'Worst idea ever': Mattel under fire over toy car driven by live cricket kept in motion sensor cage

[Liberal_in_LA]

Barbie maker Mattel has come under fire over a toy car that is driven by a live insect kept inside a plastic cage attached to the device.

Bug Racer was condemned as the ‘worst toy idea ever’ because it is inhumane to crickets, which are nocturnal and tend to sleep during the day.

Instead their routine will be upended and children as young as six will be goading them into steering the car by touching sensors inside their living module.

Mattel joked that the device comes with ‘crickets not included’ and that it is ‘the first vehicle that puts real crickets behind the wheel’.

But animal rights group Peta last night branded it ‘as cruel as it is ridiculous’ and demanded it be taken off the shelves immediately.




The habitat can hold up to five crickets, and features four different driving modes. Crickets will have to be purchased separately, and Mattel recommends medium to large crickets for best vehicle operation, around an inch in length. The cricket-powered car is not just a toy, but a learning experience for the owners


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3376520/Worst-idea-Mattel-fire-toy-car-driven-live-cricket-kept-motion-sensor-cage-wheel.html

[tblue37]

1. It is not good to teach children to treat other lives as toys to

dominate, abuse, and manipulate for their own entertainment--even if the life is just that of an insect. The cricket isn't being used as a pet but as a "thing."

[In_The_Wind]

2. +1 !!!

[Liberal_in_LA]

3. On Facebook users were unimpressed and said it was inhumane.

The safety tips in the instruction manual include: don’t play with the vehicle upside down and don’t store it in direct sunlight.

For those unwilling to touch the crickets the Bug Racer comes with a small grabber which allows you to transport them.

On Facebook users were unimpressed and said it was inhumane.

Merrica Forsaith-Smith wrote: ‘Crickets don’t live very long, just a couple of weeks so now we torture them for that time.


Lyn Brown wrote: ‘Please tell me this is a joke. Will there next “toy” pull wings off butterflies?’

Adam Woodall wrote: ‘Tell me this is not real’.

[Octafish]

15. Thank you.

Life is not to be toyed with, even with insects.

"Even the smallest insect, with its intricate structure, is far more complex than either an atom or a star." -- Martin Rees

http://www.newstatesman.com/sci-tech/sci-tech/2012/05/limits-science-martin-rees

[Hassin Bin Sober]

24. That's what we have Republicans for.

[roody]

4. disgusting

[exboyfil]

5. I swear this could have been on the 1970s

Saturday Night Live

[Liberal_in_LA]

8. Omg

Omg

[roamer65]

87. Almost right up there with "Bag O' Glass".

All you need is Dan Ackroyd as the spokesperson.

[muriel_volestrangler]

92. You think that one looks like satire? Try this:

This really was produced by Mattel, apparently. I wonder if the whole project just started as an internal spoof, and got out of hand.

[Initech]

6. Probably the worst toy idea since Fox News Correspondent Barbie.

[trueblue2007]

7. this is BULL ! WHAT A CRAP TOY. Mattel, killing crickets. SHAME SHAME ON YOU piece of garbage

[exboyfil]

10. Killing crickets is ok

Lots of folks have insects, reptiles and amphibians for pets. The crickets should not be tortured for entertainment though. We fed crickets to a praying mantis that the girls kept for a time. It is part of learning about nature.

[Warren DeMontague]

35. I suspect if you asked the crickets if they would prefer to drive the car or be eaten by the mantis

They would choose the former.

[LuvNewcastle]

60. Do people eat grasshoppers or crickets?

I've heard you can fry grasshoppers or crickets up and the little buggers taste pretty good.

[Warren DeMontague]

68. Yeah. My kid who thinks most new foods are "gross", ate a lollipop with a cricket inside once

and said it tasted "nutty".

[aidbo]

73. Let me introduce you to cricket flour!

http://www.cricketflours.com/

It is what it sounds like.

[LuvNewcastle]

89. I had no idea they made that!

Gotta love the internet. I might buy some and bread my chicken with it. Thanks for the link. I can't wait to show this to my friends.

