Recently, word got out about a Hello Kitty themed hospital opening its doors in Yumin, Taiwan. Really strange. Details, according to the Telegraph:
The 30-bed Hau Sheng Hospital in Yuanlin in central Taiwan is reportedly the world's first Hello Kitty themed medical establishment. From blankets and birth certificates to cots and uniforms worn by staff, every aspect of the Hello Kitty hospital is emblazoned with the feline motif. Patients are welcomed by a statue of Hello Kitty dressed in a doctor's uniform, before travelling in a Hello Kitty elevator to a pink examination room with Hello Kitty posters on the wall.
This is either a sign of Hello Kitty's ever-ascending status as the dominating pop culture icon of the last 50 years (note that there are already buses, airplanes and toast with that expressionless cat's face) , or maybe a rise of corporate themed health care centers? Maybe it's the latter: There's already a rapidly expanding Disney themed children's hospital in Orlando, Florida.
Personally, ever since I was a kid I always eyed those cartoons you see in pediatric offices and childrens hospital wings with a little bit of suspicion. More than cheering me up, they kind of mocked and haunted sick-me. It also weirdly tied whatever Mickey Mouse or Winnie-the-Pooh figure painted on the wall with whatever flu or fever I was feeling at the time. Also, isn't it a little risky for the corporate image involved? Maternity wards are obviously lighthearted, joyous places, but it's needless to say that it's not always the case. Do Hello Kitty and Disney really want their images in people's minds if, God forbid, something tragic were to happen?
Apparently the answer is a big yes. Maybe this is trend? Maybe it's another omen pointing towards a future that is more and more resembling Idiocracy, as mediocre of a movie as that was.
[Image of Tom Sach's Hello Kitty sculpture taken by Wallyg and used under a Creative Commons License]
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