Famed Italian pasta maker Barilla: Gays can eat someone else’s pasta

Uhm… has like… no one thought about lesbians in the kitchen? Everything would be just fine for everyone if they had some big lezzies throwing spaghetti at each other… I mean at the wall… seeing if it sticks… <3 "pasta eating queer"

YES.. I’ve known several Hetero couples, where the wife wears a strap-on to fuck her husband, and he loves it… so dont’ go saying Anal sex is EVIL.. cuz LOTS of Hetero couples DO IT and LOVE IT…!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You do realise that straight people do ‘that act’ too, don’t you?

i find that people with limited vocabulary love the word “troll”. SHUT UP YOU BIGOT.

*book

Bravo! Bellissimo!

You need to bone up on both medieval history and comparative religion. Why would a “fundie” feature an avatar of a medieval Catholic mass? Only a traditional Catholic or history buff would.

I’m a history buff.

I’m not going to buy any more Barilla pasta and I don’t believe that the owner is sorry. There’s a parody of this whole thing at http://youtu.be/2y1l_OFOvyM and I think the guy in that video is just as sincere as Guido with his apology! lol

no

Let us know when you auction your playground raincoat on E-Bay.

Nazi’s made it legal to torture Jews. I don’t ask you to believe in gay humanity….just get the hell out of the way before you get run over.

Just yer head phobatina.

No history, no profile….troll

“We won’t include gays in our ads, because we like the traditional family. If gays don’t like it, they can always eat another brand of pasta. Everyone is free to do what they want, provided it doesn’t bother anyone else.”

These statements have been completely distorted. He did not say these words, this way and in this context. The translation has been altered to make it look and sound as it does in English: horrible. This is the typical case blown out of proportion. Do listen to the interview in italian and draw your own conclusions.

“You people.” Phrase made famous by an elitist. Because all “you people” are asswipes.

nettie, we didn’t intimidate anyone into silence. We just called a bigot a bigot. And bigots, like you just love to speak out. Can’t keep your mouths shut.

Yeah, we can smell bigotry on you homophobes

Ahh, now I get it. You were home schooled by a one watter right?

Too much drama…who cares? Obviously you cared enough to leave a stupid ass comment in all caps.

Get a life.

“Being gay was once thought of as immoral and unnatural and disgusting…” Yea..Till we found out there are people that are obsessed with ‘ man/dog sex, magical vaginas and rape, rape, rape”! They’re the NEW immoral, unnatural and disgusting!

Yea, one noodle I’d like to ‘throw at the wall’…yea! IT’S DONE!

And when Paula Deen was talking about having ‘n’s’ at her “plantation theme party” that was neither right or wrong? Christians have been stomping around for century’s deciding what’s right and wrong for all of us, and now that reason and science is exploding their myths and prejudices, “ultimately, neither is right or wrong”? Now, we’re all entitled to our opinions?

Ha..ha…yea…it’s doesn’t have the zing of ‘fish tacos for Jesus!’ But even that fisherman would be a Ronzoni man now!

Soooo….your avatar is of a ‘high mass’ but you’re not a Christian fundamentalist’, just a garden variety homophobe? You whine to Thom Allen..”why do you this…” And to me “why do you” that…meanwhile, never responding to either of us except to complain to “you people” about “stereotyping”… Stereotypically pathetic!

I’m not a fundie, why do you people always make such stereotypical ASSumptions?

Nice try fundie! If he HAS TO BE homosexual just because he attacks homophobic remarks…then by YOUR logic I can say… ‘Shut yer pie-hole you FAT ASS homophobe!

No, no, no.

As Thom Allen points out below, this is not the company policy.

This business of lionizing those who are, in your terms, not “Politically correct” should stop, I’m really tired of some half-baked wing nut coming out with an opinion based on false information, and being congratulated for it. There are some things that are just wrong – they don’t have a basis in fact or science.

Human beings may have a right to express an opinion, this is true. But there really are wrong opinions because they are based on things that are not true. A pair of people may express a different opinion based on their interpretation of the same correct information. In the end, however, only one of them is deemed correct at some point. A correct opinion may also be unpopular. So that does not wash.

I find it puzzling that a certain subset of the population seems to think that it’s OK to insult an entire class of people and that those people should just take it lying down. These same people are often the ones who scream the loudest whenever someone expresses an opinion that runs counter to theirs.

And this is the problem that I find in a lot of the comments offered by the johnny-come-lately trolls that have appeared here in this blog post. They seem to think that 1) what he said isn’t all that bad, 2) all gay people are worthless, immoral and subject to punishment from a diety whose existence is unproven, and 3) we should all roll over an do nothing when we’re insulted. You don’t see that with Bill O’Donahue’s Catholic league or with any of the other organization with a far-right philosophy.

I don’t think your comment is particularly well thought-out.

Typical homosexual fatphobe. Why do you treat fat people the way you do not want to be treated? Typical superficiality, and no, I’m not fat.

rotfl

The mad cow know

And mom witches were burned at the stake—-your point?

I am more than just a little concerned about John Phillips “sexual” activities and desires. I think he needs to stay away from children and animals.

We should thank Guido for making bigoted remarks? And giving gays his permission to be free as long as they don’t offend him? He was disrespectful to women, gays, men who cook, single-parent families and other groups. And you want everyone to be OK with that?

Corporate idiots like Guido learn through a wave of bad PR and decreasing sales. Guido and Barilla have already apologizes four times. He’s obviously getting the message. How upset are you that Guido pays minimum wage to many of his employees, limited, if any benefits and is disrespectful of Barilla’s company policies? Some of Guido’s family (the other owners of Barilla) are really pissed at what he did.

Thinking and speaking out are two different things. It’s good to know who the bigots are.

Thank you Lizard.

I’m sorry, I don’t quite get your comment. Could you elaborate, please?

Certainly I can see the difference, unfortunately it is not logical. And as has been pointed out elsewhere in these comments, the dog might be the instigator. Who says it is necessarily painful and cruel to the dog? It certainly is a moral question and that is the point. If you want to argue that people are “born this way” and that makes their actions OK, then you have to accept that others are born with their innate desires as well and those must be OK also. If they are not then the argument for your particular group falls as well.

Yeah. You are. I have no truck with bigots.

A relationship/sex between two homosexual people is comprised of two consenting human beings who are of an age where they are able to make such a decision. A child or an animal is not a consenting individual. You seriously can’t even compare these things.

Like who?

Disagreement is fine, it gets problematic when people actively interfere with other peoples lifestyle. Why do some straight people feel so threatened by people that are different?

Why do people feel the need to attempt to take down an entire corporation because of one mans opinion? Barilla employs close to 8000 people! I highly doubt they share in that opinion.

Lets try this approach “Hey man, thanks for your opinion. I disagree with you there and think you might be better off selling to everyone but its your company do what you think is best for you and your employees.”

I will make sure to buy only barilla pasta from now on.Way to stand up against this immoral lifestyle

so if you disagree with the perverted gay lifestyle you are a bigot?

Another pasta heard from:

Liz, I’ve read three different translations of his remarks, They all come up smelling of bigotry and sexism. Why don’t you provide your translation for us?

BTW, his apology video has English subtitles that don’t seem to agree with what you said, either.

So, as a culture you’re saying that the Italians are bigoted and sexist? Really? And, if true, that’s an excuse? Get real.

And, just a little judgmental, aren’t we? How about you suck some Barilla for breakfast and get even fatter than you already are?

And tell Guido we don’t buy his BS (or yours) OR his lousy pasta.

Additional response to Barilla (continued):

Whoa, The_Fixer, that reply is perfect and brilliantly done!. Thank you.

Thanks for reminding us about pedophiles. It is rarely mentioned in the media etc.
We cannot seem to get away from our stereotypes

Observe the edit I made to my above comment. Sorry, but Disqus gets a little wonky when there are a large number of comments, apparently. It attaches the wrong username to some comments.

When I refreshed the page, the correct username appears with comments. So my confusion was due to a Disqus problem.

In short, you’re good and I was confused for reasons beyond my control.

I’m not sure what you are even talking about. When did I ever say being gay is a choice? I said I once believed that yes, but I know better now. I don’t understand your confusion.

You honestly don’t see how illogical that statement is?

Russia claims their anti-GBTI laws aren’t anti-gay and Guido Barilla claims his hateful views aren’t homophobic. Boy, you nailed it on the head.

I am going to assume that your argument is reduced to reductio ad absurdum (argument of one absurd point to prove a different point).

Therefore, we’ll talk some facts: the vast majority of pedophiles identify themselves as being heterosexual. A far lower percentage of offenders are homosexual, less than the presence of homosexual people in the general population.By heterosexual, we mean hose whose adult sex lives with their partners consists of heterosexual sex. A pedophile who has sex with a minor that is of the same gender is not homosexual if their adult sexual relationships are heterosexual in nature.

Fact: Psychologists and psychiatrists have identified one key trait in pedophiles that has nothing to do with sexual orientation: Sexual immaturity. For one or more reasons, pedophiles have not sexually matured completely, therefore, they act on a desire for another sexually immature person. Fact: This is a mental disorder that has nothing to do with sexual orientation.

Bestiality is somewhat less studied, probably because of its extreme stigma and the inability of the victims to talk about it. As others have ably stated below, one needs to have informed consent to have a legitimate (i.e. truly beneficial) sexual relationship. Those who are drugged, those that are animals, and those who are children cannot give informed consent.

Your repeated mention of King Tutankhamen is not to be taken seriously for the same reason that your argument that “we did it that way in the old days, why not now” is invalid. We know now that people who have not reached age 25 do not have a fully-developed frontal lobe, the center of reasoning and judgment. Marriage is an adult thing; dealing with it and the potential of child rearing requires good judgment. You seriously think it is wise to make a 9 year-old boy a king? It’s reasonable for a 9 year-old to marry? That’s just plain stupid. We know that people that young are not ready for such things. We didn’t know that in ancient Egypt, but we also didn’t know that lead pipes would allow water to leach out some of that lead, and poison the water. The resultant brain damage probably prevented those people from knowing that, too. You see, there are a lot of reasons for not doing things as we did them in the past. good reasons.

Your main argument seems to be that homosexual people who wish to have sex is on an equal footing with pedophilia and bestiality. I am surprised you didn’t throw polygamy in there for the trifecta. Again, you need to understand (yet again, as others have pointed out below) that homosexuals are involved in consensual relationships. That has been pointed out time and time again to you. Additionally, if you don’t like momosexual sex, you don’t have to participate in it. Therefore, it shouldn’t concern you.

It’s time to retire your argument, it’s baseless, stupid and your reductio ad absurdum style of argument is as transparent as the protective plastic window on my computer monitor.

Oh I am sorry, I forget that your comment WASN’T you just commenting about how much you have no relevant input to this article as a whole. Wait, oh yeah, that IS what you wrote in so many words. I wasn’t saying don’t have an opinion, or don’t comment, I was saying that when you CLEARLY were just pissed off the article existed in the first place the better point would be to idk, IGNORE it. Don’t start some stupid condescension rant because someone tells you that if you have no REAL comment other than the fact you have no real comment then just don’t comment.

If you have tats, a pierced ear, wear your baseball hat backwards or a mustache you have been corrupted beyond…..Hi Mr. gay!

That works!

Thank you.

You may want to take some time to think about your motivation for commenting 14 times in this thread.

You want to punish me by accusing me of the worst thing you can think of: being gay. I can see why the most appealing way for you to deal with social disapproval is to persuade yourself that only repressed homosexuals would have any problem with homosexuality itself. That’s why the term “homophobia” is so beloved by gay people and their advocates: it means FEAR of homosexuality, as if rational dislike or disapproval of homosexuality were impossible. If you dislike people who talk loudly in a movie theater, that doesn’t mean you’re afraid of them. It means you don’t like them and their unwelcome behavior.

I think Troll singular possibly…

Most gay people don’t think that there’s no such thing as a straight guy. They think people who are homophobic have gay feelings that they’re having trouble dealing with. There are studies to back that up. For example, one experiment showed that 55% of homophobic men became aroused when showed photographs of naked men, and two men having sex. Only about 25% of less homophobic men had the same reaction. Your anti-gay posts suggest that you may be part of the 55%.

“central role of the woman in the family” – and what are lesbian? men?

Thank you, Moderator4.

No, you really don’t, HF. Trust us on this one.
He didn’t delete his comment, by the way, we did. And we banned him.

The major difference between a homosexual relationship and a pediaphilic or beastial situation is the consent of both parties. Homosexual adults choose to be together, just like heterosexual adults do. When a pedophile has sex with a child, he is doing so without consent – either by flat out forcing himself on the child or by manipulating a child that does not have the age or maturity to give consent. As for beastiality, animals are also unable to guve consent as it is defined by the law. Both of these are situations of one-sided lust and intention. That’s why they are crimes – because they are rape! Homosexuality among two consenting adults is a completely different situation. Trying to draw a correlation between a crime and homosexuality just undermines your intelligence and makes your argument lack credibility.

It seems this limp noodle is doing quite a bit of projecting.

xD

Like I said, you don’t know a thing about marketing or PR. :)

You also don’t read the articles you’re commenting on, the quote is there, be a good troll and read it. :)

I’m just going to point and laugh at you from now on.

Point
Laugh.

I don’t think his mamma considered the name “Guido” as being a racist one. Unless she dislikes him as much as I do. And, if it is racist to all Guido Guido, what shall we call him – douchebag?

No, wrong again, moms.

“Consider me bothered, Guido.”

I know his name is Guido, but nice double entendre there. I am sure someone as hypersensitive as yourself knows that Guido is also a racial slang towards Italians. I guess you are a closet racist?

