Another One About Buses

Apparently I like to write blogs about buses, with this one following previous discussions on increased safety on the Greyhound and the OC Transpo strike in Ottawa. I think there’s something simple and communal about the bus. Driving from A to B with an evolving flow of strangers getting where they need to be. I haven’t actually taken a bus in months, which had nothing to do with the transit strike, but I guess I just like the idea of them. But I digress.

Today’s post is about the atheist bus ads which have been taking the country by storm (or at least a discussion or two on CBC radio and the odd newspaper article…). For those who haven’t heard, the Freethought Association of Canada has decided to bring an ad campaign that started in Britain over to Canada. They plan to plaster the message: “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life” on buses across the country. The ads have been approved in Toronto and Calgary, and have begun to appear on TTC vehicles. They have, however, been rejected by Halifax, Ottawa, London, Vancouver, Victoria, and Kelowna. The Halifax Metro has refused to meet with the organization, and London and the British Columbia three have quoted general policy guidelines rejecting ads that “promote or oppose a specific theology or religious ethic, point of view, policy or action.”

In Ottawa it’s a little bit stickier. They have said: “The Advertising Standards section of our contract specifically excludes religious advertising which might be offensive to transit users, so we cannot approve this ad.” This has not stopped them from approving not-yet-released ads for Bus Stop Bible Studies, which quotes scripture and asks ‘big questions.’ It has also not stopped them from plastering pictures of glum pregnant young women ironing, with a slogan suggesting fathers should lock up their daughters because a certain radio station is bringing back the Gods of Rock. (I do not believe in God, therefore I do not believe in Gods of Rock. I find this offensive.)
By including the intangible phrase ‘offensive,’ OC Transpo has left itself room for criticism. Not that the decision in the end is any better than in London or Kelowna, but at least there the intolerance is all-encompassing, and maintains ad space as a way to hock unnecessary junk. Even the founder of Bus Stop Bible Studies is dumbfounded, asking with an Obama-y level cooperation why OC Transpo approved his ads but not the atheist ones. David Harrison asked: “Why would they approve ours and not theirs? If we don’t stand up for (the atheists’) rights, ours will be trampled too.”

I am not going to sit here and spew outrage at OC Transpo’s decision. It was clearly a misguided decision, and likely one that will be overturned. Maybe they’ll even make it a two-fer, and cover up misogyny with discourse. I suspect the Freethought Association would even have been disappointed had the ads not been barred in some cities. Much like PETA’s naked broccoli banned Superbowl ads, they get lots of sympathy and free publicity this way, and will still likely see their message on a number of buses.

Whether or not the ads will strike somebody and make them realize that they don’t actually believe in God and therefore they are atheists (it’s true), the ads have still already accomplished much of what they were attempting to do, which is stir up healthy debate. Most ads are aimed at exploiting people and subtly maintaining a culture of consumerism anyways, so let’s not hold them with too high an esteem. Had the slogan read something like: “God doesn’t exist, you moron,” then I could see some people being upset. But as they stand, they are nothing but an attempt to open debate, and get a rise out of people who take life too seriously. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.

Russel MacDonald