Autocomplete Me

Must be seen to be appreciated.

FWD/Forward: Newsflash: Poverty is Bad for Your Health

All of this suggests that our conversations about health care need to include ideas about addressing poverty and that our work on poverty issues has special effects on health and disability.

The Sexist: Why Superbowl Ads Are So Sexist, Racist, and Homophobic

Since casual sexism, racism, and homophobia are main sources of shock-jock humor—and since these attitudes are too pervasive to inspire true outrage in the average American—companies compete to put the most creative twist on the lazy stereotyping without going too far off the deep end.

Pasadena Weekly: City labor talks hit the skids

Some of the PMA’s reluctance to give up the raises under the city proposal is because the union’s members already agreed to forego a negotiated pay raise in 2009.

Pittsburgh City Paper: Permit Pulled

Robinson Coal planned to build the plant next door to 37 million tons of waste coal, also known as a gob pile. It planned to burn that waste to operate the facility.

Seattle Weekly: Washington’s Candy Land of Tax Breaks

As our cash-strapped state prepares to cut services for the poor and mentally ill, billions of dollars in tax breaks and exemptions are still being doled out.

Gentlefolk of all genders, take a trip on the time machine with me to May, 1954 and the cover advertisements of Household Magazine, “the magazine of home service for 2,650,000 families.” Click through to embiggen, hover for a transcript, and away we gooooooooooooooooooo…

This may be the most amazing case of keyword stuffing I have ever seen. CLEAN!

Time for a trip in the wayback machine to September, 1954, when Good Housekeeping cost .35c and children with rosy cheeks were on the covers of national magazines.

Hamilton ad; click through to read full image description, including transcription of text.

Clearly aimed at laundry converts. And I hate doing laundry, so, you know. If I could fit a washer and dryer in my house I would sit around in pedal pushers while I did the laundry too.

Whirlpool washer ad; click through to read a full description, including transcription of text.

Another washer ad. This one I find interesting because I am used to thinking of the 1950s as a kind of profligate era when no one thought about the environment, and this ad heavily stresses saving water. (Possibly from a moneysaving perspective rather than an environmental one, though.) I was also intrigued by the reference to “delicate modern fabrics,” since I thought the whole point of modern fabrics was to avoid the delicacy issue.

Johnson and Johnson's Baby Shampoo ad; click through to read a description, including a transcript of the text

You can use this on babies in addition to cats? I’ll have to keep that in mind.

Tonight, we’re taking a trip back in time to 1958 with the May 1958 issue of Household!

Cover of the 1958 Household Magazine; click on the image to enlarge and read a description which includes a transcript of the text

I feel refreshed already. Truly.

A full page black and white ad for Bufferin; click the image to view an enlarged version and see a description, including a transcript of the text

Sarah Haskins has already drawn our attention to the achy-face epidemic, but you can view her video for a refresher. Apparently achy-face was a recognized medical problem 50 years ago!

A full page, full colour ad for Chevrolet; click the image to see a bigger version and a description, including a transcript of the text

In honor of the now-defunct General Motors, a relic of a happier time. But, seriously, why is there a helicopter? Is there something I am not getting? Is the helicopter appreciating the car? Is that it?

An advertisement placed by the California Raisin Advisory Board, suggesting that readers mix up a batch of oatmeal cookies. With raisins, of course. Click the image to see an enlargement and a full description.

Finally, this image makes me really happy. Seeing as how we’ve been talking about cookies a lot these days. Those who also appreciate its greatness are welcome to steal it for use elsewhere.

A roundup of health and beauty ads this week. I still have the plague, so, uhm, I don’t have much commentary here.

Toothbrushy goodness.

So much happiness over toothpaste!

And so much sadness over a headache.

Another ad for headache medicine. And, you know, maybe not the best product placement decision? Having it right next to a picture of a human skull?

Time to move on to beauty with Ammen's Powder.

A brand which may be familiar to you...

Another entry from the beauty department, for waterproof foundation.

Tans: already important in 1939!