The company is NOT his, it belongs to the multi-generational Barilla family, some of whom disagree strongly with Guido. Did you read the direct quotes that he made? Bigoted and sexist.

Oh, mom, you’re way off target.

Animals can’t consent. When I take my dog to the vet, the vet doesn’t ask the dog if he wants to get his rabies shot.

Vlad the Impaler used to have his captives impaled thru the anus on stakes in his courtyard. Polygamy was once almost the standard. Women were property. Slavery was common. We, mostly don’t do those things today. So your “arguments” have no weight.

Arrivederci, Barilla!

oh wow! I CANNOT EAT SPAGHETTI WHILE HAVING SEX NOW…

people do boycott those companies.

John Phillips, you are banned.

You are clearly an ill-informed person who has no idea of what they are speaking about. This is false equivalency.

Your idiotic argument deserves no further comment.

So you can judge but can not be judged….I get it…look into history and find out that King Tut was married at 9 and a unmentionable prophet had a 9 year old wife…look at yourself as you pass judgement on others

If the animal initiates the sex is it not consenting? Who are you to judge what is right or wrong…not to long ago in this country and still in some countries the age of consent didnt exist people were married at 13 or younger…now it is a crime…King Tutankamen was married at 9 or 10 years old and a certain prophet who is not allowed to be mentioned had a 9 year old wife…who decides what is right or wrong…you arer a hypocrite by saying your lifestyle is ok but others are not….you are exactly what you pretend to hate

Are you reading the original comments by Barilla or the inflammatory comments by the blogger above? Barilla didn’t say gays shouldn’t buy, or are undesirable, nor that he would not sell to them, He simply acknowledged that there would be a certain number of people that would vote with their dollars elsewhere. The sense that he intended to exclude this group from their customer base is entirely a construct of the blogger and other commenters here.

Oh so now you are calling for his resignation??? With your argument, one should sacrifice their own beliefs for the greater good of the corporation huh?? If that was the case then the LGBT community would be gagged as they are a huge minority in the great scheme of sales of corp crap!

Oh how to answer that were I a CEO, simple:

“You bring up an interesting observation, I will have to look into that”

There, bish, bosh, done.

What you do not say is “Well if people don’t like it, they can buy from our competitors, and further more I find people who might not like it icky” which is what Guido did.

Legal, informed consent. A child or an animal cannot give legal, informed consent. Thus, if someone has sex with a child or an animal, they do not have consent to do so. I have been gay for a long, long time, and I never had sex with a man who was not in complete agreement with me. In fact, sometimes, I was the one giving consent.

I never said the comments didn’t cause damage, however they probably would have never received much press if not for sites like this that are looking to invent problems.

The bigger issue is that you can’t answer my question about how to answer successfully, which is my point. This guy was set up and as far as I can tell there was no answer that was going to both tell the truth and be “inclusive” enough to keep this site and others from calling him a bigot, etc.

Who is going to stand up for the Pedophiles who are “Born that way” it is not a choice why are they shunned and abused and incarcerated….Those who love non-humans are also singled out and abused do you really think someone chooses to love and be intimate with animals choose that if one is born gay then doesnt it stand to reason that all deviations from what you call the sexual norm should be welcomed and accepted and supported…it should be taught in schools that a relationship with a horse is a perfectly normal healthy experience and so is loving a child….why are people allowed to openly discriminate against one form of love and not another…Being gay was once thought of as immoral and unnatural and disgusting…think about it….let love rule

Yup. You can say anything you want, have any opinion you want…but those of us on the right side of history reserve the right to publicly shame you. Get used to it.
Sincerely,
A straight guy

Nobody cares if you are ok with homosexuality. The thing that the anti-gay (or at least “not pro gay”) crowd fails to realize is that they (meaning YOU) have already lost the war in the US. The balance has shifted.

What to do with afterrbirth?

There has been a dramatic drop in self-identifying Christians in America over the past 15 years. Especially among young people
“77% of Americans say religion is losing its influence. Since 1957, when
the question was first asked, Americans’ perception of religion’s power
has never been lower.”
Christian leaders trying to gain political (read: financial) support is backfiring. People are not going to support churches on a compulsory level

‘I’m saying that we are tired of being denied the same rights and privileges that people in heterosexual relationships have.’
I disagree. First of all, Mr Barilla CEO did not deny anyone any rights or privileges by choosing an ad picture of a traditional family. Second, I think that too many gays are pushing the envelope; no one is liked by everyone…there are many people who don’t believe gay behavior is ‘normal/natural/acceptable’ but they agree that consenting adults should have the right to live as they choose. Can you accept that without calling those folks haters & bigots? Name-calling has no place in grown up conversation, from either ‘side’. You don’t have to like them, they don’t have to like you, but you both have to just learn to peacefully co-exist.
ps-and pick your battles better…as I said before, why not boycott products made by some whose religious creed calls for death to homos*xuals?

You may be born with it, but you can be born again.

I often think you gay guys don’t believe that there really IS such a thing as a straight guy, that under the skin ALL people are gay or LBT or whichever letter we’re up to now. You’re a very tiny minority of people all over the world, and in my opinion you are doing damage to our culture far out of proportion to your numbers. I’m not at all “disgusted” or otherwise disconcerted by the thought of gay anal intercourse. But like many people, including quite a few gay people I suspect, I just wish you’d be a little less out and proud about it. There are many public issues far more important in my opinion.

De Cecco is WAYYYYY better pasta anyway.

it is very far from being settled science that same-sex attraction is innate. Until 1974 the American Psychological Association classified homosexuality as a “mental disorder”. Millions of your fellow citizens believe that the APA was correct BEFORE 1974. Don’t lull yourself into the delusion that you live in a country where most people approve of your sexual behavior. We don’t. We may believe that your sexual activity should not be criminalized in the U.S., as it was for centuries and still is in most parts of the world. But that doesn’t mean we like it. Nothing is inevitable. Be on the lookout for a backlash.

Neither is being gay. It is something you are born with.

I am getting sick and tired of this kind of idiocy – claiming that being gay is a behavior. Is being straight a behavior? No, it is something that you are born with.

Unless and until you can come up with a more novel point with actual facts to back up your ridiculous assertion, I suggest you be quiet. This erroneous point has been made repeatedly on this thread, and it’s getting quite tiresome.

being “of color” is not a behavior.

I don;t care if you agree or not, you’re wrong. :)

The crux of this is the PR damage his comments caused, the fact you don;t think they did (which is disprove by the subsequent “clarification”) is immaterial and doesn’t change the fact that it very obviously did. It’s a marketing/PR thing, you very obviously wouldn’t understand. :)

No, the people in the ads isn’t the PR problem, it’s the “people can buy from our competitors” that is.

Barilla is completely entitled to his opinion on gay families, gay marriage, etc. I am also completely entitled to choose another pasta to buy which I will be doing. As far as those who applaud this man’s opinion, I really hope you wake up someday and realize how wrong you are. I cannot understand how people think this is ok. If you replace the word “gay” with “people of color”, maybe that would help you realize why this opinion is discriminatory, hateful and wrong.

I should be able to say wildly ignorant and offensive things about segments of the population without those people getting offended and wanting to stop buying my products :(

If they said “We like to focus just on Brunettes, if blondes and redheads don’t like it they can go buy from our competitors” then your analogy would be apt. :)

This shit is getting ridiculous. It’s every person’s right to love someone of the same sex, but it is also every person’s right to have their own personal set of beliefs and run their company and business on their beliefs. The way he explained it, he did nothing wrong, he just simply stated his beliefs, stated the guidelines for the ads of HIS company, and said that if you disagree, then you don’t have to buy my pasta. Seriously people, get over yourselves and stop trying to pick a fight.

Chunck, to have an opinion about any group of people is sort of stupid. No group of significant size has much in common beside a single trait. So if you have an opinion about “the gays”, it is almost certainly based on stereotype and ignorance, so yeah, we wish you would shut up. I am certain that most of the people who share characteristics with you are no where near as stupid.

People in general are to stupid to get this point.

This poor guy is being vilified for simply having a strategy for selling his goods. The blog above is snarky and obviously looking to pick a fight. Most brands have policies on how their goods are presented. It’s not really a surprise that a pasta maker chooses to accent the tradition of the big Italian family in their ads. He didn’t say gays SHOULD buy another pasta, he simply said they could if they so choose. This is all about appealing to your target demographic and has nothing to do with trying to exclude a certain group.

Ya fought the good fight Judy against a swarm of the most contemptible lot of pin head trolls I’ve ever seen on this site. One wonders from where these first time, drive by losers came—–all the way to AB to wage wag war over a bunch of B grade pasta.

Oh, my apologies. It wasn’t you who said that. It was the originator of the thread. So my point about the fact that such ads exist was really intended for him/her. But my point that the article contained content that was accurate and unbiased, in that it demonstrated the existence of ads in contrast to the thread originator’s denial, IS aimed at you — the Huffington Post article had value in that respect, even if I were to concede the presence of bias (which I don’t).

My mind is just blown by how many people in these comments don’t get it. My god.

I think the mods got to his comments, and banned him.

I got a notification that he had replied to a couple of my comments, and they included a snippet of his comments. They were vile and disgusting. Believe me, you don’t want to read what he said. This is one sick puppy.

I agree!! What if some of his employees were gay…that’s just wrong..keep your opinions to yourself regarding other people’s sexuality!! Last time I checked SEX and PASTA are not related!!!

So, in other words, he is allowed freedom of speech, but we’re not? Please. That freedom of speech you claim to support means we damn sure do have the right to condemn someone for their double standards. And it’s not aggressive to stand up for equality and put your money where your mouth is.

Well, I guess it’s also MY right to then tell you that your marriage is DISGUSTING! I am DISGUSTED, and I demand that I, who has literally nothing to do with you at all, who is in NO FUCKING WAY affected by your marriage, am allowed to have any say whatsoever in YOUR personal life!

God, what a moron.

No, of course EVERYONE does not have to agree with gay marriage…HOWEVER, just because some may disagree with gay marriage, that does NOT give them the right to prohibit gay marriage simply because they happen to disagree with it.

I am just SO sick of this stupid argument. How can you possibly not get it?

Ah yes, sorry, my bad. Not wearing my glasses today haha.
You’re absolutely right.

Well, you said this:

“Apart from in-your-face music videos and hipster-oriented fringe marketing, the mainstream is a white-bread feel-good advertising market that will never in our lifetimes feature same-sex couples.”

Pretty much the same thing, paraphrased.

By the way, you’re wrong.

If your “agenda” is to deny me the civil rights I’m entitled to and you ALREADY HAVE, then no, I most certainly do not have to “respect” that. My god, the ignorance.

And here’s someone who has completely missed the point.

LMAO. You have more belligerent comments than anyone here and you’re telling Gwen that SHE has no life? That HER only job is to spread the hatred over the internet? Pot, kettle and all.

Do you have any idea of what HuffPo really is? How many people write for them? Literally THOUSANDS. You can’t be stupid enough to think they’re all liberal. Sigh.

IT’S EASY TO YELL THAT AT US WHEN IT’S NOT YOU BEING DISCRIMINATED AGAINST.

Your caps lock key is located on the far left side of the keyboard.

“You said that there would ‘never’ be any gay couples feature in ‘ANY product advertisements anywhere'”

Where did I say that?

And, in answer to your question… yes, in fact, I have. But YOU should take into consideration that as the executive of an international company, he needs to be mindful of the fact that his company reaches myriad audiences, and that media transmission/translation is generally instantaneous. His comment might well have made nary a ripple in Italy, but he had to be aware that it would not play quite so well in other markets — the US and northern Europe, particularly. So again, while I do believe he is entitled to his opinion, what he is NOT entitled to do is express it in an expectation that it will have no effect on the brand that he represents — particularly given that the brand carries his own name! It was a very unfortunate and obvious misstep, bad for his business worldwide, and he should not have done it — but having done it, the obvious way to limit the damage is to retract it and state that he misspoke, and apologize. Because you do not, ever, come out against the participation of a segment of consumers. It’s a major image faux pas.

If he cannot bring himself to apologize, then he should resign for the benefit of his company. Because his leadership is compromised by this appalling lack of business sense.

Note: I am not criticizing his opinion here — I don’t agree with it, I would imagine that’s obvious, but as I have stated, he’s entitled to it. But unfortunately the context in which he expressed it has damaged his corporation’s image, and by extension the well-being of all the people who work for and with that corporation. So if he cares about it — and I should certainly hope he does — he should separate his opinion and its fallout from the business.

And also here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luBAETM4HJw

If this is more to your liking… here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-7IA54-tmE

Did you even look at the article? It cited specific instances of advertising that showed gay couples. You said that there would “never” be any gay couples feature in “ANY product advertisements anywhere”, and I was attempting to show you that such ads do, in fact, exist. I’m sorry you aren’t open minded enough to even look at the YouTube video linked to the article, but the fact is, you’re wrong.

Uh oh….Huffpo. Sorry, you need to do better than that. Not a fan of bias.

Have you taken into consideration his audience when he made the statement?

You’re making a few assumptions about the people who are “screeching”, aren’t you? A fair number of the folks I’ve heard “screeching” are not, in fact, homosexuals. Myself included. And quite a few of us are making well reasoned, logical arguments. You might try it sometime, instead of simply flinging insults.

And, may I point out, that every 1 homosexual person on the planet has two parents. Many of them also have siblings. Nearly all of them also have a friend, or two, or twenty, or a hundred… not all of whom are likewise homosexual (I would hazard a guess that most are not, in fact). So it’s not just “5% of the total population” — it’s that 5% plus a very large cohort of the people who care about them.

Thanks mate. I will!!

