By Tom Moody
You are probably familiar with the beer commercial which bestows upon various groups of people the dubious honor of having a beer dedicated to them. For example, one commercial might say: “To all you steel workers who work and sweat all day to produce the nation’s steel – this Bud’s for you.” Or: “This Bud is for you truckers, driving the highways day and night to help keep this country going.”
On these spots we have heard various ones singled out for praise from foundry workers to baseball umpires. I wonder, though, to how many it has occurred that there are several categories of people who have never been mentioned in those ads?
Imagine the effect of an ad campaign which would run like these examples:
“This Bud’s for you – all you mothers and fathers who are grief stricken over your teenaged son or daughter because alcohol has scrambled their brains; for you parents who have seen your children’s lives shattered by the bottle – This Bud’s for you!”
“To you women who are knocking yourselves out day after day trying to keep food on the table for your family; trying to be both mother and father to your kids because your old man is a drunken sot – This Bud’s for you!”
“Hey, all you kids whose dads come home mean and surly; threatening to beat you at the drop of a hat – all because they are tanked up on our product – This Bud’s for you!”
“This Bud is for you – you who have had friends or relatives maimed or killed in a senseless traffic accident because of the guy who had ‘only a couple of drinks’ – This Bud’s for you!”
“This Bud is for all the families who have been ripped apart because of fathers or mothers who could not handle alcohol. All you children who will grow up with a warped perception of family life and with all kinds of moral and spiritual scars – This Bud’s for you!”
“To all you preachers, elders and other faithful Christians who work so hard to warn people of the sin and danger of the beer we work so hard to sell; because of your dedication and hard work – This Bud’s for you!”
“To all people everywhere; the millions upon millions through the generations whose lives have been ruined; who thought they were gaining prestige, but only brought to themselves shame; who have died prematurely or lived out their days in loneliness, disease, and mental anguish because of alcohol; to all of you who have ever been cursed or injured in any way because of our fine product (and all the other brands) – This Bud’s for you!”
“Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise” (Prov. 20:1).
Guardian of Truth XXXVI: 15, pp. 449, 471
August 6, 1992