Denny's Screaming Chicken Commercial

Sickest lines in spot:

"So rest assured, ladies, it's gonna be a rough day for you egg-layers"
AND
"Great day to be an American, bad day to be a chicken"
______________________

Down with Denny's! ... among others.
As vegans, we often tell ourselves that if all the omnivores out there knew how and why animals were grown and slaughtered for our consumption, they'd surely give up animal products altogether. I've come to understand, however, that there are many reasons, besides misinformation, that keep the masses intent on maintaining the property status of animals. Some of these include tradition, convenience, taste, and social conformity.

Change isn't easy, especially when we grew up learning about all the "benefits" of animal products, whether it be their ability to provide lots of protein (way more than the average person needs), prevent osteoporosis (because of the calcium, which by the way, is actually supplemented because most of the calcium is leeched out of cow bones due to inhumane treatment), or provide us with energy (which would be way more efficient if we just got it from yummy and delicious greens, like the non-human animals do).

So - I get it. I get that really thinking about where we get meat, dairy, and eggs doesn't necessarily make the average person want to reach for an apple instead.

That being said, I must admit, I just can't wrap my head around using the concept of what is basically animal torture as a marketing campaign, which is what Denny's did when they unveiled their new ads during the Superbowl last night.

The gist is basically that chickens should be very worried and upset, because Denny's is offering up tons of cheap and free eggs, so they best be careful. Here are the three that I saw, although my guess is that more will be popping up over the next few months.

I was particularly grossed out by these two lines:

"So rest assured, ladies, it's gonna be a rough day for you egg-layers"

AND

"Great day to be an American, bad day to be a chicken"

I just don't get it. Not only do people know that the mass-production of eggs means a horrific life for chickens, but they actually make jokes about it, and use the information as a selling point???

It's not like Denny's is the first either. I remember Thanksgiving commercials showing cartoons of terrified turkeys, and a McLobster campaign that showed these little lobsters sneaking around and turning off all the neon signs advertising the sandwich made from their flesh. I would expect that to destroy someone's appetite, not whet it.

Paul McCartney, a famous vegetarian, once said that everyone would be vegetarian if slaughterhouses had glass walls. I guess he was wrong.

Thank you to Busy (Happy) Vegan