You Just Can't Buy That Kind of Advertising
December 15, 2008 Alert Wreckporter Marjorie M. found this article detailing a Wreck interrupted. It's about a ShopRite in New Jersey refusing to write a three-year-old's name on his birthday cake. Why? Because the boy is named Adolf Hitler Campbell, and his parents insisted on his full name being on the cake. (His sister is named Aryan Nation. Need I say more?)
Tragic, yes, but little Adolf isn't the only one getting a bad name. Check out this photo caption:
In case you can't read that, it says "Young Adolf Hitler Campbell will be getting a cake from Wal-Mart this year."
Poor Wal-Mart.
Hey, you think they'll get the swastikas right?
Nah, me neither.
NOTE: I have no idea if Wal-Mart wrote the inscription or not. In fact, I actually feel bad for the store having its name associated with this...family. Not as bad as I feel for little Adolf and Aryan, of course, but still pretty bad. After all, Cake Wrecks has a LOT to thank the Wal-Mart bakery department for. ;)
UPDATE: I'm shutting down comments now; I think everyone has said their piece, and I'm tired of filtering out all the antisemitic comments and haters calling for these people's blood. As some of you have said, these folks are out for free publicity, so we shouldn't give them the satisfaction of endlessly debating it. I really only included it here as an interesting aside to the world of wrecked cakes. Now, moving on...
Reader Comments (150)
Don't say poor Wal-Mart... if you follow the trail of links to the http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/warren-county/index.ssf?/base/news-0/122923112231930.xml&coll=3&thispage=1" REL="nofollow">source article (see page two), you'll see that Wal-Mart was happy to inscribe pro-Nazi sentiments on the cake.
I too am horrified by those parents. At the same time though, the kid can't help what his name is--is it really fair that he has terrible parents AND no birthday cake?
Good Lord that's horrible! Those poor children!!! I'm going to be thinking about this for days I'm sure. Poor poor babies to be raised by people like that.
I'm embarrassed and ashamed that fellow human beings would consciously and purposefully exploit their children to perpetuate their own ignorance and stupidity.
Kudos to Shop Rite!
Reading that whole article just makes me sad. And makes me realize that these are probably the 2 dumbest people on the planet. Ridiculous.
Can't the fact that they're horrible parents. BUT, Shop Rite isn't much better. They're being awfully discriminatory based on the family's beliefs.
Julie
The name and the unfortunate mullet. Yikes!
At least the poor girl can easily change her name to Arianna - but alas, it will make no difference until she has grown up an moved away because no on in the town or school will ever give her a chance after what the parents did to her. The poor boy is stuck unless he comes up with something completely different. One good thing, though, people will now be watching this home for other signs of abuse.
I feel sorry for the kid. What a stupid name. That's practically racist, isn't it?
I went to grade school with a girl named Aryan and didn't understand until years later why my parents were horrified.
Let's hope, for cute little "Adolf" Campbell's sake, that he doesn't realize he's a ploy in his parents' political agenda. Did the dad in this story really think nobody would flinch when he asked for the kid's full name to be put on a cake? Can you say "publicity stunt"?
Poor kids. I feel sorry for them... but not Wal-Mart. They aren't exactly known for their strong ethics. I'd bet Wal-Mart did the inscription, too.
Gay marriage is still getting voted down to protect straight marriage for these idiots. Oh, what a world.
Creig
um...that kid definately has brown eyes...and blonde highlights...just saying.
that's probably the most disgusting thing I have ever heard, and to read the parent's defense!! they just wanted "unique"
names!?!?! are you kidding me...those kids are going to be in just as much of a toxic enviroment as a ghetto at least psychologically
Those are some classy parents right there! Good lord.
Dang. How can they afflict that cute little kid with a name like that?
Poor little cub.
Yikes. I just read the story on this in the Express-Times (done by a former intern at the paper I work at) and am at a loss for words. These people are just unbelievable -- swastikas have no meaning?! Think I may call up Wal-Mart and give 'em a piece of my mind.
Um, isn't he wearing a Superman sweater? Isn't Superman a creation of Jewish artists? Like, Duh Hitler family! You're not even good at being Nazis. Maybe, hopefully, li'l Adolph will grow up to do what all kids do and reject his parents' backwards values.
I am appalled that someone actually named their kids with those names.
oddharmonic said...
How common is it for customers to request a full name on a birthday cake? I've seen a few cakes with the recipient's first and middle names together, but I've never seen one with the first, middle and last name on the cake.
Actually, I have written childrens' full names on cakes quite often. Usually its followed by, "We love you from your family, Mama, Papa, Uncle Bubba, Aunt Flo, Sissy, Petey and Bobby!"
oh yeah, and that's on a 1/4 sheet cake.
