Thursday, August 09, 2012


Naughty government



COMPLAINTS about the use of the terms "wanker", "cock" and "knob" in a road safety campaign have been rejected by the South Australian Government.

Road Safety Minister Jennifer Rankine has told independent MP Bob Such that the results of the campaign "vastly outweigh it being labelled as irresponsible".

Dr Such wrote to Ms Rankine in June on behalf of constituents who had complained to him about the road safety messages on the highway leading to SA from Victoria.

"Three signs in particular were considered to be offensive and degrading to our state - namely those which used pictures to suggest that driver should drive carefully and not be a wanker, a cock or a knob," Dr Such said. "In particular, the travellers felt the signs were an irresponsible and unfortunate introduction to visitors to SA."

In a letter to Dr Such, Ms Rankine said the campaign had been developed by the Motor Accident Commission specifically for country drivers. She said the campaign had been extensively researched.

Source

The contentious words are mainly Australian slang.  Not sure if they are understood in America.  Brits usually understand Australian slang, though.


13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Funny how, as an American, I read it as "Don't drive like a chicken" assuming it was referring to the chicken crossing the road joke. In other words, don't just drive to get to the other side. Oh well.

Bird of Paradise said...

WHINE,WHINE,WHINE thats all nambdy pambdy liberals can do best

Anonymous said...

I could think of a clearer image, but that would really get their panties in a bunch.

Anonymous said...

I think it could be seen as a "chicken" and that drivers shouldn't be too scared to go faster as maybe slow drivers are dangerous on an "outback" highway!?

Anonymous said...

The UK and Australia seem to have a fetish with penises in one form or another.

Uno Hu said...

Agree with anonymous 12:23; until I read the text below the "billboard", I was trying to figure out just what a chicken had to do with safe driving.

It was after reading the text that I was incensed. The terms cock, knob, and wanker obviously all refer to males, and are used in a pejorative manner. This kind of sign would be acceptable only if was posted 1 mile (1 kilometer?) down the road from one showing a cat with its tail split into two halves down the long axis of the appendage (split-tailed pussy).

TheOldMan said...

I looked at it as saying don't pretend that you own the road.

Anonymous said...

i love wanking..lolol

Anonymous said...

I too thought it read as "Don't drive like a chicken". Furthermore, it seems to be against the favorite road game, "playing chicken"

Wiki sez: "The name "chicken" has its origins in a game in which two drivers drive towards each other on a collision course: one must swerve, or both may die in the crash, but if one driver swerves and the other does not, the one who swerved will be called a "chicken," meaning a coward."

Anonymous said...

Don;t drive like a chicken must mean - do not swerve if someone drives right at you...
Surely this is the OPPOSITE of the road safety message they are trying to convey.

Jub jub Bird said...

Crazy,insane,rediculous liberals

Anonymous said...

5:08 AM clearly has the "fetish with penises" as he/she has said something similar on another thread.

Anonymous said...

3:19 you prove my point... again.