The other day, Web Watch was browsing through various birthday cards at the local Target, trying to find The Perfect Card for a friend.
When picking out a birthday card, one always has to take into consideration whether the recipient shares the same sense of humor (if you go for a funny card), can appreciate a joke at their aging expense, or if you need to go the safe route and go with a sappy poem or note that more honestly conveys how you really feel about your relationship with that friend.
Friends seldom offer cards to each other – it’s more of a family thing, we believe. With friends, it’s easier to just go out for a drink and celebrate the birthday event with them.
But when your friends live across the country, then sending a card is almost the same thing as being there – especially if you get the sentiment just right.
Amusement Park Death Song
by Wally Pleasant, from the album Wally World
So we happen to know that our friend enjoys roller coasters and amusement parks – they’ve even spent one summer vacation travelling around the northeast from Virginia to Pennsylvania, from Ohio up to New England — all to savor the different flavors of thrills that were available to be experienced.
So when we saw that there were a line of amusement park / carnival-themed birthday cards on the greeting card rack at Target, we said to ourselves – “these should be perfect for them”.
And a few in the series did make us chuckle a bit as we browsed through them.
Until we saw this card, which we have arbitrarily named THE MOST OFFENSIVE BIRTHDAY CARD EVER MADE.
Sure, we understand the joke of what’s trying to be said (and yes, we also know that the image is more of a freefall, height-spinning ride than it is a roller coaster) — however…
Considering the recent trouble at Six Flags where 52-year-old Rosa Ayala-Goana died after being thrown out of the Texas Giant roller coaster (whether due to a technical issue with the safety harness or some other cause is still to be finalized as of this writing), we find it troubling that a major retailer and the greeting card company wouldn’t automatically pull this particular card from their shelves – especially as NEWS REPORTS OF THE SIX FLAGS ACCIDENT stated that Rosy HAD questioned the safety of the ride, specifically her harness, before the coaster disembarked from the station.
Imagine the horrific situation the retailer and card maker would be in if she had actually received that card on her birthday the prior month, intended wholeheartedly in good-humor.
There’s nothing wrong with the message being conveyed – it’s just a question of taste. And for us, this one happened to be more bad taste than it was amusing, considering this summer’s events at Six Flags.
Is our opinion extreme on this? If you’ve received a MORE offensive card that you think could also vie for the title of MOST OFFENSIVE BIRTHDAY CARD, then please share your thoughts in the comments below.
For those wanting the details from the back of the card, it reads:
ACROSS THE LINE CARDS
Greeting cards that are fun, edgy, and a bit inappropriate
By Lynn
Image copyright Graeme Dawes 2012 Shutterstock.com
Recycled Paper Greetings
We’ll give them credit. They went in knowing (wink, wink) that some may be offended by this card being a bit inappropriate compared to others.
So at least the image wasn’t one of the Texas Giant. THAT would have been a nightmare.
Update: if Target goes through with pulling this card from their shelves, it wouldn’t be the first time that they felt it was important to do. Back in 2012, TARGET REMOVED A WHITNEY HOUSTON-themed BIRTHDAY CARD from the greeting card rack.