Once there was a town. The town was called Crested Butte, Colorado. One day, the town government met the company Anheuser-Busch, the makers of the beer Bud Light. The company offered the town $500,000 to host a Bud Light-themed party. The town accepted, but many of the people in the town were sad:
The beer marketing dystopia has arrived in Colorado
On Friday, the company will fly in 1,000 young adults for a weekend of spring-break-style revelry, a stunt designed to publicize Bud Light. The town’s main thoroughfare, Elk Avenue, has been adorned with outdoor hot tubs, a sand pit, concert lights and a stage. Restaurants and hotels have been stripped of many local markings and given beer-branded umbrellas and signs instead. When the filming starts, drinks will be unlimited, access to the main street will be restricted to people with company-issued bracelets, and beautiful, mountain-ringed Crested Butte will be rebranded as “Whatever, U.S.A.”
But the party went on:
This week, the town bustled with party preparations. Employees of a local construction company dumped sand into the street. A bridge welcoming visitors to “Whatever, U.S.A.” went up over Elk Avenue, right next to the heritage museum. A big, blue cowboy boot was placed in front of the mayor’s office.
Once there was a town. The town was called Whatever, U.S.A.
More can be found at The New York Times.
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