Just when I think I've seen it all in reference to irresponsible behavior, some company lowers the bar on social responsibility. A few weeks ago I was outraged to see a bogus energy drink claiming to help you actually burn calories...which I'm sure is enjoying record sales. That's bad coming from a start-up company, but when it's a household name like Taco Bell (YUM Brands), I don't know why, but it just feels dirtier.

If you haven't seen it, they are running an ad campaign called the DriveThruDiet.com. No seriously, they are. If you are like me and waiting for the Saturday Night Live spoof at the end, you'll be waiting a long time. Apparently their brilliant marketing team actually approved this concept that if you use the Taco Bell drive-thru, you will lose weight. They even have the arrogance to trot some attractive woman out on the set claiming it helped her lose a bunch of weight with the most egregious disclaimer language I've ever seen. As Chris Berman and the guys at ESPN would say, "C'mon, Man!"

Seriously though, this is what is so wrong about our society. Instead of coming up with some healthier alternatives (which it appears they actually did) and promoting them like Subway does for example, they take it the opposite direction and attempt to deceive you into thinking they have a weight loss plan. Sadly, I'm sure their sales have probably increased because the public is so uneducated on how to really lose weight.

I'd love to tell you that I plan to boycott their restaurants and ask all of you to do the same, but I don't eat their slop to begin with so I can't vote with my wallet which is what I usually try to do. Ironically enough, my family picks up Chipotle once per week, and they serve the same type of food yet they take pride in using fresh ingredients. Perhaps this is why a company like Chipotle is enjoying a historic run of growth and profitability. I can only wish that the public at some point wises up to the blatant disregard companies like Taco Bell have for their health, their families' health, and their customers' health. Rather than lead with solutions, they feel more comfortable directly contributing to the largest line item in our deficit ridden budget - health care. With obesity costing all of us $150 billion annually in direct medical expenses, you would think companies that have the power to make a positive impact will.

Thanks for nothing Taco Bell. You should be ashamed of yourselves. I can only hope your profits suffer the same way your customers will who actually buy-in to your BS advertising campaign. 

Healthy Jumping...

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