The Hershey's Corporation has placed in the market a breath mint under the name "Ice Breakers". What makes this breath mint particularly interesting is the packaging. The mint flavoring is contained within two squares of paper vacuum sealed together. (OK - maybe they aren't technically vacuum sealed, but that is how it looks). Here is the address of a link to two pictures of the breath mint from the website of Miami radio station Power 96. (Since it's my first time trying to post a link on this blog, it obviously isn't working - I'll get better at it).
http://power96.com/index.php?page=311
Admit it, it looks like drugs. You can freely admit that here, it's OK.
Can't you just hear the protests starting? I can! "Some kid is going to misconstrue actual drugs for Ice Breakers, and take them, with injurious, and possibly fatal results". (I know because we already heard this once before with candy cigarettes). The only difference is that unlike in the past, where cigarette companies may have owned parts or all of companies that produced candy, Hershey's doesn't make and sell illicit drugs. (Please note - I didn't actually investigate the corporate ownership of all of the candy companies that formerly sold candy cigarettes, I am just trying to make a point). Hershey's has found a nice, and profitable, niche in actually selling candy.
Now I understand the argument that selling candy cigarettes to children may give them the illusion about how cool it was to be seen with a cigarette, and it might have made the decision to smoke easier as those children aged. I would hesitate to use that argument in this case. Do people actually believe that teenagers may want to carry around Ice Breakers so that they look cool, and that it might make it easier psychologically for those kids to move on to actual drugs? I would think not.
So the main problem that people might have with Ice Breakers is that unwitting children might mistake them for drugs. Now, I am all for the protection of our young, innocent children, but would a protest of Hershey's lead to protection of our children in this case? I don't think so. Children, if they are going to be exposed to drugs and drug use in their lifetime are not going to be exposed because of the packaging of Ice Breakers. They are going to be exposed to drugs because of their family, friends, neighborhoods and generally through people and places they see everyday. Yes, I wrote "Family". An astronomically high percentage of children start using drugs because they see their parents using, or because they find their parents' stash or because they hear their parents or older siblings glorifying drug use. (Please note that I did not ask every drug user why and where they first started using).
The best way to protect your children is to speak to them about drugs like they are Chicago mayoral voters - early and often. It is incumbent upon you, as parents (or grandparents or aunts and uncles) to give as much information as you can, and to keep them out of situations where drugs may be present. Does this always work? No. Is any system perfect? No. But it starts with you. Show them the way you want them to grow up, teach them how to grow up and hope for the best. Now, I have no children of my own, and I do not profess to be an expert on child rearing as I haven't even completely matured myself. Nevertheless, I know that this starts at home, not with protests of Ice Breakers.
Is it possible that some Hershey's marketing guru said, "Hey, kids think drugs are cool so let's market this new packaging to look like drugs. Kids and teenagers will eat it up." If so, then we have some sick bastards working in marketing and this entire entry was a waste of my time. My first impression is that such a scenario did not occur. I can't imagine that druggies are a big market for Hershey's - at least not for mints. I can only assume that the packaging allows for some type of "release" of the freshening elements of the mint as the paper dissolves. (Again, just a guess, I am not an scientist). If it isn't the former, then we should not protest against Hershey's simply for selling Ice Breakers.
The answer, as the answer always should be in a market society, is don't buy it. If enough people do not buy the Ice Breakers in this packaging, it will soon exit the market, costing too much money to produce while reaping little revenue from sales. A company-wide protest is too much. Why do I say this? (Some may ask the question differently - what is the entire point of this blog entry)? Well, I wrote this entire entry to say this ...
Why should we punish legitimate business entities for legitimate products, because others in our society place illegal and/or dangerous items into the marketplace? A protest, or even public outcry, over this product will harm the legitimate business, Hershey's, without affecting the illegal businesses, the drug dealers, one iota. Such a protest will not take any drugs off our streets and away from our children. Such a protest will in effect act as a type of trade infringement case against Hershey's for daring to use packaging similar to illicit drug packaging. Why do we give so much power to the illegal businesses while regulating the legal businesses?
Protests and public outcry should be reserved for companies whose actual product does harm our children, whether through the size of the objects (choking hazards), the elements in the product (lead paint) or worse (illegal drugs themselves). Ice Breakers themselves do not do any harm to the users.
Of course, I haven't actually tried Ice Breakers in this form. They could simply be horrible and off the market in two months. That, is how the market system is supposed to work.
[Ed. Note - Unless it is contained in any mutual or insurance funds that I own, I do not have an ownership interest in Hershey's Corporation].
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