I don’t know Italian. But I do know sheep. They aren’t nearly as passive or inclined to follow as you might think.

The company disagrees with you.

One doesn’t have to hate heterosexuals to love one’s fellow humans, gay or straight. I am heterosexual, and I have gay people in my life whom I love dearly. And Nick here appears to be my philosophical man-twin, because this is not about hating gays or hating heteros, it’s about marketing stupidity — of which this man, Guido Barilla, is profoundly guilty.

I gave my opinion of Kent Wright’s math elsewhere.

How uplifting these replies are! How tolerant & informative!

I still believe that all this ‘persecution’ towards a businessman who has the right to decide on his product’s advertisements, is laughable. Put your money (or not, your choice) where it will do some REAL good: boycott goods made by followers of any religion which STONES, BEHEADS & GENITALLY MUTILATES folks who act in non-sanctioned ways (suppressing women & gays comes to mind). Now that will MAKE a difference; quit nitpicking about what is supposedly lacking in some ad campaign!

And you are the only one here with the ability to understand Italian…more self-stroking behavior.

A lot of it is just plain old common sense.

I love you. :D

Marketing background at all?

AMEN. It is bad business to invite people to stop buying your product. Because they WILL.

No my brother isn’t dating anyone….he’s in Florida. I’ll gladly set you up if you would like. I’m sorry I shouldn’t have told you to choke on your Barilla. This Barilla guy and you are entitled to your opinions. You have proven to me again that I shouldn’t read the comments people make. Just for the record, the people screaming “HATE” and such probably like themselves too. Not even you are better than anyone else. Although, I’m sure you are awesome….just like my brother, who I love dearly.

Homosexuality was viewed very differently in Biblical times. The homosexual hate is more recent than that, at least in European culture. The Romans and Greeks, for one, had little issue with homosexuality.

You’re full of something that comes out of the North end of a Southbound horse.

This:

“Since civilization began, homosexual behavior has been abhorred and
punished; we have come a long way from a gay being drawn &
quartered. However there will always be folks that do not agree that
sodomy equates love. Don’t they have a right to their opinion?”

First, you’re trying that old canard – homosexuality is a behavior that can be turned off through some magic switch. Read what social scientists have to say. You’re flat wrong when you say that.

No, only since biblical times and in certain cultures has homosexuality been taboo. It has not historically always been this way. It comes from a lack of understanding that two people of the same gender can have romantic feelings for one another. You clearly want it to be all about sex and are obsessed about “sodomy”.

And I’m gonna say this: No, you don’t have a right to a stupid opinion. You have a right to a well-informed opinion. If you know nothing about engineering a ship, I am not going to let you design one for me.

And you know nothing about sexuality, so you don’t get to express an opinion about it. Now go away.

WAY TO MUCH DRAMA, WHO CARES WHAT STRAIGHT OR GAYS EAT… GET A LIFE.

I actually don’t care about his opinion, but I do find marketing and PR interesting and blunders like this one are fun to watch.

And, as I’ve said a bunch of times here, you do not, under any circumstances say “people can buy other companies products”. That’s the crux of the matter, he failed in the central role a CEO should have, that of booster of his product.

This boycott is only hurting gays. People are getting very tired of being told WHAT they can say & believe. Worse is being called ‘hater’ or ‘bigot’. Whining about the fact that a PASTA COMPANY does not use gay families in their advertising (oh the horrors!!) is ridiculous.

Since civilization began, homosexual behavior has been abhorred and punished; we have come a long way from a gay being drawn & quartered. However there will always be folks that do not agree that sodomy equates love. Don’t they have a right to their opinion?

Why are you disapproving his opinion???

OK …..I see your point. Do you see mine?

We want free speech… until we don’t agree with it … then we want to boycott companies because the head of the company expressed his freedom of speech.

What censorship? Who is stopping this man from saying stupid things? Has anyone deprived him of speaking, or even from having a platform in the media from which to speak (which is often denied to others)?

YOU don’t know what censorship is. It is NOT censorship to criticize what someone else has said. It is NOT censorship to decide not purchase a product because you don’t like what the company exec is saying.

We who oppose this man’s ridiculous bigotry have our OWN freedom of speech. We have the freedom to criticize him. We have the freedom to choose not to buy his products.

You need to study your history books to find out what real censorship is.

“Perhaps this is just a marketing ploy by the CEO…Chic file a had an increase of sales after their crisis.

Do the math….”

Chick Fil-A is a US specific company with market coverage in less than 2000 outlets mostly in the southern United States, Barilla is an international food company with a presence in many countries that have already legalized same-sex marriage.

I can “do the math”, I don;t think you can…

Exactly. This is what I was talking about. He’s got the right to not include gays into his videos or whatever and you’ve got the right to disagree. As simple as that. Making the thing extreme is always bad. If someone doesn’t see homosexual people the way you do, leave them be, it’s their opinion. And the same goes for extreme anti-gay fighters.

“Everyone is free to do what they want, provided it doesn’t bother anyone else.”
Based on the writer’s translation, this doesn’t sound all that intolerant to me. The CEO doesn’t want to feature gays in the company’s advertisements. So what? How often do you see gay couples featured in ANY product advertisements anywhere? I can confidently say: never. Apart from in-your-face music videos and hipster-oriented fringe marketing, the mainstream is a white-bread feel-good advertising market that will never in our lifetimes feature same-sex couples. Sorry but that’s reality. This all seems like an overreaction by people who seek drama and controversy.

You certainly sound amused….

You’re right. But trying to tell that to the heterophobes in here.

The guy writing this is more interested in being angry than understanding that people have beliefs of their own. Sorry things don’t go your way right now, but this is not the way to change minds for lasting peace and understanding.

Ummm….that is what people are saying they will do. It was his recommendation (although he forgot to include friends, families, and supporters of the LGBT community…a much larger group with greater financial impact). So yeah, we don’t like his opinions, and yeah, we aren’t going to buy his products.

Got that?

Do I need to repeat it?

#1 The company is not his. He is only an executive hired by the company.

#2 When you open your mouth in such a way as to disparage a portion of your customers and to discourage them from buying your product, you are risking company profits and also employment security of your workers. Acting willy nilly on your own like this can have a deep impact on others. So you need to be responsible and keep your bigoted opinions to yourself — both the bigoted opinion about gays and now his bigoted opinion about women (as queen of pasta in the family).

He’s that stupid.

First of all, “freedom of speech” is not an absolute. This “freedom” does not give any individual the right to say anything and everything they damn well please. Second, this “freedom” does not prevent what a person says, especially publically, from being responded to by anyone and everyone if they so choose. There is no such “right” that says that a person can make a public statement and the rest of the world is expected, nay, required, to bite their tongues and say nothing in response. Finally, the “freedom of speech” described in the US Constitution protects speech from any GOVERNMENT retribution. It doesn’t refer to things said by, between and among various individuals.

You can tout your credentials all you want, and continue to pat yourself on the back, but anyone with any experience in marketing and/or PR knows that there is no such thing as an “irrelevant opinion”. Everyone’s opinion is taken into consideration, which is why Barilla is making another statement. He’s not doing “damage control”, he is furthering his explanation for the ignorant masses who took offense to his honesty about his company’s advertising policy.

Google translate has this….

“We will not be advertising with homosexuals, because we like the traditional family. If gays do not agree, they can always eat pasta from another manufacturer. All are free to do whatever they want provided it does not annoy others. ”

A little different take on the translation, no?

Perhaps this is just a marketing ploy by the CEO…Chic file a had an increase of sales after their crisis.

Do the math….

Gay percentage in US 1.7% maybe 5% max. – 5 million

Catholic and Evangelical Protestants 50.2% – 156 million.

Maybe he is not so dumb after all???

The word is DISCRIMINATION – whether the word was gay, black, Chinese, Spanish, etc., the affect would still be the same – its the context in
which he made the statement. In this case, the CEO IS prejudiced against
the Gay community and shows it in his statement. Now this CEO
(aka JERK) is trying to “recant” his words – too late. Barilla has just
lost millions of dollars with their so called “top management’s” razor tongue. Does the Gay community have the right to stand-up to Barilla? Damn right they do – kick his ass.

I have more and more hateful comments on gays and will tell you that this literally made me sick. NO hope that everyone gay, straight, male or female stops eating your products.b remember they not only make pasta, they also make jarred sauce. I will even make sure that any restaurants that I eat in, do not serve your product before I order
Oh, and when MY HUSBAND SHOPS AND MAKES DINNER. I will make sure HE doesn’t purchase Barilla any longer. So you bigot, Find your way out of this,

Honestly, if some pasta CEO said he wouldn’t depict Christians in his ads, because he is an atheist, and that religious people who are offended by that could always buy other pasta, that would not offend me in the least. But even if the notion that he didn’t want Christians in his ads offended me, I would simply take his advice and buy other brands. I wouldn’t insult him personally and call him names and leave derogatory comments on websites and generally cry and hyperventilate like a little baby.

Really? What makes raven’s views on the matter “irrelevant”? Because you say so? And for that you pat yourself on the back and insinuate that you are a much better “verbal jouster” than raven. Classic narcissistic, shallow-minded behavior.

Ummm, actually I, fortunately, have not contracted HIV through drug use or relations with a woman, so I really don’t know how you dreamt up such an idiotic remark. However, since I can already tell that you are a person of good breeding and CLEARLY not an ignorant, inbred loser who harbors pointless hate (due to a deep seated self-loathing), I will assume you made that remark out of concern for my well being. So, thank you!

amen!!! preach on sistah man :)

you’re irrelevant :)

There are boundaries my friend. I don’t think this is a matter of agreeing with every inane thing a CEO believes or prefers. The issue of equality on our planet for folks of all race, sexual preference etc. is not an inane issue. I’m sure if this CEO announced that their pasta is not appropriate for christians and that those religious people should eat something else we’d be reading comments from the likes of you of a different tone.

It really is NOT any skin off my nose and that’s the truth!!. If a product uses only men or only dogs in their adds, it doesn’t offend me and I don’t feel that I’m discriminated on because I’m a woman. I guess i’m just not that insecure! And, no, before someone finds the need to ask, I don’t think homosexuals are a privileged minority except in their own minds and the minds of whomever they can manage to convince of such silliness. If gays don’t want to buy this product because their itty-bitty feelings are hurt, I certainly agree that they have every right not to do so. If I want to buy it– I will do so–period!. I am tired of all these different groups looking for ways that they can feel abused and that they hope will entitle them to some privileged status or to get some kind of cudo . Hint: nobody cares who I sleep with or want to hear about it–and I don’t care whom anyone else sleeps with or want to hear about it! And it certainly has no impact on what foods I buy! If it’s great pasta–and it is–I’ll definitely continue to buy it over others That’s my only point!

Eh, they’ve got a right to advertise using whoever they want — the person, people, or family that they feel best represents their brand. That being said, don’t get all pissy and tell gays they can “go eat someone else’s pasta” if they don’t like it, because they probably will. I didn’t find anything offensive or wrong with his statement until that quote. Dumb. Dumb. Dumb. Dumb.

Pretty homoerotic avatar there dudebro. :)

That’s odd, do you happen to speak Italian? If so please provide the translation as you read the original? The translation works fine as far as I’m concerned.

He said, whether intentionally or not, “go buy another company’s product” that’s a gaff no consumer product company should ever make, regardless of the foundation.

That’s what’s funny in this situation. :)

So let me get this straight….you’re a proponent of boycotting a company because someone has a different viewpoint as you and calling them anti-gay bigots….that would be like a straight person boycotting {insert any number of companies here} and calling their leadership anti-heterosexual bigots… I’m not sure that I follow your logic….
When does respect only work when it’s one-sided?
Why throw something online to blast them, rather than engage in dialogue?
and why is that anyone who supports or cooperates in a traditional family unit is called an “anti-gay bigot”? This is getting a little old.

Both of those companies have already caved and retracted the statements/pledged to not contribute to any gay causes. Your purchases are telling them you approve of the caving. :)

No more overpriced Barilla for me and my “gay family”
I always encouraged my family to buy Barilla since I liked their product (even if it is overpriced as hell)

I don’t care that they don’t have an advert featuring an lgbt individual, what I do care about is how they basically said that they WOULD NOT EVER do it as if that would be a problem in this era.

Then to go on and say anyone who has a problem with that can go eat someone elses pasta, well I’m taking their suggestion and I think I’ll be supporting Riscossa Pasta from now on.

I agree completely.
Since Barilla brand pasta is not gay friendly, I now have to go without eating pasta completely!
I mean, seriously, it’s not like there are hundreds of other brands to choose from or anything.
Barilla is the only producer of pasta and therefore we have no other options but to go a life free of pasta.

Let’s imagine a brand of bread that comes out as openly racist, it’s completely understandable if people of color decide to go bread free for their entire lives, what with the limited options we have and the thousands of racist-free brands of bread on the shelves.

I totally see your point, gay people should DEFINITELY support brands that are homophobic.
Without Barilla, where would we get our pasta from? Oh good lord, the sacrifices I have to make, I will have to suffer a life free of pasta.

I totally get you.

I’m pretty sure Naples isn’t the issue here.

If I understand your reasoning correctly, I don’t think it makes him a bigot because the word “bigot,” while unpleasant, isn’t a slur. It’s simply an accurate description of people who support discrimination. He’s suggesting that it would be difficult to be part of a bigot’s family, which seems pretty reasonable to me.

Supporting the traditional family and believing that is what God intended is different than being openly hateful to others that don’t agree with you.

Yeah just like haters. God asks us to love one another as we would ourselves…not just the people that agree with us. Do unto others as you would do unto you. And of course, Jesus said, “let he who is without sin, cast the first stone” when speaking of adultery which is also a “sin”. Personally I don’t have much respect for anyone that has less compassion and shows less respect than God.

