Target Has Fifty Shades Cock Rings Next To Kid’s Toothbrushes And It’s No Reason To Panic
Do any of you have that moment going through the feminine products aisle at Target with your kids? That moment where you are like “Oh crap, there’s condoms and lube here too” and you think of having to explain it to them? I am pretty strategic now about buying tampons alone since both of my kids are literate and I simply don’t feel like explaining Magnum XL’s to either of them just yet. However, if you scooted down the oral hygiene aisle to find My Little Pony toothpaste, would you expect anything to be amiss? A Target shopper in Tulsa, Oklahoma noticed an interesting product placement and sent a picture to Jezebel that made me laugh so hard I cried:
(Image via Twitter)
Not just Fifty Shades-themed cock rings. Also, anal lubricant and blindfolds! I would like to think that some Target merchandiser was having a funny ha-ha but I’m sure there is a floor plan and these displays are not left to chance. However, I have to wonder who thought it was a good idea to have these items next to the fun electronic toothbrushes and sicky-sweet kiddie toothpaste. Picking out that kind of thing is a blast for my kids so unlike the tampon aisle, I do take them over that way without a second thought. Maybe since the cock rings vibrate and the electronic toothbrushes vibrate so, duh? They belong together? Who knows.
In any event, I highly doubt my kids would have picked up on it or had any interest in reading the print on the boxes. If it’s not covered in licensed characters or neon colors, they don’t typically bother. This is not something I would think to get worked up over but you know there are parents that will. I don’t think there is anything wrong with an older child seeing these items and a parent explaining what they are- I know I had no clue about this sort of thing until I was much older but knowing it in my early teens wouldn’t have done any damage. Making sex pleasurable is not something we should feel ashamed about explaining to our kids.
That said, I do think Target should probably migrate the cock rings on over to the aisle with their buddies, Trojan and Astroglide. I mean, from a shopper’s standpoint, I don’t think it would occur to me to hunt down that anal lube on my list in the kiddie toothpaste section. It just makes sense to move them so they can be more easily found by their audience.
And if this was a prank some bored, 19-year old merchandiser thought up at 5 am to mess with parents? Well played, prankster. Well played, indeed.
(Image: pbombaert/Shutterstock)