Random thought of the week (or 21st century?)

As I'm sitting here watching the world cup - I actually watch almost no television because, well, so much of it is mindless these days and I can't get English-language History or Discovery Channel here - but, anyway, I was watching the world cup....and I realized that no matter what channel I put on, all of the commercials were freaking brainless.  I mean, really - American, British, Czech....all made no difference.  The people in the advertising industry must all share the same defective brain cell.  I cannot believe that with the amount of money that ad agencies charge and ad executives are paid, they cannot collectively come up with some better and more intelligent material?!

Think of the last time you saw a really great advertisement - nope, not a 'viral' advertisement...Budweiser pretty much as a lock on those, but it doesn't mean they're 'good'.  The last time I personally say a great advertisement, was in the car industry....two of them, in fact, and both were foreign.  Links below:

FIAT advertisement
Cleaning dad's car after a date

Mercedes advertisement
Not in this Weather

Otherwise, it just seems like these imbeciles in the ad agencies get paid an astronomical amount of money to turn out meaningless crap that is insulting to even the most basic intellect...and confusing to boot?  I realize that it's hard to be creative and engaging and on-topic but....puh-leeeeeze.

Anyhow, so that's my rant....but the question is, where did businesses waste all their money before they wasted it on advertising?  Fifty years ago, the ad agencies were in their infancy....so where did all the money go that is now spent on advertising?  Three-martini lunches and lavish expense accounts?  I say 'bring em back'....at least we'll be able to assign a real value to the money that companies are wasting, haha.  So, um, 

I guess I'm getting off my digital soapbox now and I'll let you get back to being brainwashed by ridiculous advertising as you watch the Futbol world cup ;-P   Enjoy that....and be sure to wonder how the hell much every one of those crap advertisements cost...