Many of you no doubt saw earlier diaries (example) quoting Rick Davis, John McCain's campaign manager, trying to immaturely insult Barack Obama as some la-di-da weirdo fancy pants elitist freak:
...Only a celebrity of Barack Obama's magnitude could attract 200,000 fans in Berlin who gathered for the mere opportunity to be in his presence. These are not supporters or even voters, but fans fawning over The One. Only celebrities like Barack Obama go to the gym three times a day, demand "MET-RX chocolate roasted-peanut protein bars and bottles of a hard-to-find organic brew -- Black Forest Berry Honest Tea" and worry about the price of arugula...
But look at that quote, and notice how the McCain Republicans are targeting the very entrepreneurs and successful businesses that you'd think they'd want to praise, and instead they mock them as elitist weirdos:
...Only celebrities like Barack Obama go to the gym three times a day, demand "MET-RX chocolate roasted-peanut protein bars and bottles of a hard-to-find organic brew -- Black Forest Berry Honest Tea"...
These aren't small, one-off companies -- in the Republican view, they ought be considered successful entrepreneurs.
The Honest Tea company as of 2008 has 40% of its product(yearly sales of at least and likely more than $13.5 millionaccording to company press info) purchased by the Coca Cola corporation.
According to the company's retailer list, the "hard to find" vendors of this rare, cave-bound, odd, strange, la-di-da elitist celebrity product include Babies R Us, Safeway grocery store and Sam's Club, as well as Whole Food, including their line of less-sweetened drinks for children, Honest Kids, and this is just if you search John McCain's home state of Arizona.
Met-Rx's bizarre, odd, fancy-pants, celebrity, ivory tower hard-to-get chocolate peanut bar is available at the elitist, bizarre, hard-to-find super-rare store called Walgreen's.
Now, if you asked me, I'd say I have probably had one of the Honest Tea products, and maybe one of Met-Rx's energy bars, depending on whether it was sold in any convenience stores. So I don't have a huge dog in this fight.
I just find it bracingly hypocritical that the McCain campaign lashes out as "elitist" at products available nationwide in most of the brick & mortar superstores people frequent. Further, although I'm no campaign finance expert researcher, I found nothing on OpenSecrets to suggest that either company was favoring Obama or Democrats.
Maybe someone should ask the Honest Tea company and the Met-Rx corporation what they think about the Republican candidate for President singling them out for mockery simply because they succeeded in the marketplace which Republicans worship.
UPDATE: Changed title to reflect the supremely obvious pun I overlooked, h/t zerzan & GambitRF.