color:#3C3C3C”>A few weeks ago, before I could catch myself, I said something about missing the “good old days” of beer commercials.


color:#3C3C3C”>My comment stemmed from a commercial in which Matt Damon told me I should drink Stella Artois (which I already do) to save the planet. I found the suggestion condescending and a little aggravating. I don’t drink beer to conserve the Earth’s water supply; I drink it because it tastes good and makes me feel happy.  


color:#3C3C3C”>Mr. Damon’s lecture triggered an irrational feeling: nostalgia. It made me long for simpler, merrier, classier times when beer companies tried to market to me by having Rodney Dangerfield peel his face off.

 

 

 


color:#3C3C3C”>Stella is hardly alone. It seems like every brewing company today is trying to sell us beer through political messaging, some subtle, some not so subtle. (Beer companies are no doubt reacting to our culture’s unhealthy obsession with politics.)


color:#3C3C3C”>So when I saw Heineken had made a “political commercial,” I was preparing to unleash on the maker of this tasty pale lager. Alas, after watching the commercial, I cannot.


color:#3C3C3C”>The commercial is quite lovely. Watch for yourself:

 

 

 


color:#3C3C3C”>What separates Heineken’s commercial from the others is that it’s not preaching politics to us; it’s essentially telling people to get over their politics.

You disagree on climate change and transgender issues? Okay. Now drink a beer and talk to each other.


color:#3C3C3C”>It’s a brave and important message. Heineken is reminding us to close our mouths and listen to one another instead of incessantly squabbling over the oh-so-important issues of today that divide us.


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color:#3C3C3C”>[Image Credit: Heineken/YouTube]
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