McLibel

I just watched a documentary called McLibel. Basically, it's a true story about a couple of activists in London who were sued by McDonalds for distributing leaflets that claimed their food was unhealthy, they manipulated children through advertising, they were inhumane to animals, they paid low wages, they denied trade unions and were generally prats. Here's the trailer:



In all, it's a pretty interesting documentary, as are the extras provided with the DVD. One such extra is a secret recording the woman took when a big McDonalds exec flew over from America to try to reach a settlement, where the guy comes across as a right scumbag.

Here's the first ten minutes of the film: if you want to see the rest I recommend you buy it. You can get it really cheap now from some online shops.



Here's the thing though. Generally, I don't like activists. I don't know why: obviously they're trying to make the world a better place, and obviously they're effective at times. But there's something about people trying to force their opinion on you that I don't like, no matter how right they may be. It's a strange thing: I have no reason to dislike these people, and they're well within their rights to hand out leaflets. Yet when I see such people in the street I still try my best to avoid them. I don't understand it, it's like a mental block.

Anyway, if you're one of the 10 people who have seemingly accessed this blog since it went online, let me know what you think.