Brilliantly stupid! A company called TOTO put out a press release saying it would cover up planned images of naked human bottoms on a Times Square billboard advertising its bidet/toilet combo.

"TOTO, a global leader in luxury, high- performance products for the bath space, today announced that it will place a wide white bar across the "happy bottoms" on its "Clean is Happy" billboard in New York's Times Square -- in effect, "clothing" them by removing any hint of their anatomical features.

"TOTO indicated the decision to alter the Times Square billboard's content was motivated by its business objectives for the "Clean is Happy" campaign. As the company pointed out, an effective outdoor advertising billboard's sole purpose is to create consumer awareness for the product being marketed. When a billboard's content or theme creates a situation whereby its primary marketing aim -- in this case, advertising the Washlet and raising US consumer awareness of this unique personal cleansing system -- becomes secondary to distractions that draw attention away from the company's business goals, it's time to change the advertising."

What a crock. The point seems to have been to draw attention by creating "controversy." First they announced that a smiley-bottom billboard would go up in New York. Then, miraculously, a church sued for alleged indecency. Now they agree to alter the billboard for high-minded reasons.

When the billboard was announced, TOTO got mentions by UPI, the Gothamist and the Syracuse Post-Standard.

When the church sued, TOTO got written about by the Associated Press, UPI, the New York Post (Headline: "REV. 'MOON': TIMES SQ. CHURCH FIGHTS TO SPANK BUTT AD"), the (New Jersey) Home News Tribune, the York (Pa.) Dispatch, the Albany Times Union, Newsday, and the New York Times. When a judge issued a TRO against the billboard, TOTO got stories in the New York Post ("BUTTS KICKED OFF BUILDING"), the Gothamist, the (Kenora, Ontario) Daily Miner, the Bismarck Tribune, AP, Toronto Globe & Mail, and NYT.

When TOTO agreed to alter the billboard Monday, there were stories in the Post ("THE BUMS' RUSH - TUSH COMES TO SHOVE AS NUDE AD HITS THE END"), the NY Daily News, NYT, the International Herald-Tribune, Newsday, papers in Australia etc.

Do they buy many toilet-bidet products in Bismarck?