Aldi sign leaves woman 'visibly upset' – but can you see what's wrong with it?
A man has hit out at Aldi for an "offensive" sign he spotted inside his local NSW store, claiming it made his wife "visibly upset" after seeing it – but others struggle to see the issue.
The advert in Sydney's Leichhardt store was for the supermarket's boneless lamb leg, and has the words "Wham, bam, thank you lamb" written on it.
Posting in an Aldi fans Facebook group, the man said he is "generally a fan of Aldi", but the advert left both he and his wife a little bothered.
"I hope this posting is appropriate for this group. I am generally a fan of Aldi, but my wife was visibly upset today when she saw this poster," he wrote alongside a picture of the poster in question.
"Does anyone else find it offensive?"
Aldi fans confused: 'What's offensive?'
Despite his best efforts to recruit Aldi customers who shared his sentiments, the post left many confused and unable to see what was wrong with the picture.
"Sorry, but what in particular are we looking at that is offensive?" one said.
"Can you please explain what possibly would be offensive with the poster since I honestly don’t know why," another wrote.
"Don't get it," a third directly put.
Many speculated as to why the man and his wife could have been upset about the poster.
Some suggested they could have been vegetarians, therefore, found the image of meat confronting.
But it appears that wasn't the issue at all. In fact, it had nothing to do with the image itself but the choice of words on the poster.
Aldi advert explained
It's believed the slogan on the advert comes from the expression "wham, bam, thank you ma'am", which was also the name of a popular song by American singer and actor Dean Martin in the 1950s.
The expression commonly refers to hasty sex, or intercourse that's "rough and quick, without tenderness", Oxford Languages explains.
But of the 500-plus comments on the post, most admitted there was nothing wrong with the ad - some said they even found it "clever".
"This is an excellent example of when someone CHOOSES to be offended when there is really no offence there," one person wrote.
"I think it is quite clever because it turns that phrase into something else entirely," another pointed out.
"Oh come on. There is absolutely nothing offensive about this. Your wife needs to get over herself," a third shot back.
"That’s the problem with this world, everyone gets offended over every little thing," another shared.
Others admitted that while they themselves don't take offence, they can understand why some people might.
"I'm not offended but it's OK if you are. We all draw 'lines in the sand' about various words etc. I respect your right to be offended. The saying can be used inappropriately but not necessarily, so I don't find it offensive at all..in this instance," one said.
"Hmmm … initially I thought ‘what on earth is she worried about?!’ I find it mildly distasteful, but I’m not offended," a second wrote.
Another Facebook user pointed out another issue – that the words could be a trigger for victims of violence – and agreed that "Aldi has crossed a line." They even called for the ad to be taken down.
"For those women who have been abused it’s GOT to be a trigger, and I feel for them," they wrote.
"We can scoff as much as we like, but it is a double entendre and some people may get upset.
Yahoo News Australia understands that the posters are no longer in stores across Australia.
Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.
