Re: VIC: Ad portrays trains as loser's transport!

[Chris Brownbill <cbrnbill@enternet.com.au>]

Peter Parker wrote:
> 
> Heard a road safety ad on commercial radio last night.
> 
snip
> 
> I think the train companies and public transport advocates would
> be fully entitled to take legal action to get this defamatory ad off the
> air.
> 
> Peter
> 

I saw it last night - its not defamatory and FACTS wouldn't give you a second
hearing.  Advocates of Public Tansport might not like the insinuations, but you
cant deny that you can wait 30 mins for a train and it usually DOES take longer
to get home at night by PT than driving.

To put the shoe on the other foot though - what about public transit advocates
funding ads that highlight the downsides of driving - Cost, Risk of
Accident/Injury, Risk of financial penalties (speeding/parking fines),
stress/road rage, longer journey times in traffic jams etc.  It is just as easy
to portray the car driver as the small-dicked socially inadequate selfish loser
who uses his car as a surrogate personality, and that would be just as valid
legally as the current ads - in the other direction.  The real question we as
voters must answer is not about the legality of the current ads, but why are our
taxes funding the current ads and not ones which put the contrary view.