And you became God when? Because you just sinned too my dear. Thou Shalt Not Judge Others.

Hi. You’ve misread what I wrote… I didn’t say ‘imaginary representative’.

I said ‘IMAGERY that is representative’ … as in the images they use in their advertising does not represent the true diversity in the population of Italy (because it leaves out black people and other groups of people).

No one cares about your religion here, nor should they when you are being hypocritical to your own faith rofl :P

What if you found out your favorite cereal company supported the Taliban? Would you give a fuck then? I’m thinking you might because that might affect you or someone you love in one way or another. Try seeing thing from outside your own perspective. Its not about “support”, its about not brushing away bigotry.

Homosexuality is a sin not a sickness. Just like thieves or liars. All sin will be judged.

Personally, I quite like gay pasta – Homocelli, Poofarooni, and Wriggletony are my favorites.
My friend Tony is particularly fond of that last one. Perhaps Mr. Barilla ought to try them. Like many people, I find straight pasta too starchy and old fashioned: a bit like Mr. Barilla himself, perhaps? There’s no ‘give’ in it. There’s no fun it! Straight pasta is dull. It always was. As Leonardo de Vinci
himself said, ‘There are no straight lines in nature. Everything is wiggly – including pasta.’ Surely Barilla should know that gay pasta is quite delicious and can be enjoyed by everyone regardless of race, colour, creed, or sexual proclivity. I am pleased to say, here in Britain, it is now completely legal to
eat gay pasta. I’ve been eating gay pasta for years – quite openly – and it’s done me no harm – Ducky. Of course it is easy to joke about it. But Barilla’s surprisingly unintelligent remarks show just how limited, uneducated, and prejudice some people still can be. Having no doubt lost a great number of his hitherto
loyal consumers, perhaps Mr. Barilla should think of marketing his very heterosexual
product elsewhere. Russia perhaps?

I think I lost a few brain cells from reading this stupidity. Gay people are not monsters with sex addictions, actually the vast majority of people who fit that description are straight. Gay people can be abstinent and at least they’re not bringing children into broken households and having a ton of children just to get bigger welfare checks like straight people. Gay couples are gay for the same reason straight people are straight. They love each other. If you can’t understand how one person can just love another then I feel sorry for you to have grown up in a world void of love. I’m not gay, I’m conservative when it comes to 90% of political issues and I just can’t make sense of how anyone could treat another human being who has never harmed another as less than human because of who they’re attracted to. It’s none of our business as long as no one is being hurt. Also I imagine all people are loyal to their genitalia regardless of preference, or does yours not work?

wow….I was going to like your comment when I read the first line…funny stuff. But then I had to go and read the rest. You’re a real basket case! Lunatic-tic-tic.

You are trying to force sane people to accept you. You are sick, and want us to embrace your sickness. Go to hell.

All fags are activists and radical, violent felons. Sodomy is a natural felony. It is a crime against nature. I’m proud to be intolerant of freaks who eat crap and smear it on each other. Homosexuality is the rape of a nation. Let all the fags have their own country, and in 40 years, there will be no more of them to parade their obsession with scat in our faces. You queers love children so much, you don’t produce any.

Homosexuality is the rape of entire nations. http://whiterace.org/el/open-letter-to-the-fathers

You won’t be happy until all pasta ads include pictures of queers fisting each other covered in marinara. You pro-fags are really just anti-heterosexual. You want to force everyone else to be queer, so you can rape children with impunity. “Homosexuality is rape. It is the rape of an entire race. Homosexuality
is the rape of youth. The gay agenda and its poison is designed to turn
young men into monsters with a sex addiction that is rarely cured.
Homosexuals protect other homosexuals and will betray family, friends,
and country for their fellow fags. This is why western culture has
historically rejected sodomy, because sodomy is the rejection of family,
culture, nation and race, knowing only loyalty to the nerve endings of
pleasure centers. Patriots are loyal to their generations. Fags are
loyal to their genitalia.” http://whiterace.org/el/open-letter-to-the-fathers-of-the-boy-scouts

Can’t wait to buy some Barilla pasta :-D I can’t wait. Love it. Good job, Barilla. I am supportive. I am not one to judge when people want to be gay but that doesn’t mean I can’t support you when you say that you support the traditional family. Anyone who is a Christian supports the traditional family and I respect that, whether people want to hear it or not. Excellent.

What a storm in a teacup. He believes he will get more sales if his advertising presents a traditional family of Mum, Dad and 2.5 children. In that he is not alone, I cannot recall any advertising for any product that overtly features gay people. So don’t have a go at him, have a go at the whole advertising industry.

so you are saying, i need to respect a mans opinion, which is, that he does not even consider mine to be respectable (as in: a homosexual family construct is a valid construct) in first place? seriously?

sure he can have his opinion, but so can i in despising this backward anti-humanitarian bullshit that simply does devalue the worth and existence of masses of people. … read the apologies. barilla goes on to promote the “traditional” family model with women in the kitchen. cute – what’s next? the “traditional good ol times” of slavery?

the light and dark thing is bullshit. there’s tons of shades inbewteen a complete non-acceptance of equal rights that should be absolutely basic in a modern civilized society and needing to fly some flag.

Hey dude, you could always just ignore my response and take up NO opinion idiot. You don’t HAVE to respond at all, and people aren’t going to attack you for it, oh but wait…Dace, you just did. You came out and acted like a total ass and responded with stuff that just sounds like hate mongering and attacked me for my response in the comment section of an internet news story. Btw, I am a straight guy too, and my stance on the gays is irrelevant to this this endeavor. Your calling me someone who jumps in the middle of an argument of no reason to get attention in the comments section of an internet news story is fucking stupid dude. Comments section are for…..wait for it….

Wait for it…

Comments.

Good for the goose but not good for the gander? It’s ok for you and only those that you agree with, right? If you disagree with them, then it’s ok for you to come out and start calling people ass and saying they shouldn’t be posting and should have “NO opinion idiot”…because since you don’t agree, they must be wrong.

As your fearless leader has said lets not negotiate must be the new worldview for you. Yes, it was taken from the entertainment to show their own hypocrisy. No conspiracy theory, just making observations. Try getting funding from the established scientist/system with a negative sounding hypothesis about homosexual or hom behavior. Just because you read up on what interests you that added to your biases and your worldview doesn’t make you more enlightened. It just means that you are in the echo chamber. Yes, as hets make homs hopefully more of the genetic/epigenetic nature must be understood to help all. See the low-information type did hit me the wrong way, not really. You are just a mus-guided information type.

Ah, so all peer-reviewed science that doesn’t comport to your preconceived notions about human sexuality is invalid? That’s not the way science works. We accept what good science says, regardless of whether we like it or not. Furthermore, the body of scientific knowledge concerning human sexuality is chock full of repeatable research.

The fact is, we don’t know the exact mechanism behind homosexuality – yet. But those of us who are gay know one thing – we indeed are born into it.

Ignorance is not “coded newspeak”. It’s an observation I made based on your lack of knowledge on the subject. I don’t claim to be an intellectual – let alone a pseudo-intellectual – just someone who has spent a lot of time reading and educating myself about what I am.

Regarding homosexual activity being a “non-gene pool diversifying evolutionary dead-end behavior” is concerned, it doesn’t have to be a gene-pool diversifying behavior. I might remind you that straight people are the ones giving birth to gay people. And will continue to do so.

The rest of your comment seems to be where you go off the rails. Entertainment media Borg (the word “borg” came from entertainment media, you know)? I can’t take anything that you say as being credible when you talk like that.

You strike me as a combination low-information type with a passion for a good conspiracy theory. I won’t be answering any more of your comments, I’ve made my points and you don’t seem to want to address them on their merits.

What is your first language or god of all things that are correct in ways of writing English. Please feel free to correct my English.

You meen scientists/academics that are reviewing each others work that has the same biases about human behavior. Yes hom activity is a choice. There are biological/genetic/epigenetic components to it also. And as a behavior it is a non-gene pool diversifying evolutionary dead end behavior.

Unlike you, I don’t claim to have full delusional, pseudo intellectual notions about scientific and social arts (non repeated) studies about human behavior. If the so called it happens in the womb because of hormonal changes is true, then it can be mitigated. I am open to the idea that biologically so called transgender individuals don’t have a choice about their biological makeup. Yet, as sex changes show, even that can be changed unlike being of a breed of humans (Michael Jackson may question that idea also though).
“ignorance” Ah, the coded newspeak of the pseudo intellectuals who think that they have higher brain waves because they think they are “open minded” about how people get pleasure. That is the only way the borg can control you (lets get the low hanging fruit with emotional appeal and get their vote and then who cares about the country). You are so open minded that there are no barriers to filter out ideas that pollute your opened up mind. After all the entertainment media borg in their efforts to install their transient morality (as that is good for their business model) is doing a nice job of being the polluted idea generatros and the destroyer of barriers.

will never buy barilla again. will urge my friends not to buy it either.

Good bye Barilla

It’s called PR trolling, and companies hire people to do it when they are in deep trouble. I think they paid for at least 1000 comments on here alone.

There are websites, lol. How do you think they obtain their supply?

They could buy ‘better’ munchies, but it certainly would’t be a positive thing. Do you want Barilla to be forced to retract opinions that he still believes?

And I am NOT supporting bigotry. I am supporting the honest, open, and public forum. If there exist bigots there, better than having them in the closet with their negative emotions stewing.

Very curious Dave, but when did u actually “choose” to be “traditional”. When did u think about banging a guy and then say to yourself “ya, I’m gonna stick with vagina”?. When did u make the choice , weighing the pros and cons?

Actually what I did was refute a foreseeable counter- argument that did split hairs.

A cheer for Daniel:
Split those hairs! Split them! Split them fine!

levi, there seems to be an occasional glitch with Disqus. Sometimes two or three posts get the same username and these posts have been diametrically opposite. There are a few comments below about that.

Ah, but your name came up as “dave” on my browser.
In any case, we’ve been hearing the same repetitive idiocy all fucking day long.
You’re no special snowflake.

Exactly! Very well put!

*continues to slow clap* Actually, that was my first comment, so unless there is another levi out there who is shooting the same opinions as me, I would recommend that you step away from the internet before you hurt yourself.

Just as I wanted not to do, I provoked attack. Too bad a view and a voice is a bad thing these days. Judi, I have a view, you also have a view, it appears that you are angry. I did not attack, only state what looked obvious to me. It is apparent that you are right and I will not try and change your view. I will notify my wife of 17 years to keep an eye on me for some of the things you have predicted will happen to me. Ralph, thanks for the post, it really opened my eyes to something I would have never considered. I usually do not involve myself in this whole LGBT thing but found this Pasta post on FB. Who knew. Thanks Tom. I guess left field is where I live. BTW Fixer, I am no scientist, but if it were not for me and my kind, you would not be here. I am still confused how you can be so insulted by a guy saying he will not use gays in his marketing. 1 guy, one company, with a view. If you like pasta, eat the pasta…be happy the way you are. Who cares what he believes. Life is way too short.

All you’ve been doing is whining, and it’s repetitive whining at that.
Your opinion was stupid to begin with, has continued to be stupid every time you’ve repeated.

Yeah, I see how ridiculous Daniel is.

Huh?

Please ask the voices in your head to translate.

Defending ourselves is also free [for the moment] speech. It’s the defending against outrageous verbal nonsense that the wingnuts do not want.

You’re right “Cassidy” became luigi and my comment to “Cassidy” now says it belongs to luigi. Thanks, Fix, I noticed it earlier and thought the trolls were being a little “trollier” tonight.

There is no differentiation of service between customers, so that example doesn’t apply.

DAVE TRANSLATION: “How dare you be intolerant of intolerance!”

I refreshed the page and yet different usernames are appearing. You might want to try that, it might clear things up for you as well.

It was sure confusing as hell for me!

Reading comprehension: you should try it.

I think Disqus is having a breakdown. This is the third time I’ve seen the “same” user make comments that are 180 degrees apart.

Good for him! This is a free country and it goes both ways. I get offended when I see gay pride parades and they are barely dressed acting inappropriately. I am supposed to be ok with that. Well I think he is entitled to his own beliefs and opinions.

Let’s see. A few minutes ago you were a Barilla fanatic and a Chik-fil-A sucker. Now you’re abstaining from Barilla. By the time you read this, you’ll be straight, female and a resident ot Antarctica.

Let’s just put this out there and be done with it:

-Rants about how we’re disallowing free speech are invalid. The free speech happened. We are now in the “response” portion. Our response is to boycott the business of someone we disagree with. If he changes his views based on this action, that’s on him. This loss if business part of the cost of free speech, and a calculated risk in any situation where the figurehead of a company chooses to make such remarks. Freedom, as many people are fond of saying, is not free.

-Rants about “causing drama” can stop right there as well. I don’t believe we are the ones who chose to target a single group in a public setting; that was Barilla’s move. We are simply–and quietly, given that all of this so-called “drama” is largely in text form–choosing to respond by withholding our money. That is our right, and it is neither extremist nor attention-whoring. People choosing not to buy furs or blood diamonds for the repression those items embody are seldom called out for drama, I notice. Yet if it has to do with our sexuality, even a measured response is called “overblown.” If it’s not worthy of attention, don’t pay attention to it. Let us boycott and mind your own damned business.

