Guys, and dolls, beware: Fisher-Price's Little Mommy Cuddle & Coo™ doll may be hazardous to your child's love of all that is wholly Jesus.
Stores in Mitchell, South Dakota (the home of the World's Only Corn Palace™ and former Sen. George McGovern™), won't sell the $20 doll because some people think it says "Islam is the light."
"I heard about the dolls through the radio and I was appalled that this could be going on in this country," said LaNita Gates, 46.
Said (LaNita's mother) Rose Gates: "Most of us that are Christians know that Jesus is the Light."
The dolls were available for sale in early October at Kmart, Shopko and Wal-Mart, LaNita Gates told the Mitchell Daily Republic. Gates and her mother asked store managers to remove the dolls.
Store managers in Mitchell have declined to speak to The Daily Republic about the doll, but a check at Kmart, Shopko and Wal-Mart last week and again Monday showed that the doll was not offered for sale at any of the three stores. Managers at the stores have referred interview requests to their respective corporate offices.
Corporate representatives for Kmart and Wal-Mart have given statements but a Shopko corporate assistant general manager refused to comment.
"Some stores have made the decision to pull it (the dolls)," said Anna Taylor, spokeswoman for Wal-Mart. "Wal-Mart, as a company, has not withdrawn the dolls, but some local stores have independently chosen to remove them."
At Walmart.com there's no mention of the controversy, but among the product reviews there are two Cuddle & Coo questions:
By 2Boys1Girl: Do the eyes open and close?
By Anonymous: Do her clothes come off?
Only Anonymous's question is answered, By Walmart Associate:
A: Yes, but only if you take them off.
You may remember when Disney was attacked from the right when people heard Aladdin saying "Good teenagers, take off your clothes" in the movie, a claim that was debunked. And did Barbie (in her pre-Caribou days) really say "Math is hard!"? (She did.)
What does "product guru" Mike Mozart say?
Or maybe you like your dolls to be more like live action figures, with words they actually said. Maybe you like them aboard a ship like the USS Abraham Lincoln, on which a big "Mission Accomplished" banner hangs.
"Major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the
battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed."
For some insight on previous "trash-talking" dolls and Cuddle & Coo's "Satan is king," go here.