PrintOctober 4, 2007
Mainstreaming Hitler
The evil vanquished by the Greatest Generation has returned. In an era when a head of state openly threatens wipe Israel off the map it should come as no shock that Hitler is so popular that he is being used as an advertising icon. In the Arab world.
Harry's Place bring us the story (Hat tip: Little Green Footballs)
A Dubai-based company Conqueror Real Estate is standing by a decision to use Adolf Hitler in a national newspaper campaign in the United Arab Emirates.The ad, which places a picture of the Nazi dictator next to the tagline "Conqueror - The world is yours", ran in the national newspaper Gulf News and provoked a string of complaints.
Dubai is turning into the business and resort hub of the Middle East. Decades ago, Beirut had a somewhat similar role. But the scale of Dubai is beyond anything Beirut ever dreamed of in its years of peace and prosperity, thanks to the volume of petrodollars and the huge success of Emirates Airlines in making Dubai the crossroads of the world. The world has never witnessed a building boom to compare with the total transformation of the place.
Conqueror Real Estate presumably knows its market, but this looks like an attention-grab. Its website does not exactly bristle with detail. Consider the language of the firm's profile:Conqueror Real Estate, part of the Target Group, is the first commercial real estate company in Dubai. We provide a quality service to our customers by managing all of their real estate needs. Where possible we use innovative solutions to ensure our clients receive the very best service available.
In its work, Conqueror strives to always provide solutions, enabling the business to develop in the highly competitive real estate market.
Our expert employees and their flexible approach ensures (sic) all individual requirements are met.
Well, they have gotten on the media map. And they obviously feel confident that there is a substantial market segment that will be more attracted than offended by the association with Hitler.
Hat tip: Dennis Sevakis
