McDonald’s: Three Strikes and …?
Aw, McDonald’s—it’s having a pretty rough week! First, a McDonald’s in Liverpool decided to “acknowledge the outstanding contribution the Beatles made to both local and global culture” by using photographs of the band to decorate its walls. Our beloved Sir Paul McCartney, like me (great minds and all …), thought McDonald’s might really just have wanted to use the Beatles to sell hamburgers, and he wasn’t buying it. Having been an outspoken vegetarian for 30 years, he’s calling for a worldwide boycott of McDonald’s.
Then, while Sir Paul was urging everyone to avoid McDonald’s all-flesh patties, Venezuela simply removed the option altogether. That’s right—according to news reports, the nation shut down all 115 McDonald’s branches for a full 48 hours as punishment for “alleged tax irregularities.” Must’ve been pretty irregular (no jokes about what eating the McD diet will do to you, please)!
But then on Wednesday—and I almost can’t believe this—a TMZ reporter went into an L.A. McDonald’s and ordered a Happy Meal (why, oh why?)—and when she got her order, the box advertised an electronic “Michael Vick football” game. Nothing says “great for kids” quite like that, right?
As for the McDonald’s folks, it was a big “whoops” from them—the Happy Meal box was from 2004, and, McDonald’s says, “does not reflect any current partnership with Michael Vick.”
But, as PETA Vice President Bruce Friedrich says, “Given that McDonald’s lets its suppliers cram animals into metal cages and crates and boil chickens alive, it’s sad, but it doesn’t shock us. At this point, even Michael Vick himself would probably prefer this particular Happy Meal to be a happy memory.”
So, too bad, so sad for McDonald’s and the issues it’s facing this week—although, considering what it does to animals, I’m not convinced that it deserves a break today.
Written by Amanda Schinke