-Rants about how we should “stop being sensitive:” No. Stop being assholes about our sexuality. Stop treating us like we are not an acceptable part of the world, like we are less than nothing. Stop threatening burnings, lynchings, murders, rapes, and the theft of our children. Then we will stop being sensitive. Until then, however, do your best to remember that just because you have never been a victim of discrimination does not mean that discrimination does not exist in all its forms, extreme or mild. Murder happens, though you have not been murdered. Rape happens, though you have not been raped. Beatings happen, though you’re not the one under the fist.

And for the love of god, proofread your comments. English teachers all over the country weep for you.

Daniel, it’s already having an effect. Guido “clarified” and Barilla US apologized. Smart business owners treat almost everyone as potential customers. Barilla offended gays, women, friends and relatives of gays, non-sexist men, liberals and others. That, in itself is an extremely bad business move. Guido needs to learn from his mistakes. He’s free to express himself, just as I am. And I can refuse to eat his products and tell others why I feel that way and encourage them to do the same.

“What have you got against busses, Mrs. Parks?”

You’re free be as self-loathing as you like, as well as free to be a troll posing as a self-loathing gay.

You’re free to pretend to be any kind of idiot you like.

Just as us moral folks are free to call out bigotry.

You are reacting in a very irrelevant way by boycotting. In making this statement, Barilla hasn’t done anything to harm gays. Buying his pasta won’t set back the gay rights movement. All you are doing is fear mongering business owners into not being expressing their opinions. Yell at him all you want, try to convince him he is wrong, but to boycott is simply spiteful, and indeed petty. When I think of this boycott.

I am gay and I am still going to eat Barilla pasta because it’s good and I don’t give a flying fuck what 1 person in the company believes. Same with Chick fil a. Nothing comes between this gay and food (besides xtina beating me to it)

allylloyd, in other words, I should accept to be condemned to behave politically correct, even though that is against my principles.

I am happy that I annoy you with my agenda of wanting to be treated equally under the law.

Straight people who are too dense to get the point really annoy me.

I am a straight man with a gay son. At first i did not understand. It was a disappointment to me that MY son, MY boy would choose this lifestyle and shame our family. That was until he attempted to commit suicide at 17 and left a note telling us how sorry he was that he couldn’t change for us… I thank God every single day that i found him in time. He is now 19 and could not be happier.

However, now I am the one who has shamed my family. I was not there for MY son, MY boy when he needed me the most. I somehow convinced myself that being gay was a choice and in doing so almost lost one of the most precious things in my life.

I don’t ask anyone to agree with anything. Believe what you want and believe it however you want. But saying gays should buy another brand of pasta is the same thing as saying black people should buy another brand of pasta because I can assure you that it is NOT a choice and I will be DAMNED if I let anyone talk to my boy like that. I had to learn my lesson the hard way and will probably never be able to live it down.

Just dont be me.

Honey, I’m quoting the science: homophobes tend to be self-hating big ole closet cases.

Not gay, by any means, or happy.

But wanting us all to be as self-loathing.

We’re gay because we “don’t agree”? Traditional marriage is a man plus a woman? You’re so far out in left field, you can’t see home plate.

Judybrowni, you’re closet bigotry is showing. You purport to be a defender of gay people, yet you imply that someone who you think does not support gay people is himself gay. In other words, you think that calling Dave gay is an insult. If you truly support gay people, you would not think that calling someone gay is an insult. And you certainly would not add that snarky comment about closeted gay men having “dates” in men’s rooms. My god, could anyone be more homophobic that you?

You know nothing of sexual orientation. If you did, you would not say such preposterous things.

Before you write another comment claiming that homosexuality is a behavior rather than an orientation, acquaint yourself with scientists who study sexuality and read their works.

It’s one thing to have a well-informed opinion. It’s quite another to spout off out of pure ignorance, which is what you are doing.

Barilla may not use imagery representative of the Italian population by neglecting black people in their adds, and that may not have attracted much criticism yet.

But if he were to have came out saying “We will not be using black people in our ads because we prefer the traditional family” and that “if black people don’t like it they can get their pasta elsewhere” and that he doesn’t agree with ‘black adoption”…
…you can be very sure that a similar article would be written and massive numbers of people would be no longer buying Barilla due to his racist attitudes.

When someone makes their attitudes known, and those attitudes are prejudice or discrimatory, regardless of the kind of prejudice or discrimination, then there will be people who choose not to support the business owned by that person, and who take their business to other companies who have not made such discriminatory comments.

Oh no, i agree with traditional marriage. The fact that i’m gay doesn’t mean i don’t agree with traditional marriage.
Be straight. You chose to be straight.

This is the translation that I’ve come up with for the sentence: It says, “We won’t advertise with homosexuals because the traditional family pleases us. If the gays are not in agreement, they can always eat another brand’s pasta.”

How would you kow? You’re not acting like a civilized person when you talk that way.

Your opinion is, therefore, invalid.

I do not understand why everyone is expected to embrace homosexuality. Such drama, caused by a right to choose who you want in your marketing? I think it is childish…this whole “you’re not gonna tell me what to do, or say, or that you don’t like me and my friends…we will beat you up” attitude. Everyone does NOT have to agree, which is why you are gay in the first place….right? Because you do not agree with traditonal (man&woman together) marriage. LGBT appears to be promoting hatred by expecting that all of the world be ok with your way of life. Fine be Gay, LGBT, Homosexual, Lesbian, whatever you feel the correct way of describing your choice is. I choose traditional, is that a crime? For if it is, then your choice of LGBT is as well. Smile everytime you get chance.

Urra to you! well said.

Some Barilla brands which don’t have “Barilla” in the name:

Alixir — alcoholic beverages,
Crisp’N Light — biscuits, cookies,
Cucina Mediterranea — Frozen main dishes,
Fantasie Del Sole — many food products,
First Fast — coffee, other food products
Italy’s #1 Pasta — pasta,
Macine — baking powder, salt,
Mulino Bianco — baked goods,
Natura Al Dente — many food products,
NutriPlus — pasta,
Orizzonti — coffee, other food products
Pan Di Stelle — biscuits, cookies,
Pavesi — Coffee,
Pavesini — baked goods,
Plus — sauces,
Restaurant Creations — pasta sauces,
Ringo — baking powder, biscuits, cookies,
Ritornelli — biscuits, cookies,
Share The Table — baking pans,
The Choice of Italy — pasta,
Voiello — coffee, other food products
Volare — semolina-based snack foods

Good man, its nice to see that not all are becoming stupid shit bags in the name of (twisted) freedom of choice. queers are disease to a civilized decent society.

Easy to call, hard to prove. How about adding something positive to to conversation. (not a taunt, really would be interested in hearing about how something constructive could come out of all of this) as far as the LGBTA organization on campus goes, HAVEN at University of Delaware. I was involved as an ally. I became significantly less involved when they picked up an issue similar to this (a stupid article in the poorly written school newspaper) and started to run with it… The whole incident really undermined the idea of pursuing understanding and equality and led to some people saying some very stupid things.

I think you mean that you want the right to tell us we suck, but you don’t want us to have the right to respond and tell you, no, you suck. That’s not freedom of speech. That’s actually kind of a Soviet (or now Putinesque, pun intended), concept of freedom of speech. You have the right to be a dick, and when we dick back we’re somehow bad people. I’m not sure what country you think you live in, but it’s not America.

for everyone saying people are being touchy and people are misquoting him and bla bla. its simple he does definitively say that if gays dont like his opinion, or advertising strategy or marketing ideas then the gays (specifically) not blacks, not chinese, not americans, not teabagger republicans. he specifies if the gays dont like it they can eat something else. that is the reason for me to be upset and for me to not ever buy their products again.

They’re more than right! I have a new respect for Barilla for this! Who wants to eat pasta with the image in their minds that it was bought from a company that touted a commercial with a couple of flaming men flailing their hands as they walk. Or a couple of dykes with buzz cuts? Yechh, no thanks. Seeing them puts the image in the heads of the viewer of them blowing each other/fucking each other in the ass/smooshing their vaginas together. No way. The govenrment is already bowing down to the gay agenda with statutes restricting gay insults, as well as this angering “Bisexual Visibility Day.” It’s SO annoying. They’re basically super-liberal democrats who bitch and make noise about their “rights.” Ugh.
Plus, I’m a born-again, Bible-believing Christian. Consider Leviticus 20:13, Mark 7:20-23, Romans 1:25-27, 1 Timothy 1:8-10, and the entire story of Sodom and Gomorrha. You want more tragedies? More anger/adumbration from God? Then stop this trash that you call homosexuality/equal rights/etc. We are living in a very prophetic time period, and the end is closer than you think. NOW IS THE TIME TO REPENT!! Ask for enlightenment from the Lord and pray for him to guide you! Submit to Christ and turn away from your idolatrous and sinful manner of life. Read the Bible!! You don’t have to live this way! REPENT NOW WHILE YOU CAN!!
Urra, Barilla!

Yes, it’s his company. But it’s our purchasing dollars and we have he right to say that we’re not going to purchase his product — and to follow through on it. We owe him nothing.

Calm down. A boycott is free speech too. No one is burning anyone’s house down.

nice they didn’t make fat jokes htere Becky- would you be moving on?

bigots always stick together- may your pasta be over-cooked-

banned from my house- in fact you can shove that pastra right up where the sun never shines!

Nope that was not mistranslated. But, in the realm of anti-gay rhetoric, I would assess someone saying “I favor same-sex marriage, but not same sex adoption” to be on the mild end of things. He doesn’t elaborate on things like “the danger of corrupting the children” or any of the other religious/psychosocial bs that you sometimes see.

It’s an opinion, one I don’t agree with, but not one that causes me to become overwhelmed with moral outrage.

Looks like the same account posting everything, then changing the name & deleting the comments. Very creepy, but apparently the case.

quite frankly… im incredibly confused by this whole thread and both the threads in that screengrab…. am i losing my mind here?…

lose

It is his company, right? He can say whatever he wants about its marketing policies. Freedom of speech is having your own opinion and having the right to express it. If some ultra-tolerant people think that all the others HAVE to see the things exactly the way they do, they’re nothing better than racists or sexists or whoever they hate. Simply because they’re doing exactly the same thing – they are being ignorant. Just in a different manner and way. Total hatred is bad, but positive discrimination and exaggeration (like putting black people into movies about Ancient Rome where they act as senators, I mean what the hell?). The bottom line is that discrimination is bad but some ‘tolerant’ people are making it all look totally absurd. They guy from the pasta company didn’t use any direct insults, he just expressed the marketing policies of his very own product.

Poor Kentucky is missing out on some great food, then.

Riiiight. Well, I’m sure we can all agree you all have too much time on your hands to make these charts to derail from the actual topic of the article, which is that we should all not eat inexpensive pasta, because an Italian man uses a traditional market strategy. Riiiiight.

No, that’s not what happened, actually.

Because saliva just doesn’t get the job done.

http://oi43.tinypic.com/flzou8.jpg

Proof that the same person is posting many comments (with different opinions) from the same account – then deleting them & changing the name.
Let’s move on from this pathetic person/people who are just trying to stir up controversy.
Pathetic.

Stop being so damn sensitive people….jeez. Everywhere you look, someone else is freakin offended by something stupid. Get over yourself and move on!!

Just remember: It takes a traditional woman to get you noodle wet.

guh, broken record!

I have a screencap proving the same acct posted the above 3 comments. Loser.

If you have a decent understanding of Italian, fine. Please let us know if the following quote (and translation) from John’s post is accurate:

“Non faremo pubblicità con omosessuali, perché a noi piace la famiglia tradizionale. Se i gay non sono d’accordo, possono sempre mangiare la pasta di un’altra marca.”

“We won’t include gays in our ads, because we like the traditional family. If gays don’t like it, they can always eat another brand of pasta.”

Well 4% of the population not eating his pasta is not going to break the company. It’s not my definition of traditional, it is there definition. Believe me there are many more issues to get excited about than this.

I still don’t see how one man’s marketing opinion changes the quality and value of a household commodity. It’s still cheap pasta. It hasn’t magically been changed into some sinister foodstuff that gives cancer.

It’s “Rosa Parks’s refusal” btw, not “Park’s”. Pot, kettle, black…

Matt and Judy have it just right. No one is asking for equal rights for a “lifestyle,” it’s to be respected as a human being by other human beings. Obviously you are NOT all for equal rights in *everything* if you don’t understand this simple fact. “respect the same in others”? No thanks – I DON”T need to respect bigotry.

So how many “opinions” does this account have? Because you use the same profile, then delete the source and change the names. Having fun trolling?
Or maybe just writing us from the mental hospital?

This is an Italian company – the CEO is right; if anyone doesn’t like the company they don’t have to purchase the product. They are aiming for traditional families just like other company’s aim for singles, blacks, gays or seniors. It is who they market to – nothing more and nothing less. Stop reading all this crap into a marketing statement. I am certainly not offended when Johnson Products markets their haircare to the black population nor am I offended when I see an ad from Travelocity about gay travel. I am not that demographic and I understand fully the concept of targeting your market. There are plenty of companies that make pasta – he’s right you can choose whatever pasta you want.

1. I notice trolls flock to basic, petty issues like pasta (or Chik-Fila-A or the Salvation Army) because most of them lack the intelligence or caring to deal with important matters.
2. All their whining isn’t going to change the fact that the idiotic Barilla guy went to a radio show, made these comments, and apparently believed they wouldn’t be translated to English.

Is this a total contradiction to your previous post, or is it sarcasm?/

One of my favorite pics of all time!! To read words from the father on the right about these three adorable kids is amazing. When I worry about the future, this picture helps!

At this very moment, people who teach English as a foreign language are throwing up their hands in despair.

How idiotic. Why is discrimination a “right?” Do you understand what rights are? Discrimination takes away others’ rights, nimrod.

