There’s plenty of supporting evidence if you’re inclined to be a Things-Didn’t-Used-To-Be-This-Bad crank: the Tea Party movement comes immediately to mind, as do most of the currently serving members of the Republican Party who are intent on removing any useful service from the federal budget. There’s also plenty of room for celebrity jerk-offs, whether it be Charlie Sheen’s recent rant or the revelations of Beyonce having performed for Libya’s embattled “Brother Leader and Guide of the Revolution,” Colonel Muammar Gadaffi. However, a story I recently came across in the NY Times might just bump all of these and take the lead.
Back in 2006 the island of Hong Kong changed its marital laws and began permitting weddings to be performed anywhere – gone were the pre-existing confines of a place of worship or the local city hall. In the wake of this change entrepreneurs began offering wedding services in new and novel places: aboard boats, on beaches, at the local mall, etc. As would be inevitable given that occasionally this can truly be the worst of possible worlds, the newest competitor to enter the marital market is McDonald’s. Yes, that’s correct: when next you and your sweetheart are traveling in Hong Kong you’ll be able to celebrate your love with a McWedding.
The McWedding package starts at just under $1,300, not a bad price for food and drink for 50, especially when you consider that the average Hong Kong couple spends nearly $30,000 to get yoked. Each attendee receives a meal, presumably a Big Mac, fries and Coke, or something comparable. Employees dress in black finery and provide the sort of service one might expect to receive at an otherwise upscale establishment, and in lieu of a cake there is a stack of hot apple pies. Additionally, you and your guests will have access to the play room, where Drunk Uncle Wu can ride the child-sized train conducted by the Hamburglar and where everyone will enjoy watching as the lovely bride-and-groom have their first marital frolic in a cushioned, net-enclosed chamber full of small inflatable plastic balls.
Da-da-da-da-da, how could you not be lovin’ it???