Complaint and offence culture cancels a childrens' toy

very disturbing to read this. assorted cranks and their complaints have resulted in a Doll being removed from sale.

The toy and the marketing seem fairly innocuous. It seems some people have a problem with the word "adoption".

"Brown Thomas Arnotts entirely agree that the experience of adoption has been varied in Ireland, and we take on board the views expressed in the programme.

"To that end, we will today stop selling the FAO adoption dolls in all Brown Thomas and Arnotts stores,” Brown Thomas Arnotts told Liveline.

One person said it was “humiliating” to see adoption marketed as toys as the “adoption triangle comes with grief, pain and love” for adoptees and adoptive parents alike."

Absolute sacks of misery all of them, so i do suppose they are perfectly at home on liveline

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/brown-thomas-and-arnotts-take-adoption-dolls-off-their-shelves-following-complaints-41139483.html

uptherebels

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058222316/complaint-and-offence-culture-cancels-a-childrens-toy

Why would you be disturbed by a shop no longer selling a toy?

Yurt2

'An Adoption doll'

Whatever toy company exec green-lit that deserves to be shot 🤣

I'm sure people who were adopted love to be reminded they were given up by their birth parents when they enter a toy store.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303146#Comment_118303146

Well the target audience for this doll are too young to have babies of their own, hence the "adoption" of the doll. Perfectly appropriate.

In general adoption is a good thing, and sure beats multiple foster homes edit( i am adopted)

Jequ0n

Politicizing toys and children is just weird.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303120#Comment_118303120

disturbed because of how a few cranks can get their way. if a child's toy can be cancelled like this, anyone or anything can be cancelled. For example you lose your job because a couple of halfwits complained to your employer about your personal opinions expressed on boards

wyrn

Sure there's already the Cabbage Patch dolls which have birth certs and adoption papers and they're still going strong

Jequ0n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303173#Comment_118303173

Tbf if you are stupid enough to post controversial stuff while being identifiable that’s really on you.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303195#Comment_118303195

The Cabbage Patch Dolls are now next

Dempo1

This nonsense took up most of liveline today, it was just absolutely absurd . How the two callers connect a Toy doll to what happened in the magdelan laundries/ mother and baby homes is just extraordinary. What made it all the more extraordinary was the less than objective and clearly uneducated Joe Duffy joining in the outrage.

The Toy in question is not the first adoption type Toy to come out of America. I'm not in anyway doubting what happened in mother and baby homes but my god , the plot was lost today, what next ,Ban Barbie, utter nonsense.

Adopting a doll is in no way comparable to adopting a baby. By all means, buy a doll, name it and wait for it to become a teenager.

DarkJager21

Just think of what the world will be like in a few years time if people like this don’t get told to go **** themselves - nobody is allowed to be offended, nobody & nothing is allowed to cause offence. Any bit of fun or quirkiness will be stamped out lest someone cry over it or have their feelings hurt. We are pandering way too much to those weak of body and mind.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303206#Comment_118303206

Cabbage patch cancellation.

CPTM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303173#Comment_118303173

This story is annoying alright but that's a bit of a leap. What you're complaining about is them exaggerating something but then it does feel like you're exaggerating the consequences of it.

If you are a decent person and work half-hard without being an idiot it's incredible difficult to lose your job in this country. This kind of stuff doesn't extend into anything any normal day to day person would care about. It does happen but normally with things which don't really matter, like kids toys or reality tv or tv personalities or tv shows or whatnot. If it stretched into a lot of decent people losing their jobs or homes or their kids being taken away or not getting educated or took away people's rights in general there would be uproar. Still though, they are annoying. But there are loads of annoying sects of people. Luckily the vast majority of people see what's really going on here and move on with their day. I prefer chatting to them.

One eyed Jack

Assorted cranks? Yep.

Very disturbing? Sounds like something an assorted crank would say tbh.

One eyed Jack

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303162#Comment_118303162

“Too young to have babies of their own”

Jaysis mate, that’s gonna ring in my ears for a while 😳

Anyways, there’s a huge market for pre-loved dolls these days 🤔

Difficult to take any of it seriously 🤨

Quantum Erasure

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303146#Comment_118303146

taken from the discussion of this on reddit r/ireland

I’m adopted. This has really bothered me. Adoption isn’t a dirty word. It’s not offensive or demeaning to be adopted. People complaining about these dolls obviously think it is. That’s upsetting.

One eyed Jack

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303545#Comment_118303545

I think that Reddit poster is misrepresenting the issue tbh. It’s obvious the objections are to the commercialisation of adoption.

Angelina Jolie has pledged to buy up all the stock anyways, and with the manufactured controversy they’ll be this years Christmas must-have toy.

That reminds me, bad taste bears are back in business!

Who buys toys in Brown Thomas anyway!

ForestFire

Sent in an email of compliant for the removal of this child's doll, which is meant to have only a positive influence for children's play, to take care of it in a loving way.

I see they have a "EQUALITY, DIVERSITY & INCLUSION" policy, but obviously not if you happen to be adopted, because they don't see adoption in the same way.

silver2020

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303668#Comment_118303668

It's FAO Schwarz concession.

