Boulevard Beer Billboard Won't Let the Man Bring It Down

Where's John Stossel when you need him to cry, "Give me a break!"

The Boulevard Brewing Co., located right here in Kansas City, is catching guff for billboards a KC Star columnist dubbed "off color." I say, get off the topic of color because there is nothing racist about this ad.

The columnist says the nursery rhyme evokes memories of the 1850s, when it carried a negative racial connotation toward blacks. As proof that this is an injustice, he also cites a lawsuit brought against Southwest Airlines for a flight attendant saying, "Eenie, meenie, minie, moe. Pick a seat, we gotta go."

Once again, some individual gets hot and bothered about nothing. Boulevard knew the history of the rhyme, but approved the ad because it carried no negative racial connotations. Even after these complaints, Boulevard will leave the billboards up. Good for Boulevard for not getting trumped by the race card.

The problem is that there are so many things to criticize about advertising, yet this was the most important one. Selling cigarettes to kids is OK. Advertising on Mount Rushmore; no problem. But let's draw the line at nursery rhymes that offend up-tight columnists.