Friday, February 20, 2009

new bear, probably, carton

Posted by PicasaAnother bear has turned up here. The last one, burgundy in colour, using the French pronunciation, was called Hubert. This one answers to Camembert.

An advertisement on London buses has attracted attention by proclaiming "There is probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy yourself". This worries me, not for the reason that it may worry believers; it worries me because it begs so many questions. "You might equally say: "There is probably no God. So start worrying." Who ever heard of the word "probably" in an advertisement, anyway? Early this morning, as all this comes to mind, I amuse myself devising subversive advertisements.

In the High Street I pass a woman holding in her hands a square carton. It looks new and is yellow and has something printed on it in a handsome type face, which I cannot read. I suppose what is odd is that something like that would normally be in a bag, one of those smart stiff bags with a thick string, and a logo on the side. Curiosity is my favorite vice and one which I seldom apologise for. As we proceed in opposite directions I know that the contents of the box will always be a mystery. Perhaps that makes it more intriguing. What did the woman look like? What was she wearing? I haven't a clue.

4 comments:

Roderick Robinson said...

How would fundamentalists react to the statement: God says there's no God.

I think "probably" was inserted to distance atheists from the proclaimed certainties of believers. Which reminds me of my US friend, Mike, who roared with laughter at a sign outside a secondhard car dealer's near Wandsworth: Usually a dozen Rovers on this lot.

Lucas said...

I saw an interview with a person from the Humanist Society, who placed the ad. She said that they had to insert "probably" for "legal" reasons.
I was thinking of somehow photoshopping a bus with the logo on its side "There is probably no bus"....

Lucy said...

Is blasphemy a victimless crime?

Probably.

Unknown said...

Lucy, that would have been a much better slogan than the atheists originally used. Yours, too, Lucas.