If you want something different, it's the place to go.

This furore is over nothing. Pc madness.

Gatling

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303668#Comment_118303668

People who have Joe on speeddial ,

Gatling

There was a similar case involving someone trying to have rapeseed oil and related products banned and removed as they could bring back trauma to victims of sexual assaults

fritzelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303889#Comment_118303889

Very unlikely

Yurt2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303545#Comment_118303545

A fair perspective and one I'd take on board. I do know an adopted individual who has struggled with it, and I'm not sure how she'd feel. Still, point taken by the reddit contributer.

francois

Tedious manufactured outrage.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303933#Comment_118303933

I think possibly the way cabbage patch dolls describes it is better. Plus less in face. I guess it will vary based on the individual how they felt about adoption. Plus could equally be upsetting to those who put children up for adoption.

Reminded somewhat of my mother tbh. Her parents died when she was young. Adopted by family members so adoption aspect was entirely positive. However mother's and father's day broke her heart every time it was made a big deal out of. Which included school. So like I can very much so understand the need for caution around how topics are approached.

Also, always very predictable who starts these topics based on title...

sydthebeat

I've two adopted children. There is a very real trend towards "blended" families away from the traditional family all across western society. This is just toys reflecting reality like loads of toy ranges have done down through the years. It isn't "commercialising" adoption any more than silvanian families commercialises having pets.

Typical pandering to busibodies getting "offended" on others behalf.

Wibbs

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303895#Comment_118303895

Maybe there was a more recent move on that front because of the terminally triggered, but the name change to canola oil is an old one in the US. Canola oil produced by Canada rebranded away from rape/rapeseed because of the word association selling it into America.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118304310#Comment_118304310

Predictable?. Only have about 5 OPs! What is predictable is the amount of sniping at the poster but not addressing the content of the post

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118304318#Comment_118304318

I addressed the post. It's a complex thing for many people and I have no issue with them being sold. I do understand how some people might be upset by it though. On top of that, this isn't cancel culture. It's just a brand reconsidering how a new product is marketed due to negative pr.

Not remotely disturbing in the scheme of things.

Fyi, you're one of a handful of posters who only opens threads to be outraged by PC gone mad etc. So it's like bingo guessing who has started the thread.

TefalBrain

I'm adopted and don't find it offensive in the slightest. You'd want to be some weirdo to be offended by this.

SimonTemplar

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303903#Comment_118303903

I used to work in Brown Thomas years ago and a woman who wasn't getting her way with a refund said she knows someone who works on the Joe Duffy program. I was very tempted to do that Alan Partridge shrug.

listermint

Can they all not just not just fo.

Whats funny is the OPs outrage is only equivalent to the outrage of whomever made complaints. Two sides of the same outrage coin and everyone else is stuck in the middle trying to get on with life.

The funniest parts is there are actual companies commercialisation this outrage like whatever edgit came up with the doll on the first place. That's the whole point. The feed on the very nature of the two sides of the coin. Hoping they will go to battle.

Nom nom. Headlines nom nom nom dollars...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118304473#Comment_118304473

The Joe Dunphy threat is very common. Even BT gets it now

joseywhales

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118304466#Comment_118304466

Isn't it a positive thing? Like someone chose you, I may have just been a messy Friday night.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118304466#Comment_118304466

Most likely someone who wasn’t adopted getting offended on your behalf, they love to do that it makes them feel great about themselves.

Capt'n Midnight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118303668#Comment_118303668

Excluding RTE staff, are there real people who listen to Joe and shop in Brown Thomas ?

whisky_galore

Ugh, cos 'every' adoption is a bad adoption, what with the Victorian era orphanages, Catholic Church baby-selling and evil step parents etc.

There are cases when family's have two fostered kids and for one reason or another they cannot adopt..maby they are too old to adopt ,they cannot afford to adopt ext...you can still have these kids going into Smyth's looking at these dolls wondering why they cannot be adopted...just one senerio...I suppose adults can have a thick skin but young kids might take it to heart...I think there are alot of kids in that position in ireland...renaming the doll might just be a solution ..not to get rid of the doll .

whisky_galore

Some kids have sh1tty childhoods, some parents beat their kids, so with that in mind why not cancel the idea of parenthood altogether? i.e. ban all dolls?

BattleCorp1

No cancel culture in my house.

My kids are given guns to play with. They are let drink straight from the hose. They are let get dirty and play in the muck....although the Mrs. isn't too happy on that one. They are let climb trees and walls and have plenty of scrapes and bruises to show their failed efforts. And they certainly aren't told they can't play with a toy because of dumb fcuking reasons.

I get really p1ssed off when people say they are offended by stupid things like this. So fcuking what if they are offended. Don't buy the toy and move on with your life. Too many people want to but into the lives of other people and tell them what they can and can't do.

Brucie Bonus

Do the birth mothers get a good hiding and a locking up?

85603

its just whinge opportunism by people who lack attention and interaction in their lives.

emotional displacement. malcontent in their private lives, they find a opportunity and now the doll thing is where they put their anger at their father, disappointment with their job etc.