Ooops!

T-shirt controversy is becoming quite a common theme here, it seems. Almost every week I come across a new one that has caused uproar for some reason or another. This time it’s a double whammy. Not just the one, but two t-shirts this time…..

And it’s two tees from Topman which have caused a massive furore this week with slogans that read a bit like a schoolboy with an illicit can of specialbrew came up with them. “Nice new Girlfriend. What breed is she?” says the writing on the front of the first shirt. Whilst the second explains “I didn’t mean to do it;  you provoked me, I was drunk, I was having a bad day, I hate you, I couldn’t help it, I didn’t mean it” together with some convenient little boxes for you to tick the appropriate excuse.

The first thing that struck me, on seeing these  t-shirts (which have now been pulled, by the way) was that if you were stupid enough to wear one down to a pub (half) full of women, you’d probably get what was coming to you. And not wear it again. And if you did wear it again then you deserve the same thing twice.

Because it’s Topman, however, and not an alternative site where bad tees and dodgy  humour are the norm, the outcry has been intense. A Twitter torrent of complaints directed at  #Stopman, ensured that one of Britain’s biggest retailers acted fast and withdrew the tees.

But even aside from the fact that the t-shirts are a bit sad anyway, it’s amazing  that such a big name as Topman didn’t even realise that the tees might be considered offensive. Although withdrawing them might be a bit excessive, don’t you think. I mean in a way, they might just serve as a warning; there’s nothing that says “I’m stupid”  and “Women are repelled by me” clearer than this.