital, in East London.  “I have seen this before. There are many women who may have irregular periods, and they don’t realize it when they become pregnant. Some of these women are overweight, and therefore do not perceive movement as the fetus grows,” he said. “Because of this, many of these women do not see a doctor. I remember 20 years ago, a patient came into the emergency room complaining of cramps. Upon examining her, I realized that she was pregnant and about to give birth.”

I'm trying to give you ladies the benefit of the doubt, I really am.  But you've got to get a handle on your weakest 10% here because they're making you all look bad.

I'm sorry, I don't care how fat you are, unless you're clinically retarded you should notice a living human being growing inside of you.  Maybe it's just me, but I find it hard to believe a woman would walk around for 9 months feeling like she had a stomach ache or had to take a monster shit without questioning what was going on inside of her.  

It's not like this one hasn't had a kid before and wasn't familiar, it's her third one.  Like when you felt the kid kicking, what did you think that was?  Just the bad batch of chili-cheese dogs you polished off at lunch? What the hell ladies? 

And how bad do you feel for the kid here?  Growing up all he's going to hear is how his mom just thought he was a bad case of food poisoning.  Kids have a hard enough time fitting in without a mom who mistook carrying him as a baby for having an extended case of diarrhea.  

Glaxo Loves Musical Chairs A Bit Too Much, Abolishes Personal Desks and Cubes

Yes life on the cube farm sucks, but its my life and far be it for you to take it from me.

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has a slightly insane plan to install a free-form, open-space office environment at its HQ in which no one has an assigned desk, chair or computer. Employees will just show up at the Research Triangle Park, N.C., building with their laptops and sit wherever they want...This trendy new program seems guaranteed to make everyone crazy: Employees will be unable to personalize their workspaces with family photos or memorabilia. Instead, they will be given a storage locker in which they can keep files and keyboards. Welcome back to high school, GSK! About 40 GSK employees have already made the switch; 1,500 will follow shortly. Among the other changes:

• Offices will be divided into flexible “neighborhoods” in which groups of employees can work on projects together.
• Employees will receive etiquette classes to teach them to leave the space they used pristine for the next worker.
• GSK expects the system will increase collaboration, and lessen use of email and phones.
• Workstations will be adjustable for tall and short employees.

Oh, well at least they'll make the work stations adjustable for tall and short employees, that'll solve all the other headaches this was sure to cause... 

Like, where am I supposed to hang my cube basketball hoop? And now I have to walk all the way over to my locker to dig out a take out menu that used to be tacked to my wall? You guys understand I'm lazy as all hell right? That's why I'm ordering take out? I can't be bothered to have to walk across the office to retrieve a menu, that shit is insane.

And I'm sure these "neighborhoods" will work out swell.  As the original author points out, as in real life with neighborhoods you get class stratification.  After a few weeks you'll have all the cubes by the windows thumbing their noses and hurling racial slurs at those unfortunate enough to have to sit near the bathroom or the bosses office.  As if promotions, salary, and recognition awards weren't enough for employees to compete over now there's going to be tensions over who gets the best desk location.  Won't be long until you'll see the true crazies sleeping out side the office at night like its Black Friday or something. 

Look, I may hate life in a cube, the fluorescent lights, the half walls that everyone can look over when I'm just trying to slack off and read the internet or take a nap, the fact that if you fart the people in the cubes surrounding you have to deal with it, and the overall monotony of work.  I hate it all.  But at least its mine.  For whatever little its worth, I know that little shit hole is mine and I can do basically whatever I want in it.

I don't want to take ettiquette classes on cleanliness.  I like my current system.  I hoard old Tupperware like I'm starting a science project, half drank bottles of water littered around the desk, my sony stereo pumping out phat beats, random cheat sheets with valuable passwords just tacked on the wall for all to see. All of that is what makes my job tolerable.  You take that away and I'm 2 minutes away from making this blog a full time gig, even if barely enough people have clicked the advertising to afford a large sub at D'Angelos. I'll take poverty over a loose-leaf desk and a storage locker any day, that's just uncivilized.  

PS: Thanks to Dillinger for the tip.  Dillinger contacted The Alt-Tab through our Contact Us tab at the top right.  If you've got a tip, video, or topic you'd like to see blogged about please do the same or e-mail us at TheAltTab@gmail.com

March Madness Bracket Update, Day 1: I'm Screwed

Allright, maybe I'm not that bad off, but under no circumstances am I in good shape, just middle of the pack by any measure you choose, but it just feels worse.  Why?  Because of frigen Morehead St and their delightfully entertaining school shirts (pictured above). 

Despite the Maestro's warnings I liked what I saw from Louisville in the Big East Tourney and decided I was going to ride them all the way to the Elite 8, including an upset over Kansas.  What do they do? They go out and pull a Choke-Job on MoreHead State.  A sloppy, humiliating choke job. 

On the plus side I am still leading both of the Maestro's brackets (because he's the kind of guy who does multiple entries in one pool).  In his defense he pretty much locked himself into Belmont with his Pre-Pre NCAA prediction a couple of weeks ago, at least I hope that's the reason he chose them over a poorly seeded Wisconsin team.   At any rate he's sure to hear an ear full in a couple of hours as a meeting of the minds for this blog convenes at Game On for today's tables slate of action.

Kids Prank Mom Into Thinking House is on Fire

What the hell lady? Get the Dog? This is exactly why this Dad didn't give a shit about his kids pranking your ass.  Probably deals with this kind of shit all the time, wife just belittling and taking him for granted at every turn.  Meanwhile this Dad should probably be up for a Father of the Year award.

This is exactly what people are talking about when they say kids need more parental vision.  You see a dad just chilling out, browsing the net, crushing some peanuts, and watching the TV. I see a Dad acting as project manager for one of the greatest home pranks of all time.   Do you really think these kids could have came up with and executed all this on their own?  Doubt it.  Probably would have just ended up with a smoky living room and the fire alarm going off.  Then the rest of the day you've got to air out the house to get all the god damned fog out.