Wow, what a dumbass! Barilla is going to loose TONS of business, good job in making your sales go down buddy! I have a “traditional” family, married, two kids, fluffy cat and all, but I will not feed my kids eating pasta made by bigots!

“So, what have you got against busses, Mrs. Parks?”

Well put. Take note of the ratio between people who switch to another brand and new supporters of Barilla products. I think that ratio will be 10 to 1 in favor of consumers who switch.

I’m all for equal rights in everything, but why the uproar? You want equal rights for your lifestyle, then respect the same in others. As he says, if you don’t like the statement, don’t buy it.

How are we attacking Barilla?

Comparing this silly pasta dillema to Rosa Parks is an insult to the Civil Rights movement. There’s one thing, in Mrs. Parks’ case to be denied a legally binding public service, like transit, and a stark other for a company, bound by the laws and actions of capitalism, to not stress homosexuality in its marketing scheme. The main difference, you have the choice not to eat the pasta and whine to whomever you’d like, whereas Rosa Parks, an actual activist, was restricted in her rights. You are shameful, honestly.

Um, not to be pedantic, but in this context, they don’t.

The First Amendment of the US Constitution protects the people from LAWS PASSED BY CONGRESS (and state/local legislatures, under the 14th) that restrict the freedom of speech, press and religion.. It has ZERO to do with the speech of individuals or corporations. That’s why it starts with “Congress shall pass no law”.

-If a company decides to fire you because it doesn’t like something you say, the 1st amendment has nothing to do with it.

-If people shun you for what you say in a blog post, that has nothing to do with the 1st amendment.

-if customers boycott your product because you say some hateful crap in an interview, the 1st amendment has NOTHING to do with it.

Also, and I’m saddened to have to remind anyone of this, but the 1st Amendment only applies to people in the United States. Italy has no such thing.

The troll brigade on this thread misses the point. No one is contesting Guido Barilla’s right to say stupid, bigoted things. The point is that everyone buys food products, and any company that sells a food product would be crazy to go out of their way to throw gratuitous insults like Barilla did if they want to remain a successful company. Watch Barilla sales start to go down. For every bigot who starts buying more Barilla products, there will be 10 consumers who will switch to another brand. Does that clear things up for you, troll brigade?

Oh yes, gay people who want to be treated equally are so annoying — and worst of all, it’s most of them!

Um, hello. When a person has a different opinion than a liberal, or agrees with a side of a social issue typically not in line with liberal beliefs, liberals do their best to destroy that person. Leaving them hateful mail/calls/online comments insulting everything from their beliefs to their weight or appearance, trying (and often succeeding) to ruin their business or get them fired, etc. etc. This has been demonstrated time and again. Liberals do not believe in tolerance or freedom of anything except to think and act exactly like them.

And I’m sorry, but disagreeing with a particular belief or action is not bigotry. It does not equal hate. People simply are not obligated to agree with whatever you choose to do in your life.

So silly. I may have to go buy some Barillo pasta just to make a point. Gays with agendas–which are most of them–just annoy the hell out of me!!!

Yup, back in the day, you would have been one of the bigoted idiots asking Rosa Parks, “So what do you have against busses, Mrs. Parks?”

Em, it’s not really a question that’s up for debate, it’s just fact of Italian demography.
I’ve never been to Idaho nor Montana but I’ve spent a lot of time in Italy. You probably weren’t paying attention or you were just sticking to the tourist spots where all the German and American tourists hang out… The ones that Italians avoid… Otherwise you’d see plenty of black people everyday.

I find it pretty hard to believe you’ve got more important things in life, when you have so much time to waste trolling just about every freaking comment in this section.

Please, please use the word “gay” that way, as much as possible yourself, Ally.

Hilarity, or a hate crime, will ensue.

Win, win, either way.

Well they must be hiding them well. I spent two months traveling around the country and I can practically count on my fingers the number of non-tourist black people I saw there. But perhaps you also think there are “a lot” of black people in Idaho and Montana too.

Aww…don’t go! Insensate bigotry is so CUTE! *Pinches ExNYer1995’s cheek*

Well, for me, saying that “we won’t include gay people in our advertising” is exclusionary. It’s like he’s saying gay people are so bad that we shouldn’t be seen. He has a right to send that message, but it’s a message I disagree with.

I also disagree with his statement that gay people shouldn’t be allowed to adopt children — although again, I believe he has a right to say it.

So if I say I really wish GAY just went back to its original meaning HAPPY, I wouldn’t be insulting any homosexuals/lesbians right?

Uh, how about we don’t use racial slurs when talking about social issues. What they said isn’t cool, but that’s no excuse for you to be racist.

So I can be facetious about homosexuals and lesbians and you some of you won’t think it’s insulting?

I’ve never seen any Barilla commercials. what stations are they typically on?

Duh.

It’s an analogy, pumpkin.

A very good sarcastic one, at that, if I do say so myself.

The same sort of dismissive statements about Rosa Park’s refusal to sit in the back of the bus were spouted by bigots and idiots back in the day.
I heard them and read them.

But the thick and bigoted never do seem to understand analogies, probably because of the logic part of analogy.

A lot, as in a significant ethnic minority. Some recently immigrated, some there for generations. There’s been black people in the region since Ancient Rome. Italy is just across the sea from Africa.

For someone who thinks that this is no big deal you certainly have spent a whole lot of time, words and CAPS commenting about it.

Oh, for heaven’s sake. Judybrowni wasn’t insulting black people, she was being facetious.

Certainly he is allowed to think and say whatever he wants. The fact that the company is private or that he is the CEO is really irrelevant: it does not absolve him of the consequences of his actions or words.

He sells his shitty pasta in the United States, and has a corporate offce in Illinois.
Where we have the right to not buy it.

I really wonder about people like you and your incessant consideration of sex with children and animals.

Not even close to being an insult to black women. Try again.

Sorry, but it’s a cop-out to support your statement by telling me to look for the support myself. You’ve also moved the goalposts. Before, you were saying that people’s First Amendment rights don’t mean anything. How does someone saying your comment was a “troll trope” constitute calling your First Amendment rights meaningless? And who told you to engage in hate speech?

Oh my god, you truly are the biggest idiot on the web! You can’t possibly be unaware that Catholic/Orthodox/Anglican/Episcopal churches are all CHRISTIAN, as in “followers of Jesus, the Christ”? Are you really trying to argue that this is CHRISTIAN and therefor has nothing to do with the Jew Jesus and what he thought/said/taught?

So it’s not okay to insult Homosexuals/Lesbians but it’s okay to insult BLACK WOMEN?

Believe it or not, some REPUBLICANS support Abortion, Women’s Rights, Immigration and Gun Control and some DEMOCRATS don’t!

Vaffanculo

And if PASTA is the only trouble in your life, you had better be THANKFUL. Because some of us have more important things on our minds!

He can say what ever wants to say, it is his rights. Even though I don’t agree with him he has his rights to belief whatever he wants. It is also my right not to purchase the product he makes. Simple. Lets move on and stop putting spotlight on things like this.

If you insist on being wrong, over and over, especially when that insistence is that some of us be treated as second-class citizens, you should expect some blowback, honeypie.
Go over to Red State: they love them some idiot bigots over there, they’ll worship your stupidity and intolerance.

What? Now you are picking on her because she doesn’t want to attack this man? Get serious!

In case you didn’t know there are BLACKS in Italy! So having a heterosexual Black family in one of the ads wouldn’t be surprising. Sorry, but my family has bigger issues than the words of a CEO!

Thank you for sanity, SMB. Also, to value a woman’s “central role in the family” is not sexist. It’s actually putting her very high up. Does the author know what “central” means?

allylloyd, where did any of these commenters say that anyone’s First Amendment rights don’t mean a thing, or that anyone has to say what they want to hear?

Would you say the same if he had made an anti-American statement? Or a racist statement (“no blacks in my traditional Italian ads)? What if he disparaged YOUR family? Would you still want to buy his pasta and say it’s no big deal?

no one asked you

by homophiliac I mean the opposite of homophobic.

Yeah, that’s why they’re falling all over themselves in Italy and in America trying to put out the fire and apologize profusely (see Barilla USA). It’s because they aren’t worried about pissing of gay people and their friends and families.

I definitely don’t agree with his remarks but I’d defend to death his right to speak out his beliefs and choose his preferred target market . (someone very important said it before me)

In case you didn’t know there are a lot of BLACK ITALIANS. As in America, they come from Africa. Only in Italy, they came of their own free will!!!

If by “homophiliac” you mean gay, I don’t think that will ever happen. Gay people don’t agree with discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Yes they would have.

Deforge, the people on this site like to ATTACK people. Trust me, some is going to tell you are really a homosexual/lesbian because you don’t think the RIGHT way!

Yes, yes I am a condescending asshat, but only to idiots who deserve it for thinking that this man’s freedom of speech was in any way breached. I’ll admit that there is a small minority of home schoolers who aren’t fundamentalist Bible thumpers who only want to shield their children from real science, real history and, in Navybrat’s case, Civics 101, but they are few and far between! Sorry if these facts piss you off. That wasn’t my intention, though I have to admit it was like icing on the cake.

YOU ALSO WIN A DOUBLE TROLL TROPE:

FOR DISTRACTION: A: “You should be discussing something else I deem more important.”

B: “I get to decide what’s important, when, because — no reason given.”

Being a gay myself, where in what he said should I be offended? I’m seriously looking hard and I can’t see why everyone is being soo hateful. He hasn’t said anything degrading or anti-gay, so what gives?

yup ya so right

I just want to see all the thumbs downs: as an American, I’d rather Americans be more concerned about American things like ACA (Health care laws), Immigration Laws, Gun Control, Education,, not what the CEO of an Italian company said. I know its funny but I care about the USA and its laws.

How do you figure that?

I see only one lunatic with the caps lock key permanently on and it is not judybrowni.

If the idiot had just kept his mouth shut, nobody would have cared either way. It’s not like people are looking at each individual company and saying, “huh, Barilla hasn’t used a gay couple in their ads yet!” (Ok, I’m sure there’s someone out there who is, but it’s not a large quantity of people. But if he had just not said anything nobody would have been any the wiser OR cared! Now the idiot’s gone and made a bunch of people mad for just being a jerk. Who cares what kind of families you use in your ads? You just don’t have to be an a$$ about it, just keep your stupid fat mouth shut.

A DOUBLE TROLL TROPE:

FOR DISTRACTION: A: “You should be discussing something else I deem important.”

B: “I get to decide what’s important, because — no reason given.”

When I live in Italy, I’ll worry about it. Right now, I’m concentrating on my home–THE USA!

Dude, you’ve kinda been all over the board.

That’s wonderful. But PASTA has nothing to do with more important topics like ACA (Health care), Immigration laws, Education and Gun Control!!!

That’s what I’ve been saying and I’m being attacked! In my opinion, if you wanted to eat pasta that badly, you’d make it yourself!

No worries allylloyd, people are so quick to jump on you if you feel different from them on this topic. Life goes on

no, that’s not what I said at all. You are actually just making an ass of yourself.

I’m very disappointed that Guido Barilla backtracked from his original comments. Another victim of the homophiliac cry-babies. He should have stuck by his guns. As for Aravosis’s sensibility: you wonder where the negative stereotypes come from? Exhibit A.

I CALL TROLL TROPE!

“You’re intolerant of someone’s intolerance! You must tolerate their intolerance because I said so, that’s why

So if you are an American, you can only use your First Amendment right if you “say the right thing”. Great, but this man is an Italian, so our First Amendment rights don’t mean a damn thing to him!

The man apologized. Who cares what kind of couples are in his commercials? You all are taking this 2 far.

Pretty sure this is an American company; if you mean talking about laws, prove it by doing something other than being on this pasta article.

Many people are against single people adopting a child

Yes, as an American, I’d rather AMERICANS talked about AMERICAN THINGS like ACA, Immigration Laws, Gun Control, Education, you know–those kind of things….

Who are you??? I am flummoxed by your ignorant statements and your apparent addiction to the caps lock key.

YOU PEOPLE–I’m not a teabagger or a Fundamental Christian–so just what TYPE of person am I?

There is no such thing as a “nuclear family” It is an outdated idea that was a ridiculous notion in the first place. Family means many different things.

(Unrelated: let me confess you my love)

A DOUBLE TROLL TROPE:
FOR DISTRACTION: A: “You should be discussing something else I deem important.”
B: “I get to decide what’s important, because — no reason given.”

How exactly are gay people “destroying everything in their path” by getting married, holding down a job, or serving openly in the military?

You all are over-reacting here. It would be amusing if it weren’t so judgmental and pathetic.

YES!! Gays act like they support everyhing and there isn’t anything or person they don’t like or support

So your interpretation of what Barillo means is more valid than Marion’s? How condescending! Your use of “Guido” is an indication of your immaturity. Marion’s statement is basically true. Your comment was basically crap.

I hope you are aware of how ignorant and idiotic you sound.

that’s one of the most bigoted things i’ve ever heard. Replace bigot with any other word…

Most of these are new accounts popping up constantly with strange usernames, which keep changing. I’ve given up on responding because people are just trolling at this point, few have real profiles. Also I think they are trying to make it seem like more people are on here by changing the names.

the pope told him

allylloyd, What the hell are you screaming about??? Yes, Jesus was Jewish. What does that have to do with anything?? Jeez, you need Valium or something buddy.

Then stop spewing it.

I used to buy Barilla Plus because it has a lot more protein and Omega-3s and lentils and stuff. If anyone else used to use that, there is at least one (Stop and Shop, I think) house brand copy. Probably others.
For other pastas including whole wheat etc., there are lots of alternative brands and there’s not much difference between them. Some are also from Italy. It’s a very simple product. No need to buy Barilla.

