Freedom of Choice

This is not the van I sawYesterday I got off work a little early to drive down to Bloomington on some non-Swedish furniture business. As I hit the street, it was south Sixth street between Nicolet and Marquette, I did a double take as some large truck, a 20 footer, headed east with me. It had a huge photo mural of an aborted foetus on it with some slogans. It followed traffic, and me, most of the five blocks to my garage. It was disconcerting.
When I got home last evening I told Renee about it. She had seen it also while dining on the patio of the Hard Rock a block further west. She and her lunch companion discussed it briefly, got the opinion of the server on how it was affecting the outside wait staff and then they dropped the topic to continue their meal. Renee says that the truck was circling and crossed behind her companion about every six or seven minutes through the meal. It was distracting, but not worth bringing it to the attenditon of the other person. Why upset two lunches? It turns out there were four trucks downtown yesterday. Each with a different graphic image and followed by a carload of private security. One of the other three had been crossing behind Renee on Hennepin every six or seven minutes and her friend had likewise decided not to mention it. Why upset two lunches?
I have seen a few truck billboards before. They are generally a drag. They go slow, reduce visibility and they create a distraction for other drivers. If you were thinking about building one and driving it around please reconsider. Whatever your product or position it is not a good way to get the message out. Perhaps you could try skywriting instead.