War On Christmas: Starbucks Red Cups Are Emblematic Of The Christian Culture Cleansing Of The West
by Raheem Kassam 5 Nov 2015
Before I knew what coffee was supposed to taste like, my
friends and I used trot off to my nearest Starbucks
almost every day (we thought we were très sophistiqué)
after school, filling our gullets with 500 calories of “skinny”
caramel macchiati (that’s the plural of macchiato, don’t cha know?) with
extra cream and perhaps an extra shot or two of coffee and caramel.
I mean really – what is that? I reckon a Quarter
Pounder and a large chocolate milkshake would have been healthier. Of
course I was très sophistiqué so I would have probably
ordered a Royale With Cheese.
Now of course, I have no cause to go to Starbucks, although
I can happily admit to shoving a Royale with Cheese into my gob after a
particularly frivolous night out.
But I did go this morning, after seeing a Facebook
post by a colleague of mine pointing out what Starbucks’ newest “Red Cup” looks
like. For those unfamiliar: one of Starbucks’ greatest marketing gimmicks is
changing the colour of their cups from white to red every Christmas. I myself
remember excitedly declaring to an ex-girlfriend how red cups heralded the
beginning of Christmas (sorry,
Peter Hitchens).
Yes, I was, as most people are, seduced by modern,
mass-marketing, which has trounced traditionalism and replaced it with
corporate logos and non-threatening
jingles. And today I returned to my old, caffeinated Mecca (and the
crowds made it feel like I was on the Hajj, too).
And what I found was deeply disappointing to 17-year-old,
macchiato-chugging me. The Red Cups (do I need a trademark symbol after that?)
are now an anti-Christmas symbol, with Starbucks declaring their formerly
Christmassy cups to be “holiday beverages” and shedding any sign of Christmas
from them.
Have a look at what Starbucks Red Cups over the years
looked like:
To the right is the 2009 offering. You can see distinct elements of Christmas, even if that means Christmas in a modern sense.
They lean heavily on
stars (you know, like in the Nativity Story) and the background resembles the
branches of a Christmas tree. All in all, a pretty good and acceptable design
for something that self-defines as a Christmas-orientated product.
But 2009 was a long
time ago, and since then the company has slowly, but definitely, moved away
from Christmas, and Christian iconography.
To the left here, you’ll see the 2010 offering. Snowy, seasonal, at least it resembles something mildly festive and Western.
The same applies to the
2011 red cups,
which have a dog sledging down a hill on the back of a snowman, snowflakes
falling around them. It’s cute, really.
They stuck with snowmen for 2012,
with a big one winking at you with a star in the background that year, and a
sort of upmarket
stars and baubles motif on their 2013 cups.
And then it all went south. Or east, maybe.
2014’s cups looked
like a child scrawled on them with a marker pen. And not in a cute way. It was
a distinct shift away from looking “Christmassy” (see right) before the
monstrosity they’ve released this year (below).
And behold, Starbucks did conceive and bear a red cup,
and called his name blasphemy:
I asked Starbucks why, but they just sent me a “factsheet” with their latest flavours and a link to their website where they’ve talked about wanting “to usher in the holidays with a purity of design that welcomes all of our stories.”
You can see what’s going on here. More open? You mean, you’re
trying not to “offend” anyone.
Frankly, the only thing that can redeem them from this whitewashing of
Christmas is to print Bible verses on their cups next year.
Not that I’d buy their burnt coffee anyway. And certainly not while
they keep spelling my name “Ragih” (right) on their cups.
“But Ragih,” I hear you say. “Why do you care about what Starbucks is
doing anyway? It’s crap coffee and none of us buy it.”
Sure, but plenty of people do. And subliminally, they’re being
told/reminded that this time of the year is no longer about Christmas. It’s
about the colour red, or something. It’s a “holiday season”. Don’t say Merry
Christmas. It’s offensive.
And no, I’m not “reading too much into it”. This is happening. And it’s
as disgusting as an Eggnog Latte.
Starbucks
Howard D.
Schultz is the chairman & president & CEO for the Starbucks
Corporation, a trustee at the Schultz Family Foundation, and was a
director at DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc.
