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Walmart pulled this cute kid’s toy because it swears and sings about cocaine in Polish

Published Nov 28th, 2021 2:01PM EST
Walmart sign on the outside of a store
Image: Glen Stubbe/MCT/Newscom/The Mega Agency

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One of the acceptable risks that huge retailers like Amazon and Walmart have decided goes hand in hand with operating huge third-party sales platforms is that they can’t always proactively police the goods that end up on their virtual shelves. At least, not with 100% comprehensive accuracy. It’s sort of the whole point. Anybody is allowed to sell … well, almost anything. Which is how companies can up with edge-case blunders, one example of which is a recent Walmart toy. It ended up getting pulled. Because that dancing cactus that you might assume is pretty harmless, and which sings some indecipherable song?

The toy actually swears and sings about cocaine — albeit, in Polish. Not exactly an ideal Christmas gift for a youngster. But it’s nevertheless easy to see why this one has garnered headlines and forced Walmart to remove the item.

Dancing Cactus toy

You can actually find a ton of funny tweets joking that, well, now I want this toy more than anything. One of the songs the Walmart dancing cactus reportedly played is from Polish rapper Cypis. And an English translation for the lyrics to the toy’s song Where is The White Eel reads: “The only thing in my head / is five grams of cocaine, fly away alone / to the edge of oblivion.”

Not exactly something you want little Timmy knowing about after unwrapping it on Christmas Day. Or, if you’re a grandmother who lives in Ontario, Canada, and who happens to speak Polish, you definitely would feel shocked after buying the toy for your unsuspecting granddaughter.

“It just so happens that I am Polish and when I started to listen to the songs and I heard the words,” said Ania Tanner, who spoke with the Canadian news outlet CTV News. “I was in shock. I thought ‘Is this some kind of joke?’”

Top Christmas gifts 2021 for kids

Meanwhile, someone else who apparently bought the toy expressed her surprise about it on Twitter.

A spokesperson for Walmart told CTV News: “These items are sold by a third-party seller on our marketplace website. We are removing the items while we look into this complaint further.”

Obviously, a toy like this isn’t ideal to put under the tree this Christmas. So, having said, you can find a different assortment of ideas of toys below that would probably make great Christmas presents. Back in September, Walmart revealed its annual Top-Rated by Kids Toy List. The retailer says these toys were chosen by kids. Moreover, this year’s list includes more than a dozen Walmart exclusives.

Walmart’s Top-rated by Kids Toy List

Below, you’ll find a list of the Walmart toy exclusives under each category included on this year’s list.

Awakening Imagination

Edutainment Expression

Fresh Air Fun

Not-So-Pretend Pets

On-Screen and Streaming Favorites

Timeless Toys

For more information on the Top-Rated by Kids Toy List, visit www.walmart.com/toprated.

Andy Meek Trending News Editor

Andy Meek is a reporter based in Memphis who has covered media, entertainment, and culture for over 20 years. His work has appeared in outlets including The Guardian, Forbes, and The Financial Times, and he’s written for BGR since 2015. Andy's coverage includes technology and entertainment, and he has a particular interest in all things streaming.

Over the years, he’s interviewed legendary figures in entertainment and tech that range from Stan Lee to John McAfee, Peter Thiel, and Reed Hastings.