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Showing posts from April, 2015

South Dakota is now better than Mars?

My home state, the state of South Dakota, will be kicking off a new, well-intentioned media campaign to dispel the popular image that South Dakota is a desolate no-man’s land devoid of cultural and/or recreational activities. The television/internet spots open with the narration: "Mars…the air: not breathable. The surface: cold and barren. But thousands are lining up for a chance to go and never come back." Not too bad…yet. After the obligatory postcard pictures of the state, the narration continues with a tagline that is supposed to take advantage of the trending topic of the exploration and colonization of Mars: "South Dakota. Progressive. Productive. And abundant in oxygen. Why die on Mars when you can live in South Dakota?" The advertisement closes with the words: "South Dakota. Plenty of jobs. Plenty of air." Well, you know what they say about where using good intentions as paving stones leads… As