[LanternWaste]

61. I suspect crickets would prefer to maintain a natural life in natural environment.

I suspect crickets would prefer to maintain a natural life in natural environment, regardless of marketing ploy. However, I bow to your suspicions on what crickets do and do not want... even if couched in another irrational either-or qualifier.

[Warren DeMontague]

67. it was rational in the context of the post I was responding to, sir.

To wit, the proposition that it is "natural" and hence somehow preferable to the crickets to feed them to a mantis, but "unnatural" to put them in a box that drives a toy car.

[Texasgal]

78. Having a cricket drive a plastic car

is part of nature???

[exboyfil]

80. No that has no intellectual value

Still it is better than the flies glued to the wings of an airplane (see one of the other posts).

[restorefreedom]

9. i hope the public pressure causes a pull of this sociopathic "toy"

no doubt dreamt up by a "prolife" republican.

[Egnever]

11. Peta

Millions of crickets bred in boxes to feed to various pets but having one as a pet that drives your toy car is cruel...

Odd toy to be sure, but cruel and unusual to crickets is a stretch. How about stepping on them when you see them in your kitchen? Whats that??

[catnhatnh]

14. Brief N/T

[Hekate]

32. True. My motto is: They get to live outside, but not in my house.

Comes of growing up in a climate where cockroaches are inevitable even for a clean-freak like my mother. 60 years later I am still so fast with a rubber slipper it could make your head spin.

[Warpy]

55. Yeah, they're noisy buggers, I hate it when they get into the house

At least the big desert cucarachas are quiet. I don't hit them with anything, they tend to splatter and they're enormous so there's a lot to clean up. I just try to keep all food sealed in jars with screw tops to discourage them. Mostly it works.

[LanternWaste]

62. Something that's not engendering entertainment through cruelty.

" Whats that?? "

Something that's not engendering entertainment through cruelty. A difficult concept for the irrational and the child, but as you're neither...

[suffragette]

12. Jiminy would disaprove and so do I

Teach kindness, not cruelty.

[SwankyXomb]

13. This toy will get pulled off the sheves after the first time

some kid drops it and spills live crickets all over his house.

[Warren DeMontague]

16. Honestly, why is this all that much worse than, say, an ant farm?

I mean, I suspect ants don't adapt naturally to being in a lucite box.

[tblue37]

17. It is about what the child is learning--which is nothing good or humane. nt

[Warren DeMontague]

21. I guess.

I've seen kids eat lollipops with crickets inside them, for "educational" purposes (apparently they contain lots of protein, and taste vaguely of nuts) ... I don't subscribe to the Jainist/Peta philosophy of "all living things are inherently 100% equal", myself, preferring, for better or worse, something of a sliding scale based upon sentience, etc.

So I guess I'm not that wrought out over the crickets.

I know, I'm a horrible human being and the Dalai Lama will no doubt revoke my karma card any minute now.

[tblue37]

22. I don't worry so much about the bugs but about the process whereby

impressionable young minds are desensitized to the needs and possible suffering of other lives--and as a form of play.

[Warren DeMontague]

26. I suppose. But is it really "suffering"? The bugs are in a clear box.

Not really all that different from other clear boxes bugs might be put in, except in this case it's driving a car. No doubt the bugs are not aware that they are driving the car, only that they are in a clear box.

Now if putting a bug in a clear box is morally objectionable, fair enough, but it seems to me the specific objection here is that the bugs in the clear box are unwittingly performing an additional function which kids might find entertaining.

I hear your point, but I don't think it's as clear as "torturing insects for entertainment".

[LanternWaste]

63. Recognizing our faults is step one. Being sincere about it is step two. Good luck, little cowboy!!!

"I know, I'm a horrible human being..."

Recognizing our faults is step one. Being sincere about it is step two. Good luck, little cowboy!!!

[Warren DeMontague]

69. Another one of my faults is, I'm a terrible liar.

it's sweet that you care, though, Hoss.

[Nye Bevan]

45. The ants in an ant farm probably believe that they are in the wild.

I doubt that they are smart enough to pick up on Junior's enormous eyeball peering in at them. They have soil, food, everything that they need.