I would really like to tell them to BUY A DAMN CARD! LOL
I'm ashamed by all the remarks on this site about the association of the name Adolf Hitler with a)killing jews and b) automatic revulsion. Yes Adolf was an evil man who commited atrocities but to attack a person who has that name is an atrocity in of itself. Even Churchill said that if they (and the americans) had lost the war they would ahve been the ones swinging for war crimes... bomber Harris and Dresden anyone?
The other name aryan nation is just sick though and the parents must be rather ill in the head.
Don't judge a person by a name.
I think Isidore (dad's name on the birth certificate) just wanted his kids to have worse names than he does. He succeeded. Poor Adolf...a mullet and a stupid name.
That name does not bode well for that poor child in his high school history classes.
Why don't they just hang a sign around his neck that says "Please ridicule me"?
On the bright side, there may yet be a picture of that wreck pretty soon. God bless Walmart and it's mildly un-ethical ways
This family is proof NJ will be where the world ends!
Kevin Smith's Dogma hit on it as well.
And well War of the Worlds the Aleins first attack in Grovers Mill outside Princeton in Mercer County.
If your at the Mercer mall and you see Elvis......RUN!
NJ Hell, with jughandles (left turn roads)
I wonder if the NAZI family relizes Spider Man hates NAZI's and saves Jews and BLacks all the time.
Since little Adolf has his Spider-man hoodie on.
Milo & Joey Good said...
my son was born on 9/11/04, the same day another boy was born at the same birthing center.
the center tried their hardest to get the 19-yr old mother to change the kid's name. she didn't, so there's a "revolution fighter felix" out there right now.
I can do you one better. My husband's ex decided to name her baby after her favorite book character and her favorite musician. She's also a first generation American.
No kidding, the child's name is Gandolph Gibbard Wang.
I was one of seven children who were all named after catholic saints. In later years I was called a lot worse things than my given name, like queer, fag and abomination to name some printable ones. I have a sibling who eventually changed her name because she thought my parents were cruel to have named her in such a fashion. She then married a born again christian who named their child so the childs initials would be KKK. These are the same people who think my being gay should keep me from marrying and adopting children. I pray for them and remember that the world isn't always as I would have it.
St James
Wow... neither a name nor a birthday cake should ever be this controversial... so sad, I wish this poor child and his siblings the best of luck in the future and hope that someone out there takes the time to teach them diversity and history and a little bit of respect for others so that he can go on the be the Adolf Hitler Campbell that creates a vaccine for AIDS or is the 60th president of the United States.
Unbelievable that a parent would name their children with such names. But... (1) freedom of speech (2) rite to individual political/religious beliefs (3) baloney. I'm trying to see their side but absolutely can't. Vikki www.survival-cooking.blogspot.com
The kids' names are bad enough for them to have to grow up with... but what I really worry about is the kind of indoctrination those kids will grow up with.
I mean if the parents believe in their agenda strongly enough to name kids like that, just think of the hate they will fill those kids' heads with! I agree with the commenter who was grateful that CPS might now be watching that household for any signs of abuse. Maybe there is a chance those kids could could grow up with a realistic outlook on life if not raised in a culture of hatred. Furthermore, if the kids are removed from the home, in some states, the court actually does have the power to change the kids' names if it is in their best interests to do so; as it arguably would be here!
Word verif: "untent." The intent to undo something so obviously wrong as this!
Word verification: stifies
WTF?
Ok Well I just wanted to say I see both sides. I understand the parents wanting to put the kids name on the cake. I get that. I also see the understanding of the store also. I really get that.
What I don't get is why would the parents that are out of work. I don't understand why they would name their kids those kinds of names. Yeah I get free speech. I really do. I'm glad that I can name my kid Cotton Candy if I feel like it. I don't understand naming your child Adolf Hitler. One day those kids are going to be sitting a high school class room and have to hear and deal with getting picked on.
I am so with Shoprite on this one. You can get anything you want on your cake as long as it doesn't offend my workers. I do wonder if the head person in Shoprite understood that the cake was for a kid.
If they really wanted a unique name the could have called him Canned Pineapple. Im just saying.....
I think this is absolutely horrifying. My boyfriend actually showed me this in the newspaper, and I thought that my eyes were fooling me.
I think the more sad thing about it was that WalMart actually wrote the name on the cake.
Think of that poor child's reaction when he grows up and realizes how horrible Adolf Hitler really was; however, the newspaper stated that the parent's are both on disability and that their whole house is covered in swastika's.
I am pretty sure that they will teach this child that this sort of behavior is normal.
That's not cool, I believe that there should be some limitations on naming your child such things.
Especially becuase they can become very race offensive.
All I can say is that I am disgusted.
Poor little Adolf and Aryan. Going to be so screwed up, not just by their names, but LOOK AT THAT MULLET! Poor child.
I think Wal-Mart should be a category on this website. Any time somebody finds a deliciously hot wreck at WallyWorld you can just tag it Wal-Mart.