He must be a close friend.

what a low rent scumbag.

Oh please aren’t we ALL tired of the gay ‘offended” crap line! This BS is getting old! You fought the battles and won the war destroying everything in your path. So now go back to what you do and let the rest of us ALONE! We are TIRED of all the BULL CRAP!

What the hell are you talking about judybrowni…? you’re off point!, read the thread, I never said anything of such nonsense, your defensiveness has you grasping at straws! My initial comment never bashed either side, but that we all have the right to our opinions, and choices.
And to point out that we all exist by traditional means, unless you’re a robot!
Can’t you just be happy..?

Jesus Christ was a JEW and he followed JEWISH LAW. I said CHURCH (as in Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican/Episcopal) which ANNUL marriages. If your marriage is annulled (even if you have children) the marriage NEVER took place and you are free to REMARRY! That’s why he was able to remarry –he had his first marriage annulled!!!

It does make it right. It was like saying “I won’t use beagles in my dog food commercials. If the owners don’t like it, they are free to buy other dog food products.” What’s the difference? There isn’t any. he made no anti-gay slurs or expressed any problem with their rights. “Barilla added that he has “the utmost respect for any person, without distinction of any kind,” and “the greatest respect for gays and for the freedom of expression of anyone.” Does that strike you as anti-gay? I believe the person who wrote the article chose to not believe that Barilla isn’t a bigot. I also believe that, from what he wrote, that he is gay and not willing to give the benefit of the doubt as to Barilla’s stance on gay rights. So who is biased here?

Wow, about twenty or thirty times the comments a very highly commented on post normally gets here. Also, judging by the serial bigotry, obviously this was linked to by some right site. Probably some fundamentalist Christianist or teabagger site(s) I’m guessing. Anyone know how to figure out which one(s)? I’m guessing it’s not hard if you know how. Maybe an email alert to homophobes went out.
It’s all the same stuff we’ve heard over and over. Maybe it will die down some when all states have marriage equality. 13 states so far, but representing about a third of the US population. It’s only a matter of time of course.
On the other hand, the comments on Barilla’s FaceBook page are running maybe 50 to 1 against Barilla, in reply to the apology the Barilla PR writer put on their page.

So people here say this dope has the right to free speech and there’s nothing wrong with what he said. Then why is he apologizing if what he said is not wrong???

Hey, a bigot is a bigot is a bigot.

They’re always going to straight to the bigotry, perceived or imagined

Speak for yourself, Dbag. You seem not to have recovered from your past. That makes you the biggest loser?

Oh my god, you didn’t seriously say that, did you?

You know, “a lot of people are against” the roundness of Earth. Yes, there exists even a society which claims that our planet is, in fact, flat. What I mean is that “a lot of people thinking something” doesn’t necessarily mean that their belief is correct.

It takes a male and female to procreate? WTF????? So basically “traditional” relationships exist solely for procreation purposes??? Uh-huh. I am stunned.

Because people who think my brother and sister are second class citizens are equally as right as me?
Please go fuck yourself.

Wow Marion, I agree with you on this one.

Jesus wouldn’t agree. Tsk, tsk.

He said his company “won’t include gay people in our ads” and that he doesn’t think gay people should be able to adopt children. How is that not anti-gay?

As for “exactly what he said,” it’s right there in the article, which repeatedly quotes him.

Notice you didn’t quote the line about his objection to gay adopton.
Why not, wasn’t it conveeeenient?

Thank you :)

He has every right to his opinion, and the rest of the world has the right to ban his products if we decide to. Granted we can’t attack him for his beliefs, but we don’t have to support him or his business if he won’t support us. And as far as him saying that he is pro gay marriage and against gay adoption because it is against HIS familial beliefs is hypocritical. From what I could see, his company lawyer saw that he seriously screwed up and told him how to backtrack and try to save face. And as for me, I will never buy Barilla products again!

I was ready to hop on the barilla boycotting bandwagon until I read what he actually said.

“If gays like our pasta and our advertisings, they will eat our pasta; if they don’t like that, they will eat someone else’s pasta.”

he is simply stating the fact that some people will *chose* not to eat it if lack of gay advertisement bothers them. instead, this being spun as if he is *telling* people not to eat it if they don’t like his stance.

he’s entitled to his subjective view point. as long as he is not barring gays from working there and not funding anti-gay agenda, this is a non issue that is being spun otherwise by a sensationalist media.

that said, I cant think of a single company making ads featuring gay partners. i’m sure there are some, but obviously its not wide spread. for this to have even come up as a question it sounds like someone was trying to bait the issue to generate some corp-shaming which is a lucrative sell for the media lately.

also, “Barilla absolutely has the right to say that Barilla pasta is for straight people.” except no such thing was even said. this is slander and John Aravosis is an attention ore.

As you can see with the down votes, the only two people here with an open mind that actually want change for the better are getting down flagged. Damn it feels good to be a gangster. The rest of you. Spineless.

Shame on whoever translated this conversation!! It has been taken totally out of context!

You straight guys are always about the loads.

We intend to, with our gay dollars going to any other pasta maker.

You really don’t read a lot about science or adoption, do you?

Let me add something important about this happening: Guido Barilla likes to talk about what he consider a ‘traditional family’. Should I mention that he got divorced and married another woman afterwards? Oh, maybe now that he has even TWO traditional families (with children included) he can freely speak about gay people and their marriage.

Hate hate hate hate. BUT I have gay “friends”. and Black friends, so that’s cool right? Whiny ass bitch. Why the F are you even on here, if not to stir up hatred?

You didn’t see any anti-gay slurs from Barilla either. Unless you let your bias dictate what you interpret a person says.

Barilla is a bigot because he wants the nuclear family in his advertising?? He didn’t say one thing about being anti-gay. In fact, he said quite the opposite. But I doubt if you checked the facts and did your own research here. Just go along with all of the rest of the uninformed commenters.

Wisdom from the drive by 18 comments newbe.

It’s official- this place is crazy land. Comments sections are supposed to help people unite and exchange ideas. We COULD actually do something of substance maybe work together but It’s obvious no way is that possible yet.There was a time when people were open to each other and didn’t consider every single opinion of theirs to be an actual fact. Perception is not reality, reality is fucking reality. There’s no way everybody can be right about everything all the time, how bout we all agree we shoot 50/50 and try being humble? It looks sad seeing the same tired old fight among us tie after time and adults should know better by now.

By all means buy from one of those fine Italian pasta makers! Lol!!

Exactly! He also said that he has no problems with gay lifestyles and rights. No-one wants to hear that, though.

Wow, you sure misinterpreted that statement.

Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera reported that two other pasta manufacturers are now posting on their company sites that everyone is included in their family and that families are not just the blinkered 1950;s style family; It will be interesting to see what advertising comes from all this. Corriere posted some of the pro-gay or anti-Barrilla ads that have been put on facebook. Thom Allen waayyy up the line from here has posted one of the new boxes and the link.

U B inchoate.

Where did you learn that freedom of speech means freedom from harassment or consequenceS? Let me guess, HOME SKOOLED?

You should read the Bible sometime, it’s pretty racy what with all the God- approved wives and concubines.
And incest!

Maybe those employees should take it up with the CEO, who chooses to diminish their brand by being controversial. You act as if no religious groups boycott certain brands for being pro-gay.

He most certainly is free to think and express anything he wants to but he’s not free to expect that there will be no consequences when he says he’s against gay adoption any more than he would be free to expect no consequences if he were to express an opinion that black people shouldn’t adopt or if he were to say Jews shouldn’t be allowed to adopt or Christians shouldn’t be able to adopt. Had he said that he didn’t believe that Christians should be allowed to adopt I guarantee that those screaming “FREE SPEECH!” would be DEMANDING a boycott and his head on a plate.

Do you respect ALL opinions? Do you respect the opinions of racists? Misogynists? Anti-Semites? Anti-Italians? Or do you just respect the opinions that don’t negatively target you specifically?

I agree with you.

These are stupid examples.Neither a child nor an animal is capable of consent.

TOO LATE!

A double Troll Trope.
A: “You’re intolerant of someone’s intolerance! You must tolerate their intolerance because I said so, that’s why.”
B: “I get to decide what’s important, because — no reason given.”

Ditto!!!! I for one will never buy their products again. Sickening!!

Prejudice in any forum is wrong!

So he doesn’t want gays in his advertisement. He has that right. You can’t force people to think the way you want them to. He is entitled to advertise his product any way he wants. If he wants families, that’s his right. If he wanted gay families, that would also be his choice. He didn’t “bash” gays, and expressed that he is not against gay rights. What do want him to do, kiss your asses? Find something important to get upset about. Gay rights are improving all of the time. Stop telling people to boycott companies that don’t support gay rights. The only people that get hurt if a company like Barilla or Chik-Fil-A isn’t a big supporter of gay rights are the employees trying to make money in a really crappy economy.

There are none so blind as those who would be willfully blind, bigoted, and stupid.

If a married “straight man” is wanting to fool around with another man then he obviously isn’t “straight” is he?
It’s a family owned company that is headed by a man that believes in traditional family values so if they don’t want to portray homosexuals in their ads then that is their right.

He suggests gays can eat ‘another brand of pasta’? That can be arranged.

I am so thankful we have an English to Stupid translator here to bless us with her ignorance.

Yes, he is free to express his own opinions without having to put up with this harassment. Last I heard, freedom of speech is still an option. This should never have been an issue. There are much more important issues in this country that need to be addressed.

Translation: it’s no skin off my nose if gays are second-class citizens in this country. In fact, I prefer it that way.

Same right back at you, bucko.

You just did.

this translation is totally wrong.
who wrote this totally wanted to make up a scandal, and that’s not right because you totally changed the meaning if what he said.
i’m italian, born and raised, and what he meant is that his company’s image is the traditional italian family where the woman is the heart of the house, which has the pride to cook every day for her kids.
he said that this is his company’s image, this his what they’ve been referring at for years. also because Barilla is a family conducted company. that’s just how it is.
he said that he would not do anything else. when he has been prompted and provoked by the journalist, he said that he’s ok with gay marriage, because it has to do with people that want to get together.
so, i totally don’t understand why do you wanna make a case that DOES NOT EXIST!
he said that everybody in his life can do whatever. everybody is free, he said.
he’s is personally pro gay marriage but against gay adoption, but hey, isn’t he free to think and believe in what he wants?
he’s free to think, and you’re are certainly not entitled to offend him like you did!

LEARN HOW TO RESPECT OTHER OPINIONS IF YOU WANNA BE RESPECTED!

Go hug a tree.

You should cherish your life. Death is not a solution to anything. The struggle continues even as the dead are not a part of it. Living people will always be tortured.

its dick heads like YOU that cause trouble, If ” straight ” people can get married, why can’t gay people ? we are human, we pay taxes. Love is the main thing. if Marriage is between a man and a woman, how come so many ” straight ” men want to fool around with other men ? the woman can’t be good enough. wake up. times are changing.

Who has suffered the most. Someone who was killed or someone who was tortured? The person who was killed got off easy. They weren’t left with a lifetime of psychological damage. Factually, people that live, suffer far more than people who are dead. I have been to Laramie to pay tribute to Matthew. Have you?

You could say we’re both arguing over a pasta CEO’s opinions on this page. Does that mean we do nothing outside of this? No, but here we are on a petty comment board. Just pointing out that you spend time on here bashing others doesn’t mean you do nothing else. It means you waste an awful lot of time on here.

Well, what I do for a living, very specifically, is travel the country advocating for homeless people, feeding them, and outing toxic waste dumps in residential neighborhoods that have left people with cancer, chrohn’s, fibro, and other unexplained illnesses. I have helped thousands of people. There is most certainly no issue with my empathy or sympathy mechanisms. I am embarrassed by my own community. Even sitting her trying to fight for the community to improve itself I am getting bullied. Look at all the down flags on my posts. You fight for one thing, not gay rights, but your own uneducated opinions and your right to hurt people and call it “boycott.”

Good comment… they are just like any other ppl out there… just finding a reason to bitch and conplain… yeah yall can go suck on each others cocks or munch on other carpets but leave this man alone!!!

Ah, the old “I apologize if YOU were offended,” non-apology, thus making it my fault.

On the other hand, he is free to tell his customers whatever he wants, just as they are free to go buy another pasta.

Who gives two flying fucks if he is against gays? I dont oppose to them being in a relationship thats their own disgusting choice… but when it comes down to marriage… i will not vote or support it. Marriage is when a man and a woman become one. Not same sex… barilla can say and express what he wants to and he has enough money to have the say so that gays will not be in his advertising because i wouldnt want them in my advertising!!! What message would that send to children? Keep it traditional barilla!!! U have my support 100%!!!

Well, since I speak and write English…as do most on this blog, if there’s an insult in another language you might want to translate it for us, before you go off on a rant.
Sorry, but I forgot to study Italian in case, one day, somebody would maybe write what might be an insult in that language on a political blog.
Silly me.

Says the pot to the kettle…

So by your own statement this boycott isn’t bullying at all, (impressive about face from your other comments) the LGBT communicty is just following his instructions to not buy his product.
Still technically a boycott, but you’ve just pointed out that anyone crying about the gays being mean or bullying are wrong since Guido called for the boycott himself.

As for the names you’ve been called, I’m going to give you the same answer that Rupert Murdock received when he Tweeted: “Seems impossible to have civilised debate on twitter. Ignorant,vicious abuse lowers whole society, maybe shows real social decay.”

– I find that in life one reaps what one sows…

We’re allowed to say whatever we like about him, and we’re allowed to dump his company’s product because we don’t want to support an asshole.

