On Monday, we wrote about Kieffe & Sons, the California Ford Dealership that ran a pointlessly offensive radio ad attacking non-Christians and supporters of secular government. Today, the owner of Kieffe and sons apologized for the ad.
According to the Bakersfield Californian, Rick Kieffe, the dealership owner, said he doesn’t remember approving the ad (emphasis added):
“It’s just something that went by us,” said Kieffe, who does not attend church but considers himself “a Christian spirit.” “We’re obviously sorry that it offends a given segment who identifies themselves as atheist.
Kieffe said he received a flood of angry phone calls from people around the world who saw blog posts about the story. Kieffe’s advertiser, or someone claiming to be him, apparently didn’t get the memo, as he has posted an unapologetic screed conflating gay marriage with the purchase of a Japanese car (seriously).
PREVIOUSLY: California Ford Dealership Radio Ad Tells Christians to “Sit Down and Shut Up”
Car Dealer Regrets Ads Telling Non-Christians to “Sit Down and Shut Up” [Bakersfield Californian]
(Photo: Amy Watts)
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If Christians can run ads against secularism, gay marriage, family values, AND free speech then why can’t non-Christians run ads for what they believe. Christians are highly offensive and demand everyone think as they do although they can’t agree among themselves what those beliefs are.
savdavid, you’re absolutely right. And in fact, if given a taste of their own medicine, Christians will usually back off and agree that we all have the right to believe what we want. Where’s a pagan dealership when we need one
I love the picture you used. I live in the Athens-Clarke County area, and I may have seen this car before…
@savdavid: non-Christians don’t need to advertise…they get courts to rule in their favor, instead.
The advertising was placed in error? What a pile of crap. Okay, the last article got ten million people to make angry phone calls to the dealership, resulting in a bullshit non-apology from the dealer.
“I’m sorry you were offended, but I didn’t approve the ad in the first place.” That’s NOT AN APOLOGY. A true apology would have been something like,
“I realize that I made a serious error in judgement in making a stupid, hateful, factually incorrect, and divisive radio ad which could reasonably be seen as promoting religious intolerance. I realize that this was arrogant, un-Christian behavior and I apologize to anybody who was offended by my words. I further realize that believing in God does not necessarily make one a Christian, and that it was wrong of me to imply the contrary. In the future I will try to be a better Christian, and I promise to think three times about anything I am tempted to say about non-Christians before actually saying it.”
So what I suggest doing is inundating Ford with complaints about the dealership. If they get ten million people complaining to THEM about how “Religious Intolerance Car Salesman Guy” is using the name of their company in a radio ad promoting religious strife, and how they are reconsidering buying a Ford as a result, they may take further action. I, for one, would like to see this jackass lose his franchise agreement or something that actually hurts.
This specific issue has been addressed by Ford Motor Company personnel with appropriate representatives at Kieffe and Sons Ford in Mojave, California. Our investigation has determined that the advertising was placed in error. Corrective actions have been taken to prevent this from happening again.
PLACED IN ERROR? No, I don’t think that will do.
I can’t wait to see the looks on the idiotic faces of the religious right when Obama takes the oath of office.
Hey, is anybody else getting an error when they try to view the second page of comments? I can post comments, but I can’t get to the page they’re on, clicking on the arrow just takes me back to consumerist.com.
hey, at last aethists are being recognized as a minority unit
@savdavid:
I have to take exception to that. You’re essentially saying all Christians are judgemental and overly sensitive, which really isn’t fair. My dad is a practicing Christian who is very involved in his church. He also stood next to me when I married my partner in Canada. Attacking any one group at large is exactly what everyone is complaining about in the first place.
@DynamicBits:
Now that they’ve retracted the apology, I’m expecting Ford to immediately pull the dealership’s credentials.
If they do not, they’re passively supporting the message this wackjob is preaching.
Yay for civility winning the day!