As to this story - ShopRite just opened Pandora's box. I think it's terrible this family decided to name their children that way, but what right does a store have to discriminate what goes on a cake. There are plenty of children who are named Saddam - will they refuse those too?
Very sad... These parents are obviously going for shock value and now their children are stuck paying for their parent's bigotry. My boyfriend's sisters initials are KKK because his dad wasn't the most pleasant man and she has hated that her whole life, when she fills out applications etc. she writes her middle name with a C. Poor kids are going to get hell in school.
I went back to the article and looked at the pictures. It looked to me that these people gave their kids normal names at first and then changed them. Because looking at the birth certificates the have all been issued on June 24, 2008. That means both of those parents thought that naming those kids Adolf, and Aryan Nation was a good idea.
I personally think that they were like hey what kind of reaction do you think we will get if we change our kids names to mean something crazy, hateful and weird.
"The Campbells said they wanted their children to have unique names and didn't expect the names to cause problems. Despite the cake refusal, the Campbells said they don't expect the names to cause problems later, such as when the children start school."
I was going to comment on this, but I think it speaks for itself.
Wow. Just wow.
Theres not a lot that can be said on that without breaking ground on all the issues people have with the name because of who it was attached to in history and because of all the rights issues along with having something written on something else.
I would have my kiddos full name put on a cake but it would be funny, you see we've always joked that my lil guys name would stretch from one end of a varsity jacket to the other across the sleeves, so thats something I would do, as a joke.
But that name...I mean really. That was just asking for trouble.
sorry, but if you name your kid after the worst tyrant this world has seen (to put it mildly), you've gotta be prepared for some resistance, ridicule, etc. i'm not saying it's right, but, c'mon. the parents have no sense. not to mention their little "boy" looks like a girl.
"The Campbells said they wanted their children to have unique names and didn't expect the names to cause problems. Despite the cake refusal, the Campbells said they don't expect the names to cause problems later, such as when the children start school."
when my family moved to north america in the late 40s my great uncle had to stop using his first name, adolph.
as a german-canadian i am disgusted that people want to pay tribute to something so upsetting to every human being.
the parents are obviously being jerks
Just when I thought I had read it all....this is unbelievable! These people are clearly confused. (that's putting it mildly, feel free to insert your own adjectives though) Can you imagine those kids' poor teachers someday? What a friggin' nightmare.
Milander said: "Don't judge a person by a name."
I don't think anyone here is judging the *kid*, who is the unfortunate victim here. People are rightfully calling into question the intelligence and foresight of the parents, who seem to think naming their kids Adolf, Aryan Nation, and a weird hybrid of Heinrich/Himmler (Hinler, the second child's middle name) will somehow not present a problem in the future, when these kids encounter a world that believes, on the whole, that the Holocaust did happen.
Also, anyone who thinks Adolf Hitler is "just a name" or thinks that a swastika is "just a symbol" (which these people seem to think) needs to readjust their relationship with reality. Badly.
I'm trying to think what I would do if I had one of those incredibly hopeless names. Come up with a nickname and pretend it was short for something else, maybe?
What could be said by the daughter; "Hi, my name is Ari! What's that short for? Um, uh... It's 'Arielle', I swear! No, of course it's not anything like that! My parents would have to be crazy! Huh? My dad told you WHAT?"
Poor kid!!!!!!!!!!!!!
the worst thing is.. is that they are obviously bleaching a small childs hair because he is either not blonde or blonde enough!
My gawd. Seriously, on the behalf of being a junior Wreckporter, I would certainly like to see THAT Wreck online.
Okay, I read the full newspaper article. I thought my head was going to explode. Then I got to the part about how neither of them could work. Yup. They are totally on the dole too.
Mom has a "bad back" so she can't waitress anymore. But she's managed to pop out three kids in three years. We're paying these people to sit at home and procreate more little "Adolfs and Aryan."
Disgusting.
THIS is the reason we should require licensing for procreation, of course - the picture of the guy holding the kid is, of course, priceless....oy....chatchki galore, and he's creeeeeepeeeee....
I feel so sad that tiny little children are being warped like that.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who was shocked by the irony of not only the EYE color, but also the hair length on the boy....ignorance, methinks thy last name might be Campbell....
Those poor children.
Those poor, poor children.
Note to self: Don't name firstborn Josef Stalin Jones.
That's pretty horrible, really. And to Jenny Whiskey....what a rotten thing to say about those of us who DO live in PA who are NOT racist or prejudiced against those of different cultures and backgrounds.
I applaud the Shop Rite for standing for its beliefs. I'm glad there are such stores (and employees who work in them) who have morals and standards.
Clearly their parents named their children so that they could get uppity every time it was "discriminated against". It must be like crack to them. Because nobody else would give their kids those names. I hope the kids find out about their namesakes soon and start hating their parents.
I feel so sorry for those children. It sickens me that those kinds of people are raising children. This should be considered child abuse.
Good for Shop Rite for standing up to this sort of thing.