Here's today's consumer question: Didn't Lexus get the memo about the recession we're in?
Don't they read the newspapers or watch cable news at corporate headquarters?
I ask this because the luxury car company just trotted out two new commercials for its annual "December to Remember" ad campaign.
And these new spots might be even more pretentious and elitist than all the others.
You know how these "December to Remember" commercials go.
Generally they involve one spouse surprising the other Christmas morning with an over-the-top gift: a brand new Lexus with a big red bow on top.
This usually takes place in the driveway of a sprawling home in a pricey neighborhood, with one spouse gasping in astonishment at his or her good fortune and the other wearing a smug, hey-it's-only-money look.
I always wondered what happened when the two of them went back inside to unwrap the rest of the gifts.
If you give someone a $50,000 luxury automobile and that person gives you, say, three pairs of socks and a couple of ties, that could cause a little friction in the marriage, don't you think?
One year, instead of a husband or wife getting a Lexus, the commercial showed a Dad giving a Lexus to his daughter for Christmas.
But the daughter didn't seem to lapse into that same oh-my-god! frenzy. She probably would have been happier with an iPod and some help with her grad school tuition.
In any event, these "December to Remember" commercials have run for 10 years now.
And they apparently resonate with well-heeled viewers, because Lexus sells more cars in December than any other month.
But things have changed a little, haven't they?
Here we are, lurching through the most troubled economy since the 1930s.
The stock market is a daily heart attack. Home values have tanked. Unemployment is skyrocketing. People with jobs are worried sick about holding onto them - even people with big jobs.
Think Lexus might tone it down a notch in these tough times?
Think management might get together with its ad team and say: "Maybe we should take a pass on the 'December to Remember' spots, since this could be the 'December to Throw Yourself Off a Bridge' for a lot of people."
Well, guess what?
Lexus did no such thing.
Instead, the new Christmas commercials are an even loftier tribute to unbridled consumerism, as well as one-upping the neighbors and turning them green with envy.
