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Passengers take fun out of Southwest's supermodel airplane
Try to have a little bit of fun and those pesky passengers get all bent out of shape. Last month, Southwest Airlines joined up with Sports Illustrated to paint the side of one of their Boeing 737s with the image of Bar Rafaeli, an Israeli supermodel, in a white, two-piece swimsuit. It's a brief promotion aimed at promoting the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition and tickle a few passengers who happen to randomly be riding on (or near) the aircraft. Wouldn't your day get instantly better if you were waiting to take off at 7AM and saw a giant supermodel taxi past you?
But not everyone is as tickled as we are. A slew of passengers, many on Southwest's corporate blog are complaining about the paint job, equating the image to "soft porn." They want it taken down.
Think they're being ridiculous? Check out the gallery below. Think they're right? Read on:
Gallery: Southwest and Bar Refaeli
Have you ever seen soft porn? It doesn't look like this. Women less adorned are all around us, from billboards in New York City to The Sears Catalogue to, oh, I don't know, THE BEACH.
Southwest is just having a little bit of fun turning heads in the direction of their aircraft, but if you can't stand the sight of a pretty Israeli woman, cover your eyes or stop flying for the next couple of months until they repaint her. The promotion only lasts a few more weeks.
Southwest is just having a little bit of fun turning heads in the direction of their aircraft, but if you can't stand the sight of a pretty Israeli woman, cover your eyes or stop flying for the next couple of months until they repaint her. The promotion only lasts a few more weeks.
Reader Comments (Page 3 of 30)
Bob Mar 5th 2009 2:20PM
Soft porn? Absolutely not! A work of art! Yes
As already stated, you see more at the beach. People have to stop living life looking for things to be offended by. I also thing some of the protest is not genuine but people acting the way they think other people would expect them too. I would hate to be the one who has to paint over it.
Bob Mar 5th 2009 2:42PM
It is in very poor taste and not to be had. What is wrong with you that you don't understand this? Would you want that to be your wife, mother, or daughter on the side of the plane? Grow up! Decent people are offended even if it is not soft porn. You have very low standards. That's why you think you think the way you do. I have higher standards and values in life than you.
christopher_Ciconte@hotmail.com Mar 5th 2009 3:38PM
yes I would like this to be my wife!
BobSpelledBackwards Mar 5th 2009 8:24PM
I would have no problem if it were my wife or daughter. This woman made a free choice to be a model and appear in an advertisement wearing a swimsuit. I know that free choice is out of fashion right now, but there is still nothing wrong with this.
les Mar 6th 2009 7:38AM
I don't think it's soft porn, but it's stupid.
Michael Mar 5th 2009 5:57PM
Hey Bob, #21
Sir you need a good piece of *ss. Maybe if your wife looked like that you wouldn't be the worthless piece of nothing that you are.
Amar Mar 5th 2009 2:25PM
It doesn't make sense for a bikini model to be on the side of an airplane! You can leave that type of stuff on Hugh's plane but not on a public airplane, especially when you have little children! what do you tell your little boy "daddy why is there a girl on the plane dressed like that?" TRUST ME, KIDS LOVE TO ASK QUESTIONS! especially if your teaching them Godly morals.
leslie Mar 5th 2009 4:13PM
amen to that.
Michael Mar 5th 2009 3:02PM
Protect the children from what..You are a moron...Get a life...what is the problem with a woman in a bikini.....
kirsten Mar 8th 2009 4:59PM
hey kids see alot more on tv and on the street and even oh yes on school buses,
it is only for a magazine you guys are all buying and can't get your eyes of the girls,
and how we know you guys dont watch those extra channels or go on line.
i will fly with these airline again,
Justin Mar 5th 2009 3:35PM
Well, apparently it's okay to teach them "Godly morals," but not how to spell correctly. Until you can stop confusing the difference between the words "your," and "you're," then you should not be allowed to state your opinion on something like this. I'm a 17 year old kid who's picking mistakes from your writing like a frog picks flies from the air.
Get a grip, people. Sex is all around us. The sooner you all get the sticks out from your rears and stop ACTIVELY SEARCHING for things to be offended by, the sooner we can all stop dwelling on menial crap and pay attention to true problems.
Abodylover Mar 5th 2009 4:11PM
You make it sound like kids asking questions is a bad thing - are either you or your spouse unable to say "Well sweetie, the girl is dressed like that for an advertisement"? Teaching the lil ones values is fine...but sheltering them from the world we live in is a recipe for them to go hog-freaking-wild at the first opportunity. Educate, not avoid.
Big shocker here - we were born nude. Making the whole concept of bodies taboo is WHY people get so riled up over this nonsense, that which is taboo is attractive. Perhaps thats the reason why Utah has the highest per capita porn download rate (real stuff, not this fluff) and why anytime you hear about a sex scandal it's always a Christian involved? Don't hear much about non Christians being addicted to porn or tapping their feet under restroom stalls, do you?
Educate your children, so they can love and accept themselves and their bodies - and in doing so maybe live to exemplify those ideals that you're currently cramming down their throats.
warrencoons Mar 5th 2009 5:00PM
tell him shes at the beach and thers nothing shameful or offensive about the human body
jkl Mar 5th 2009 7:59PM
We all know for a fact, that if the tables were turned and this was a male model wearing a very skimpy speedo, that people would be going crazy! I bet most guys, would not like to see a huge you know what on the side of the plane, and probably would boycott the plane. I only know a select few guys that would be fine with this. I dont take offense that there is half naked women on the plane, but I do thake offense that they chose a women, its time men start being objectified too. That is what is wrong with this whole thing, It's sexist.
Crouch Mar 6th 2009 12:45AM
You can't hide the sky with the hand.
If your kid asks that the logical answer should be "she's going to the beach" simple as that.
It's not so you get into a philosophical argument about sex.
carie Mar 5th 2009 2:25PM
Go to any beach and you see a lot less on a lot bigger people! I would hardly refer to that as soft porn! But, to be fair, the other side of the plane should show us the top male model, in his little bathing suit.
4winns Mar 5th 2009 2:27PM
The image will be okay with me on the day they also put an image on the other side of a GQ guy in a speedo, which of course will be the day pigs fly. Not gonna happen. What hetero woman would want to fly on this airplane? And by the way, that's not a 2 piece swimsuit. It's a teeny weeny itsy bitsy bikini. And the SI swimsuit issue is soft porn.
ben Mar 5th 2009 2:43PM
If not 2, exactly how many pieces does a teeny weeny itsy bitsy bikini have?
hlo Mar 5th 2009 2:28PM
I'm sick of seeing women in bathingsuits everywhere. Where are the men in bathingsuits? Do they have a plane with a shirtless male model on the side?
Randy Mar 5th 2009 3:13PM
Geeze.... a company sells advertising to assist in its attempt to stay in the "in business" game. Whats the big deal! Ya gotta do what you gotta do.... If there are passengers that do not wish to see the plane...either look the other way or fly on another plane. Who cares, for crying out loud! Grow up people!