Levi's Go Forth "America"

The Levi's America spot sets the tone for the new Go Forth campaign: America is going through a challenging time, but the American spirit of self-reliance will persevere. The spot was directed by a young American filmmakers, Cary Fukunaga. The audio used in the commercial is widely believed to be an original wax recording of Walt Whitman reading four lines of his 1888.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Levis
• Go Forth
• America
• Walt Whitman
• 501
• Levis TV commercial 2009
• Levis ad
• 501 jeans
• Levis jeans
• Levi Strauss
• levis go forth
• levis jeans commercial

[zeppzo4]

I understand why people are so easily conflicted towards these ads, but I think most people are overshadowing the basis of what this Ad Campaign stands for: That these aren't for the well marketed youths of today's American culture, that they aren't just another plastered logo on a rip off brand of jeans. It shouts out and reminds us that Levi's was first in the rugged American jean look, and forever will be passed down to youth. It is not bastardizing Whitman's vision of America, it is agreeing

[jdlund]

@MrUrbanExplorer, as opposed to other clothes that are made in? It's not like America does much clothes manufacturing anymore. It's the price of progress.  American workers have legal rights and receive much higher wages than people in China, the Phillipines, Malaysia, etc. It costs a lot more to manufacture here and consumers seek whatever is cheapest regardless of the consequences. So of course unskilled or low skilled manufacturing jobs are outsourced. It's still a good commercial.

[jcalifano4]

To celebrate your product as a symbol of American ideals - freedom, justice, equality, individuality - and to then outsource your labor to countries who have no respect for those ideals, countries which do nothing in the face of starvation wages and workplace crimes, shows a lack of integrity - A boldfaced lie.

Levis supports the unfair extortion of cheap foreign labor. Don't let this commercial cause you to forget that.

[brghost23]

@DJAR1E Making what too big? Too big of a government? That's Communism. The problem is, in a system like Communism, there is always a group of elitists who manipulate everyone else. THOSE people make every decision, and usually for the good of themselves. Everyone else is stuck in miserable poverty, with no individuality, no incentive to work and no incentive to live. Its ridiculous. Its funny that people blame Capitalism for feeding the wealthy. In reality, Communism does that.

[DJAR1E]

@brghost23 Finally, and this is the point that precludes your response: simply whining that you didn't get the *type* of Capitalism you wanted is hardly different from the left complaining they didn't get the *type* of system they wanted. "Oh, but it's impure, and the other guy messed up." No, it just DOESN'T WORK on the pervasive, ultimate level you think something has to work on. Not just avarice and abuse of power, nor some inherent flaw, but an inevitable flaw of making something too big.

[DJAR1E]

@brghost23 Your criticism of the system is pretty disingenuous, namely because it's only focused on an illogical way in which to carry it out, i.e., a centralized state. Yes, it takes away a sense of individuality--and still, nothing is more vulgar than thinking that individuality is somehow contingent on money, or what job you have, or what jeans you wear (lol). The problem with this Communism is that it reduces someone's individuality to their productivity--no different from Capitalism.

[DJAR1E]

@brghost23 So let's take each one in it's breadth. Communism, i.e. each person taking anything they need and giving anything within reason, still works. When a Republican think tank gets together, each member contributes something, e.g. research, money, to help attain some common, nebulous, but nonetheless important goal. If one of them stopped and asked, "What do I get for spending my valuable time and effort on you?" the rest would likely get angry, ask him to leave, replace him, and carry on.

[DJAR1E]

@brghost23 Why can't I compare that freedom? If you simply think, "Because, it's impossible, it doesn't work," you're wrong. People are about as decent and reasonable to each other as they're allowed to be. What doesn't work is, say, forcing everyone to be equal, destroying difference, or replacing one oppressive form of government with an even worse one. That's what you mean by "Communism"; while it's fine to afford it such a narrow definition, the one you provide Capitalism is too broad.

[brghost23]

And the salient trait you refer to doesn't mean anything. Yes... if a system gets messed up or changed, it is most likely because of the people on the opposite side of the spectrum. How did America's system get messed up? Progressives. Far left liberal thinkers. Instead of adapting our system into industry and the 20th century, they screamed for Socialist reforms and blamed everything on Capitalists. That's bullshit. And in the end, those people don't care about you. They want power.

[brghost23]

@DJAR1E No Communism has never worked. It's a completely illogical system. It takes away all sense of individuality and crushes any sense of productivity. Why the hell would I strive to work hard if I get the same reward as the guy next door who does nothing? It's a STUPID system. It doesn't work ANYWHERE. It was designed for an alternate dimension where everything is perfect and humans are perfect begins. Well guess what? WE AREN'T.

[brghost23]

@DJAR1E You can't compare that freedom with anarchy or ancient tributes. It's completely different. "..overcharge people to make money". No. In real Capitalism, where the government doesn't place huge amounts of regulations on business (now some are still needed because the government's primary purpose is to protect the rights of people), and taxes aren't handled so poorly, free market competition prevents that. "Overcharging" comes from bad tax code and inflation. Not Capitalism.