The crickets, on the other hand, will instantly pick up on the fact that they are in an entirely alien habitat. There are no cricket cars, controls, and high speed insect transportation in nature. This will disorient and alarm them. Or on the other hand maybe they will think it's awesome and a very attractive alternative to sitting in the yard bored out of their minds doing that chirping sound all night.

[Warren DeMontague]

47. I guess. I must confess I'm just not feeling the outrage, on this one.

My kid used to have a bug vacuum and a little plastic case to keep em in. I figured it was encouraging scientific inquiry, not sociopathic cruelty.

This doesn't strike me as all that different; it's kind of like a hamster wheel, the fact that the motion causes the car to drive doesn't sound to me like it directly impacts the crickets' quality of life, so to speak-- so I'm reticent to call it "torture".

Certainly the person upthread who bemoans this but "naturally" feeds crickets to a praying mantis... I have to think the crickets would rather drive a tiny car than be a tiny meal.

There are no cricket cars, controls, and high speed insect transportation in nature.

Au Contraire, Mon Frere! We have created them, and so now there are.

[Nye Bevan]

48. I guess the question is, if you had 2 weeks to live,

would you choose to (a) experience some utterly crazy thing that almost nobody in your species has or will ever experience, or (b) sit there rubbing your legs together to create a chirping sound for your remaining lifespan? I don't claim to be a formally trained insect transportation ethicist but there are clearly arguments for either.

[Warren DeMontague]

56. Hell, I'm rubbing my legs together and creating a chirping sound as we speak!

er, my friend is.

[Quackers]

82. They just need to make a car for my bearded dragon so he has a chance to catch his food.

[Warren DeMontague]

83. Is that some kind of sexual euphemism?

I just cant keep up with you kids and your hep internet memes!

[Quackers]

84. "I just cant keep up with you kids"

It's ok! They make a pill for that now.

[Warren DeMontague]

85. Indeed. It's called a "quaalude".

[Quackers]

86. Sir, if you can find quaaludes, you're not a man, you're a god!

[Warren DeMontague]

88. Oh, I can find em, alright.

They're embedded in the mists of my memory, right between 8 track tapes and "The Six Million Dollar Man".

[restorefreedom]

19. here is a petition

to sign for these twisted freak profiteers.

https://www.change.org/p/mattel-tell-mattel-that-animal-suffering-is-not-a-game?recruiter=50980895&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=share_twitter_responsive&rp_sharecordion_checklist=control

[Liberal_in_LA]

49. Thx

[Heeeeers Johnny]

20. Still can't top the fly powered airplane

[img][/img]

[tblue37]

23. OMG! Those flies are being *crucifed*! nt

[Warren DeMontague]

37. "None of them will have experienced anything like this before" - undoubtedly, true.

[Baitball Blogger]

44. Concept is up there with the human centipede

[mountain grammy]

81. Now that's a project! completely homemade, requiring some skill,

splitting that match stick and all, and building the little plane. On a rainy day, this could keep them busy for hours. Of course I would insist the flies be treated humanely.

[cali]

25. How on earth does this provide a learning experience?

[Warren DeMontague]

38. I LEARNED THAT CRICKETS ARE SHITTY DRIVERS!

[cali]

57. Important information, for sure!

[Lint Head]

27. Crickets.....

[Snobblevitch]

28. How long has this toy been on the market?

If I were a toy collector, I would buy as many of them as I could. NIB they become valuable in the future.

I can sort of understand Mattel floating the idea for this toy in R&D, but for it to get to market shows an incredible lack of judgement. Why didn't anyone at Mattel speak up and point out what a bad idea this was?

[Cassiopeia]

33. I was just thinking along those lines.

this might be worth money in the future if it gets pulled off of the shelves.

I understand the feelings people have towards it though.

[Snobblevitch]

34. $30 on Amazon right now.

I wonder how many they sold. When I was a kid, crickets creeped me out, but I was ok with grasshoppers.

The fly thing upthread reminded me of something I saw a kid do in the 8th grade. He caught a fly in his hand, bounced it lightly on a desk and got a strand of hair from a girl with long hair. He tied the hair to the fly. It revived and tried to fly away. He had a fly on a leash. He was walking through the halls at lunch hour. I think a teacher told him to knock it off. He let go and the fly took off, except he had tied a tiny piece of paper to the other end. I'm sure the fly tired out and maybe got away, maybe not.