Maybe you have problems empathizing with others. You are not the only person struggling

I love an asshole troll. Good on ya! You can eat whatever shit lardass pasta you like.

All caps, no less your spittal rant, make you sound crazy.
You might want to step back from that.

Sure he is. Nobody says he can’t. Most of us are very glad he has; we like knowing who/what we’re dealing with. Or declining to deal with, as the case may be.

I need to stock up on his pasta.

Who you have sex with is a choice. (except of course rape)
What skin color you are born with is not a choice.

Why is it that people are NOT free to reject what they see as a bad choice?

Would it be ok for him to tell pedophiles to go buy some other pasta?
God made them desire to have sex with children. RIGHT?

Or did the pedophile make a CHOICE?

What about people who have sex with horses.
God made them desire to have sex with horses. RIGHT?

Or did they too make a CHOICE?

I met a gay man who turned straight. I asked him why?
He flat out told me the people he was exposed to as a child
did not let him know it was OK to be straight.

Who you have sex with is a CHOICE.

Everyone has the right to accept or reject other peoples CHOICES.

Or do they?

Climb down off your cross, Jesus.
There is no martyr contest, where you get to rank those who deserve civil rights.
There are civil rights enough for everyone, but only if we fight for those who are being denied.

Another loss for the LGBT community. This is sad.

See, the guy was forced to say something he didn’t mean to make a bunch of people happy. Great job. An apology from Barilla was a loss for the community. You are just too ignorant to see it.

I’ll be buying more Barilla in the light of these comments. Couldn’t agree more with him.

WOW SOME OF THE RACIST ASS PEOPLE I KNOW ARE FAGS AND LESBIANS YET YOU BASE YOUR NEED FOR RIGHTS ON THE BACKS OF THE PEOPLE THAT BUILT THIS COUNTRY. NOT EVERYONE NEEDS TO ACCEPT YOU TAKING DICK UP THE ASS OR STRAP ONS. SIMPLY PUT YOUR RUN IS OVER AND THINGS ARE GOING TO BLOW UP IN YOUR FACE IF YOU KEEP THE BULLSHIT GOING….

Really getting bored of your multiple accounts, changing your name and style of writing just to troll. 5 sec ago you were “Marion.” You were already called out by the moderator. Please go away

‘Vafanapoli’. Used at the end of the paragraph beginning with the words ‘yeah, freedom of expression.’ His use of a language other than English must have thrown you.

Barilla US apologizes on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BarillaUS/posts/592044824175763

Anyway,Real Gays DO NOT EAT Pasta! remember boys let’s keep those 6pack abs!!

judybrowni- No one saying “this is an overreaction” is trying to marginalize the LGBT community in its purpose and right to exist. I think the passions here are becoming more intense(and rude) because all the sides of the debate feel they’re talking to a wall, and people are not putting in the effort to try and understand. But different environment foster different opinions and worldviews and all of them, except for the trolls, are here for a reason and it’s important to know worldviews change over time and experience. Fact is this is yet another dumb comment to be asterisked on the long timeline of American evolution and the LGBT’s slow progression up the full acceptance ladder. If you know history you know socially every generation has its main struggle and the people who are struggling, and history proves that perseverance and dignity are the activating ingredient that gets them there. No opinion is really wrong they’re just held from completely different perspectives. It’s o.k to be upset by this but name calling is just old by now

And heterosexuals don’t do the same to prostitutes and underage runaways? News to me.

There are MANY slurs against southerners and Neapolitans in particular in Italy. Discrimination against poor southerners trying to make a new life in the richer north is still very common. Racial slurs against Neapolitans are interchangeable with those for Africans, and the one our talented author chose to use equates being Neapolitan with engaging in anal sex. Maybe you guys need to learn something about Italy.

Not really. That’s when the church cemented its power over all aspects of life and politics.

There was also a merger of lesbian rights with separatist feminism in the 70s. So things got a bit radical then. It was only with the AIDS crisis in the 80s that something like a combined community emerged again.

Exactly Judy.

If you’re accurate, without commentary in your headline, you won’t cause controversy and get a bunch of hits. I don’t think this guy would put a single person in the ads or probably even a childless couple or an older couple. They clearly see the nuclear family as their brand target market.

Expecting people not to be bigots is an “absurdly high moral standard”? And who the heck used an obscenity directed at the people of Naples?

telling me i would never be shown in one of their commercials because i
dont fit their image is an asshole thing to say. but then telling me if i
dont like it then eat something else means im not even good enough to
be his customer so he can fuck off and die.

It is also Gay’s right to refuse to buy his product because they feel he has demeaned or insulted them. So your statement goes both ways.

Right. He didn’t say gays should eat someone’s else’s pasta (as the headline says), he says if people don’t like the fact that he has “tradition” (heterosexual) families in his ads they can eat someone elses’s pasta. Pretty much he’s saying that those who don’t like his advertising policy don’t have to buy his product, which is a lot different than saying he doesn’t want gay customers. It doesn’t make such an exciting headline, but it is more accurate.

Hey dude, you could always just ignore the article and take up NO opinion idiot. You don’t HAVE to respond at all, and gays aren’t going to attack you for it, just don’t be a total ass and respond to it with stuff that just sounds like hate mongering. Btw, I am a straight guy, but I CHOSE to support the gays in this endeavor because I think they have a right. If you don’t support either side just stay out of it. Your like the guy who jumps in the middle of an argument for no reason cept just to get attention.

As long as we’re holding obscure people in faraway countries to absurdly high moral standards, it’s no more appropriate, and perhaps less so, for you to use an obscenity directed at the people of Naples. Anti-southern bigotry does have a long and tense history in Italy.

It’s “you’re.”

No. It’s just that society has evolved a lot over the years so the concept of what ‘traditional’ means changes with it. Eg – fifty years ago, ‘traditional’ meant a wife staying at home to look after the children. Today, women also work. Divorce rates too have gone up. Same sex marriage in time will impact on the concept of tradition. The concept of ‘traditional’ moves with the times so describing a ‘traditional’ family is basically redundant. No need to insult. K?

Tolerance (definition: a fair, objective, and permissive attitude toward those whose opinions, practices, race, religion, nationality, etc., differ from
one’s own; freedom from bigotry) is a two way street. I am a very tolerant person. I don’t care what you believe. You can scream your view to the heavens. In fact, I will fight for you to scream those views. However what I DO have objection to is them trying to pass LAWS to hurt the LGBT community and degrade them into something sub-human. This is rather unconstitutional in the basic sense of the law and against universal human rights. I wouldn’t make it so that YOU couldn’t stand at your dying loved one’s side in the ER… I won’t make them sit outside in the waiting room either! It’s wrong on a basic human level. Everyone, regardless of race, creed, melatonin concentration, sexuality or gender orientation, is a human being. Treat them as such!

Well,of course he’d say that gay people were still welcome to buy his products! Although gays aren’t good enough to be represented in his advertising, being so non-traditional and all, he is happy to take all that traditional gay money every day of the week!

As I said, here is someone acting like the LGBT community has been enslaved. Like you would really know what it feels like to be whipped and forced into labor. Wow.

Yeah, and what the fuck did a seat on the bus have to do with Civil rights?
Rosa Parks was overreacting.

I hope he also applies that thinking to gay and pro-gay people not buying his products. He should be tolerant when that happens.

I thought it was funny

yyyyyeah, I really tbh think it’s blown waaaay outta proportion too. The CEO didn’t say Barilla was for straight people – he said that he wanted to include ‘traditional families’ (whatever the hell that’s supposed to mean, as I think the ‘traditional’ concept is bull anyways) only in his adverts. I’m assuming he means one-man-one-woman marriages, and if that’s what he wants to do, he has the right as it’s his decision – even if some people don’t like it. He did say gay people were still welcome to buy his products – or not, as they chose, so therefore, he can’t be interpreted as saying that Barilla is for straight people. As for him being against gay adoption – it’s irrelevant. Gay adoption has nothing to do with the matter at hand.

Be prepared for the mob, 3…2….

Another article where basically if you don’t jump on board the homo bandwagon you just get branded a phobe and boycotted. He didn’t come out and say burn in hell or call them abominations or anything. Sheesh. Overreaction.

Yeah, because Rosa Parks refusing to go to the back of the bus didn’t accomplish anything.

Just ask President Barack Obama.

Please decide which of your three names you want to use and stick to it.

Barilla’s latest product:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=573945765974220&set=a.196549437047190.41358.160389977329803&type=1&theater

I don’t hate anyone. But I do hate sin. I know you are offended my my calling it what it is… but I call a horse, a horse. God created all of us, but He gives us the freedom to make the choices we do in life. We’re all just trying to do the best we can with the life we’ve been given. So YOU stop the hate, just because I don’t agree with your lifestyle. Peace.

His name actually IS Guido. The only outrage here is the stupid thing the guy said.

” Look it up and do some research.” eh?

Well I suppose you could say I did that for the three years it took to get a degree in American History.

I didn’t say anything about bad or good, just conservative and liberal, and the affilitions of the current two majour parties in the US have indeed swapped.

But of course you know that (or you really are clueless) toddle off beneath your bridge now, there’s a love. :)

It’s his company and his choice just like it’s my choice to no longer buy Barilla pasta.

What is it with these posters who can’t comprehend that the guy’s NAME IS GUIDO. Nobody is tossing around slurs by calling him by his given name.

“Then the white cis gay moral knights blogged his thoughts with gleeful pride, for today was a good day that no asexual talks down to his ego. He snapped back feeling how proud he was of basing his assumption for the lesser heterosexuals and bisexuals, since they truly are the breeding pool of hate and STD’s (especially those dirty bisexuals).”

Notice how these political boycotts don’t make a dent in sales – because educated people are already avoiding this crap.

genius.

Yes, Barilla! Way to not be steamrolled by such horrendous, oppressive ideas like equality, inclusion and kindness! That damn leftist agenda….they just think we should be kind to, oh I don’t know, all humans, or something. That’s lame. By all means, exercise your right to be hateful and bigoted! Its a worthy use of your time and influence, and remember: Even if this unpleasant look into your personality and business dealings makes enough of an impact to deeply hurt your earnings and your brand name, you have other hateful bigots, like chickadee3, standing right there with you.

see that is more ignorant than anything the barillo guy said. good grief

Makes sense; members of the majority are usually killed in hate crimes…

That’s why the CEO didn’t try to apologize and “Clean up” his mistake, right? Oh wait . . .

LOL… And only gays eat organic? Is that what you’re saying here? Talk about stereotyping, sheesh!

I suppose divorced and broken homes are normal now-a-days. Being a bigot isn’t normal behavior of the decent human being. I’m saddened you can’t see that.

to be completely honest I don’t see the big deal. he said that he will use a traditional family in his advertisments not that all gay people should burn in hell or anything like that. everybody including gay( and straight ) people are still entitled to their opinion and he wants too use a “traditional” family inhis commercials that’s his perogitive. and personally if lets say, poptarts decided they were only gonna use gay couples In their commercials I wouldn stop eating poptarts. people should stop being so sensitive

People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.

Nope, sorry…. It’s you liberals who espouse the whole “tolerance” thing, and guess what? You’re the absolute WORST at tolerating alternative viewpoints. Like the one that says homosexuality is Wrong. Pot, meet kettle.

The right can always count on its base to eat poisonous crap like McDonald’s, Coca Cola, Chik Fil A, Barilla, Domino’s Pizza, etc. And you’re proud of that?

Gay people don’t breed, at least we don’t breed people like you.

I don’t see the relevance, she stood up to inequality, but we still have busses (a product) now and the driver I’m sure didn’t loose his job (employment). So I’m not sure what parallels you’re trying to draw with Rosa Parks.

Come on, guys. After all, yesterday was national punctuation day. Can’t we just let the holiday linger a little bit?

And, the period goes inside the quote at the end of the sentence, don’t is the hyphenated contraction of “do not,” annnnnnnnnnnnnnd your context sucks.

(Although it might make more sense if you’d used the word “content.”)

Bitch be cray at this point.

just like what happened to Chick-fil– oh, wait, nope, that didn’t happen. the world is bigger than we gay people and our friends. the sooner we accept that and get over the fact that not everybody is gonna like us, the faster we can organize internally, and continue to make strides.

just look at Chick-fil-a and Gay Marriage rights…sitting side by side in this big ole country of ours.

I’m not a Repub but I’m a Libertarian. And I’ll tell you something else: I don’t need to get away from myself. I like myself. In fact, I LIKE myself so much that I don’t have to scream “HATE!” and “DISCRIMINATION!” and “OPPRESSION!” and see myself as a victim every time someone expresses a view that’s different than mine.

Your brother dating anyone?

You only have to be tolerant of people who have the same beliefs as you. (Regardless of whether your belief is that being gay is “ok” or “wrong.”) ;-)

You dont start a sentence with ”and”. If you are going to attack me then dont aim for my spelling try some context clues.

Dirty cis gender that doesn’t check her privileges.

Boycotting a product doesn’t hurt the CEO do you have any idea how much money a CEO makes! It hurts the factory workers, the farmers & the economic ecosystem that rotates around it. Gay power is now just about idle “concerns” which make no impact improving the situation for gays anywhere. You wanna improve the lives of queers, pasta boycotting isn’t the start, you’re going to remove money from a system that probably already funds queers to live out their lives happily due to pasta money. Attack the person not the product because it really is peoples livelihoods you’re playing with. Be smart and think holistically about a situation not just the obvious reactionary approach.

FINE WITH ME- THERE IS MUCH BETTER PASTA OUT THERE- SO ACTUALLY SHUV YOUR SPAGETTI WHERE THE SUN DOESN’T SHINE!

Obvious troll is obvious, and he also can’t spell.