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Original poster

Awful horrible (possibly triggering) t shirt on Amazon Marketplace

123 replies

ediblewoman · 01/03/2013 21:46

Please can we repeat the earlier success and see if we can get Amazon to remove this from sale foul

Doctrine mentioned it on the earlier thread but I felt like we needed a bit more focus. Should I post in chat too?

I have emailed already.

OP posts:
Ledkr · 02/03/2013 10:50

I have e mailed a couple of national newspapers. Let's name and shame the bastards

INeverSaidThat · 02/03/2013 11:12

I have posted this on the other thread but I now understand the computer generated argument.

Solid Gold Bomb lists over 700 CARRY ON AND ...... DOWN TShirts on its web site and over 8500 different variations of CARRY ON TShirts on its Amazon Site. I know they should still have picked up the offensive shirts but it is better than someone deliberately choosing the slogans.

There are companies that deliberately stock shocking merchandise but I don't think Solid Gold Bomb is one of them. Confused

INeverSaidThat · 02/03/2013 11:15

Go to Amazon search 'carry on TShirts' and specify the seller as Solid Gold Bomb. You get 8,500 results - some of which are incredibly random and dont even make sense.

(happy to be corrected, perhaps someone else can check this is correct)

HazeltheMcWitch · 02/03/2013 11:21

I'll echo the computer angle. It looks like Solid Gold Bomb buys in T-shirts, and offers to print them up with a range of slogans. So the images seen on Amazon are mocked-up t-shirts, they've not yet been printed, but they show who they would look should you purchase. it is possible that a computer picked out a load of words, but there WILL have been plenty of human involvement along the way, both at SGB and at Amazon. Hence to blame it all on computer error is... untrue.

Just to point out, the rape T-shirts may now be gone, but still remaining are a plethora of other vile statements: T-shirts suggesting people Keep Calm and Hit Her, Kill Her.
Also Maul / Bite / Milk / Boil / Knife / Bang /Fold / Stick / Bury / Burst / Stamp / Bust / Breed / Beset / Drill / Hack / Spill etc

maresedotes · 02/03/2013 11:25

Lots of "computer error" excuses/ blogs on the internet. It should have been picked up, there should be checks. It is unacceptable.

Bet one that said "keep calm and kick a man in the bollocks" wouldn't have made it on to Amazon.

Certain words should be deleted from their dictionary.

newpup · 02/03/2013 11:25

Shock That is awful! Good God awful does not cover it. Offensive, vile, disgusting! Shameful!

Creeping · 02/03/2013 11:39

If you search for "keep calm and her" lots of t-shirts come up which incite violence against women: Keep calm and hit her/knife her/beat her/bleed her/whack her/drug her/etc!!!

Why does violence against women always seem more acceptable than inciting violence against any minority? How can we possibly tackle the problem of domestic violence if these sorts of t-shirts are considered acceptable? We just have to take it on the chin, do we?

TheDoctrineOfSciAndNatureClub · 02/03/2013 12:34

Argh, my second post was on the wrong thread.

FillyPutty · 02/03/2013 12:36

"Hence to blame it all on computer error is... untrue."

This is unproven.

There are lots of companies selling computer-generated products on Amazon, many of them utter bollocks.

MechanicalTheatre · 02/03/2013 12:43

Story is on the BBC!

Corygal · 02/03/2013 12:49

OH DEAR ME. I emailed Amazon to complain - see bottom of this post - customer services sent me this as a reply:

Hello,

I understand that you wish to know whether we are selling the T shirt with the slogan Keep Calm and Rape a Lot.

I?m sorry to hear that you?re having difficulties finding this item on our website.

I?ve checked and I think I may have found the item you were looking for:

www.amazon.co.uk/Keep-Black-Jersey-T-Shirt-Heather/dp/B007DO82OM/ref=sr_1_1?s=clothing&ie=UTF8&qid=1362181328&sr=1-1

If clicking on the link doesn't work, try clicking it again or copying and pasting it into your browser's address window.

For information and tips on how to search for an item successfully, please click on the following link:

www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=492860

I hope this helps. We look forward to seeing you again soon.

Did I solve your problem?

If yes, please click here:
www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/survey?p=A3B3C9KHQYRIFD&k=hy

If no, please click here:
www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/survey?p=A3B3C9KHQYRIFD&k=hn

To contact us about an unrelated issue, please visit the Help section of our website: www.amazon.co.uk/help

Warmest regards,

Karthick A.
Amazon.co.uk
Your feedback is helping us build Earth's Most Customer-Centric Company.

-- Original message: --

Comments:Have you seen the T shirt with the slogan

KEEP CALM AND RAPE A LOT?

You should have done. You sell it.

Maybe you should stop?
---

Corygal · 02/03/2013 12:51

Amazon & Karthick A - that's NOT funny.

HazeltheMcWitch · 02/03/2013 12:53

FillyPutty
"Hence to blame it all on computer error is... untrue."
"This is unproven."

I can't really be arsed to debate how a product gets offered up for sale in Amazon Marketplace, but there are certain checks that products do go through. Hence there is a certain degree of human interaction.
So I maintain that to blame it all on computer error is... untrue.

HazeltheMcWitch · 02/03/2013 12:54

Yikes, Corygal

gallicgirl · 02/03/2013 13:04

It was just on the news!

FillyPutty · 02/03/2013 13:05

"I can't really be arsed to debate how a product gets offered up for sale in Amazon Marketplace, but there are certain checks that products do go through."

No there aren't.

www.extremetech.com/extreme/143382-programmer-creates-800000-books-algorithmically-starts-selling-them-on-amazon

All computer-generated:

www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_athr_dp_sr_2?_encoding=UTF8&field-author=Philip%20M.%20Parker&ie=UTF8&search-alias=books

gallicgirl · 02/03/2013 13:06

www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21640347

LineRunner · 02/03/2013 14:36

If the slogans were truly randomly generated, it is statistically impossible that so many would have the outcome of promoting violence against women UNLESS some human agency is selecting the words used in the first place or selecting the final slogans.

So yes, I blame the human agency here. Otherwise known as people.

FillyPutty · 02/03/2013 15:18

Most of the objects of the verbs were NOT women. There are about fifteen possible endings, only one of which was 'her'. Each verb was matched with each object, many of which were nonsensical. This is a computerised process, since there were a total of number of endings * number of verbs shirts.

Humans might have chosen the verbs (or possibly not) but they didn't oversee the actual slogans.

FillyPutty · 02/03/2013 15:21

Bear in mind that there were over 500 verbs selected, so it is probable that this list was computer generated; there might have been human involvement in the process, but I wouldn't bet on it.

Darkesteyes · 02/03/2013 18:17

DarkesteyesSat 02-Mar-13 18:16:10

Just seen a report about the T shirts on Sky News.
Reporter said if Amazon are willing to take a tax cut then they must be willing to take some of the blame too.

Darkesteyes · 02/03/2013 18:18

Agree with Line Runner. if it was randomly generated it wouldnt ONLY have picked violent slogans.

Princesspond · 02/03/2013 18:23

Just seen it's a story on the sky news app, no specific mention of mumsnet but have used a quote from one of the feedback comments

FillyPutty · 02/03/2013 18:27

They didn't only pick violent slogans. There is camp, cater, coach, bow, comb and many others.

SocialClimber · 02/03/2013 19:06

Posted on the wrong thread.

No computer was at fault for the t shirt saying "statistically, 9 out of 10 people enjoy gang rape."

No excuses for any of this. I won't use them again, ever.