It's Sunday night, so it's time for teevee!

I have just seen what is probably the dumbest commercial ever. Not only is it a study in stereotypes, but it doesn't even put them together well. Some twenty-something is standing on line at the grocery checkout with loads of tofu, edamame and other stereotypical vegetarian (or maybe even vegan, not sure if I saw any dairy in there) foods. The guy behind him has loads and loads of red meat, charcoal, and other manly man food.

Tofu dude is looking all insecure -- as if he's standing in the locker room with only half an inch to his name. He spies a flyer selling a Hummer on the rack (boy, there's a snarky comment in that somewhere), and he grabs his tofu and soymilk and manfully strides out of the grocery store, gets in his little car, drives right to the Hummer store, and buys one. The tagline? "Restore your manhood".

Okay, forget the sheer stupidity here. Let's deconstruct this one. 1) Eating tofu and drinking soymilk is "wussy". Ummmm -- okay, whatever. While I don't quite subscribe to vegetarianism myself, I don't think it's wussy to consider the fuel that goes into your body, especially if you're cutting out processed crap. That stuff will kill you. And all those 'hunky' bodybuilders are the biggest prisses that you'll ever find, foodwise, obsessively counting up protein, creatine, and lots of other things that end in "een". 2) Insecure guys will assert their masculinity by driving a ridiculously big tank. Ummm, sure. Hummers are just silly. Most male "penis extenders" are actually little red sportscars, and not big old tanks.

Here's what doesn't work at all for me. If you're so insecure in your masculinity and in what the guy next to you thinks that you can't even buy tofu without having to run out and buy a Hummer, you're probably not going to have subscribed to a vegan-like philosophy in the first place. Even if you have some objection to eating animals (again, unmanly in stereotype-land), you'll probably eat more mainstream non-meat foods like scrambled eggs, spaghetti with red sauce or whatever. And if you are doing it all because you're considerate of animals, nature, or your body, what are the odds you're going to run out and buy a Hummer? Just too stupid for words.

And don't get me started on the show -- "Bridezillas". Now, there are a range of freakshows going on there, but quite a few of the stories have morphed from the original total spoiled brat princess into watching harried women surrounded by the most useless friends/family/fiances ever. Are they over the top and a bit controlling? Sure. But if you'd been surrounded by these people your whole life, you wouldn't be leaving much to chance either. That being said, this show has cemented for me that if hell ever freezes over and I do get married, I'm eloping. What I'd probably do is hire out a restaurant for a group dinner, invite all my friends and family, and then show up with a "guess what'? No hassling with caterers, florists, planners, bridal shops, restaurants that triple their prices when they hear "wedding", and all the other hangers on. Heck, spending even a couple thousand to hire out a restaurant, like you do for anniversary parties, birthday parties, etc, is a deal.

Also, what I find sad on so many of these stories is that it's apparently clear that being a bride and having a wedding is what these women want. The guy is just another accessory. I'm not sure if any of them have really thought about what happens a year, five years, or ten years hence. And why do they agree to come on the show? And why does eHarmony insist on running commercials during this show? I'm not sure how many viewers are in the "wow, I really need to find my soul mate right now" mindset when they're watching this show. But hey, it fills airtime.