[Liberal_in_LA]

51. the news articles about it are posted around dec 10th

[Snobblevitch]

54. The story I saw was posted today.

[hughee99]

74. It made it to market because some big shot at mattel thought it was a good idea, and his people

were either afraid to tell him or more likely thought that such a stupid idea would get him fired (or at least reassigned).

[Snobblevitch]

75. I was thinking the same thing.

It not a good idea to have sycophants for employees.

[hughee99]

76. The phrase "Please proceed" may have been uttered to them once or twice. n/t

[valerief]

29. Fuckin' twisted! nt

[Hekate]

30. Houseflies are lower in my esteem than crickets, yet it is still wrong to pull their wings off

It's wrong to pull the wings off flies. It's wrong to use a magnifying glass to burn anthills.

And this "toy" that some dumbass at Mattel claims is "a learning experience for the owners," is absolutely appalling. What are kids supposed to learn? That cruelty to other living beings is okay? That the pain and suffering of other living beings in our care is just an abstract notion?

This isn't even a "science experiment" for which I could see some use -- it's an amusement.

I hope the backlash burns them badly.

[Warren DeMontague]

36. It's gonna backlash right into huge sales, I bet.

If the success of peta's prior campaigns-- i.e. "a holocaust on your plate" To get people to stop eating turkey on thanksgiving, etc. is any indication.

[Hekate]

40. I seldom agree with PETA because they are so over-the-top, but I hope Mattel is embarassed. nt

[Iggo]

31. This can't be reaL

It's gotta be a joke.

Right?

[Liberal_in_LA]

50. toysrus ad below

http://m.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=67833506

[Warren DeMontague]

39. I had one delivered by amazon, it was left on the welcome mat and you know what happened.

God damn door buzzard et all the crickets.

[Hekate]

41. At least the crickets met their destiny and the Door Buzzard got a Xmas dinner...

...which Dman's wife no doubt complained about.

[Warren DeMontague]

42. Using a buzzard in that fashion probably would not please peta, either.

[Hekate]

43. OMG, I have to check back into the Door Buzzard thread to see if a PETA subthread has appeared!

See you there....

[Nye Bevan]

46. Is the cricket considered a bug or a feature? (nt)

[brush]

52. Please tell me this is from "The Onion" or Borowitz.

[Liberal_in_LA]

53. Sadly no

[ileus]

58. My son would love this...

after watching the experiment he could then hit the pond next door and catch a few bass.

[FLPanhandle]

59. As kids we used crickets as bait for fishing.

Putting one on a hook and tossing it into the water seems worse than this.

[Nye Bevan]

66. As a cricket, given the choice between (1) having a metal hook shoved up my ass

and being flung into a river to be eaten by a fish and (2) driving a car, it would not be a difficult decision.

[Warren DeMontague]

71. "Wot? My idea of 'EAVEN would be to..."

"lovely people, the Romans"

[LanternWaste]

64. Sounds like a toy every budding sociopath would enjoy

Sounds like a toy every budding sociopath would enjoy-- brings out their talents. Sounds like a toy every half-witted yokel would rationalize-- and they are.

[bunnies]

65. If only factory farming created this reaction.

*sigh*

[Warren DeMontague]

70. ...

[bunnies]

93. well played.

[Spirochete]

72. Dumb idea

Everybody knows grasshoppers are better drivers. Praying mantises aren't bad, but they only drive back and forth to church. Crickets have too much pent up road rage, as a general rule.

[Binkie The Clown]

77. Never send a cricket to do a hamster's job. n/t

[dlwickham]

79. what twisted fuck came up with this

who the hell would ever think "let's make a car that runs on crickets"?

[Omaha Steve]

90. It has not hurt their stock price

http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=MAT

Mattel, Inc. (MAT) -NasdaqGS
27.68 Up 0.21(0.76%) Dec 29, 4:00PM EST

It doesn't even pop up in their stock news.

I do agree with PETA!

K&R!

OS

[Orrex]

91. I suppose this will do until something worth freaking out about comes along