Note: Schultz
Family Foundation was a funder for the Robin Hood Foundation.
Foundation
to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Robin Hood Foundation, the
Sundance
Institute, the Brookings Institution (think tank), and the Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace (think tank).
George Soros
was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.
Mellody
L. Hobson was a trustee at the Sundance Institute, is the chairman
for DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc., a member of the Commercial Club of
Chicago, a director at the Starbucks Corporation, and William W.
Bradley is her mentor.
R. Eden
Martin is the president of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and
counsel at Sidley Austin LLP.
Michelle
Obama was a lawyer at Sidley Austin LLP.
Barack Obama
was an intern at Sidley Austin LLP.
Newton N.
Minow is a senior counsel at Sidley Austin LLP, and a member of the Commercial
Club of Chicago.
Cyrus
F. Freidheim Jr. is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and
an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).
Steven
L. Rattner was a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank),
and is a frequent guest on Morning Joe.
Starbucks
Corporation is a sponsor for Morning Joe.
Morning
Joe is a MSNBC program.
Sheryl
K. Sandberg was a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank),
a director at the Starbucks Corporation, and is the COO & director
for Facebook.
Jessica Tuchman Mathews was an honorary
trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), the president of the Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace (think tank), a director at the American
Friends of Bilderberg (think tank), and a 2008 Bilderberg conference
participant (think tank).
Ed Griffin’s interview with
Norman Dodd in 1982
(The investigation into the
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace uncovered the plans for population
control by involving the United
States in war)
William
W. Bradley is a trustee at the Carnegie Endowment for International
Peace (think tank), a director at the Starbucks Corporation, and Mellody
L. Hobson’s mentor.
Mellody
L. Hobson’s mentor is William W. Bradley, a member of the Commercial
Club of Chicago, the chairman for DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc., a director
at the Starbucks Corporation, and was a trustee at the Sundance
Institute,
Howard D.
Schultz was a director at DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc, is a trustee
at the Schultz Family Foundation, and the chairman & president &
CEO for the Starbucks Corporation.
Schultz
Family Foundation was a funder for the Robin Hood Foundation.
Jeff Zucker
is a director at the Robin Hood Foundation, and was the president &
CEO for NBCUniversal.
CNBC is an NBCUniversal
network.
Michael
R. Bloomberg was a donor for the Robin Hood Foundation, and is the founder
of Bloomberg LP.
Bloomberg
News is a division of Bloomberg LP.
Amanda
Bennett was an executive editor for enterprise for Bloomberg News,
is an advisory board member for the Nieman Foundation for Journalism,
and married to Donald E. Graham.
John Harwood
is an advisory board member for the Nieman Foundation for Journalism, a correspondent
for CNBC, a frequent guest on MSNBC, and Richard Harwood’s
son.
NBC
Debate Moderator John Harwood Enters Dan Rather-Phase of Denial (PAST RESEARCH
ON JOHN HARWOOD)
Morning
Joe is a MSNBC program.
Starbucks
Corporation is a sponsor for Morning Joe.
Donald E. Graham
is married to Amanda Bennett, and was a publisher for the Washington
Post.
Richard Harwood
was a reporter & ombudsman for the Washington Post, and John
Harwood’s father.
CNBC is an NBCUniversal
network.
Sundance Channel
is a partner with NBCUniversal.
Robert Redford
is a partner with the Sundance Channel, and the founder & president
for the Sundance Institute.
Mellody
L. Hobson was a trustee at the Sundance Institute, is the chairman
for DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc., a member of the Commercial Club of
Chicago, a director at the Starbucks Corporation, and William W.
Bradley is her mentor.
Howard D.
Schultz was a director at DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc, is the
chairman & president & CEO for the Starbucks Corporation, and a
trustee at the Schultz Family Foundation.
Schultz
Family Foundation was a funder for the Robin Hood Foundation.
Jeff Zucker
is a director at the Robin Hood Foundation, and was the president &
CEO for NBCUniversal.
CNBC is an NBCUniversal
network.
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