Stupid branding and a sad commentary on our country

My brother sent me the attached article on a pizza eating contest. Now I love pizza as much as the next guy, but I have to tell you that these eating contests are both ridiculous and slightly evil.

Ridiculous, because the eating is not about nutrition or pleasure. It's about a silly ego thing which has nothing to do with food. Do we really need to make a contest out of everything? Honestly people. This is just dumb.

Evil, because there are people starving in this country and others. And no, I don't intend to sound like your mother who told you to finish your peas because of starving kids in Africa. My point is that food should be respected as a source of nourishment for human life and/or as a source of pleasure. An eating contest treats food as worthless, as just a toy. Of course the pizza that was consumed here would not have helped someone starving in Africa. But even if it also couldn't have helped someone starving in NY (which it could have), the excess consumption merely for the sake of a game shows genuine callousness.

As for the branding issue, Famous Famiglia sponsored this event. What exactly do they intend to say about their brand? Generally speaking, people do not shovel food down their throats because they enjoy it. So are they trying to portray themselves as the brand for people who don't care about the taste of their pizza? Or are they the Marie Antoinette of the pizza world - hahaha! We can just throw food away. And the masses? Well let them eat cake! Or, are they the brand for big fat guys? I don't get it. I cannot see a reasonably positive association that they would realistically communicate to consumers with such a ridiculous event.

And just in case you aren't yet sure of my credentials as a crotchety old bastard, I have to say that the fact that our society seems titillated by such events and the fact that they are reported on with amusement, does not say anything positive about us. We ought to be ashamed of ourselves.

Now get off my lawn you damn kids!