When all of this crap happened with Bud Light and the boycott of all things Anheuser-Busch was going on, the people that I consider to be competent conservatives never really gave a crap and their decision about what kind of light beer to buy wasn't affected at all. I am one of those people that doesn't like for things to become political in all avenues of life and mostly I don't give a damn who someone's spokeperson is. Honestly, if it hadn't been blown up by the media I likely wouldn't have known about it at all.
This was just another one of those things that one side makes a big deal out of in order to try to flex their wings and so some politicians can jump on board to get their name in the news. I believe it was Ted Cruz who really attempted to spearhead this attack on Bud Light and all the while that it was going on I was just on the sidelines saying "please stop it."
src
Even once it did blow up I wasn't going to be one of those people that was going to not buy it although they did take it out of the Elks Lodge because the boycott was really felt there since it almost became embarrassing for them that they had it available at all. I will admit that when Bud Light started having those rebates that made the beer essentially free I did buy a few cases of it. I am not a fussy drinker but just because of the fact that the beer of choice I had in college was Miller Light, that is the beer I tend to buy if I buy any.
However, what did irritate me about Bud Light's standpoint on all of this wasn't that they hired a transgender spokesperson, it was the fact that they came out and made press releases about how they are trying to get away from the "Frat boy persona" that is affiliated with their product. This irritated me because of the fact that certainly Bud Light is aware of the fact that this is their "bread and butter" as far as their customer base is concerned, right? Why the hell would anyone, in such a competitive market, actively try to remove the customers that they already have?
I had to take a few business classes when I was in college and one of the tenets of overall business is that it costs many times more to attract a new customer than it is to keep one you already have, so what on earth were they thinking?
I think that Bud Light, which is an absolutely enormous company that isn't going to collapse just because some Americans refuse to buy their light beer out of spite, did a really good job with recovery as far as this is concerned. They kind of just shut up about the whole thing, didn't really even respond about it, blamed it on the one marketing executive who probably got paid a small fortune to accept blame and resign, and they have been quite quiet ever since.
While there are some people that I know that are conservatives out there that will likely never drink a Bud Light again in their lives, I think this is a really stubborn way to be that kind of encapsulates the political landscape of the United States right now: Hatred is created and that becomes the only thing that voters hang on to. When I talk to the few liberal friends that I have right now they really truly struggle to think of any ways to defend Joe Biden and will agree that they and basically everyone else was better off 4-6 years ago then they are now. However, they will STILL vote for him if it is Trump vs. Biden in the general election. Such is the power of their hatred towards Trump that they would rather vote for their own detriment rather than give someone else a chance - even if that person is better at the job.
This mentality is interwoven into all aspects of society right now and it really is maddening. It would be really nice if politics could take a back seat in most part of our lives and once our guy loses or wins, that we celebrate or moan a little bit and then get on with our lives. This "Us vs. Them" mentality isn't helping anyone and unfortunately it has become the norm with both conservatives and liberals in the US.
I don't see it going away in my lifetime either because mudslinging has become the norm in political speeches. When some candidate is speaking they tend to focus on the negatives of the other guy much more than they do the positives of themselves. I think I know why this is the case too: They are all terrible and when you get one guy in there that has a different letter next to his or her name nothing is really going to change other than the amount of money that the elected politician has in their own bank account. Us plebs will just be kept fighting the culture war for them and until people can realize this, nothing ever can change.
In the meantime if Bud Light is half the price of Miller Light in the supermarket I am going to buy it. If anyone wants to be critical of me about that know that I do not care and in the end I am only looking for value. I do not care who their spokesperson is even in the slightest.
I guess I'm a hipster. I was avoiding Budweiser and its sister brands before it was political. I also prefer to support smaller breweries, especially since I am in the Inland Northwest where microbreweries proliferate. I don't drink a lot, so I don't worry about light beer or which case is cheapest. A 6-pack of Ninkasi lager isn't too expensive anyway. But I also prefer stouts and IPAs. Because hipster? Damn. I need skinny jeans to go with my flannel shirts I used to wear just because they were warm. Excuse me while I go brew a pot of locally-roasted artisanal coffee and sip from my mug made by a local potter. Shit. Um.... My music also includes small bands you have never heard of. #$&@!!!
Made me laugh with this one... good work. I unfortunately DO drink a lot, well, not like getting into trouble with the law and drink driving a lot but like Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino, if I know I don't have to drive anywhere I will just sit somewhere and drink something domestic and cheap but I hear ya on supporting local businesses, that is good of you. I do that with most other things in my life too.
I understand why people avoided Bud before it was cool though, it's pretty stock standard and rather tasteless
Business suicide is what I would call it and if you were a shareholder you would be rightly pissed. There has been too many agendas of late and I see it as a phase and the wokeness will disappear because people have had more than they can stomach of this crap.
While they couldn't do it publicly I would imagine the higher ups at Bud were seriously pissed off at that woman that made the call to "lose the frat boy image." Frat boys buy a lot of beer and hold a grudge.