Athol Town Leaders chide cable company: Quit mocking our name!

Athol town leaders are sick of being the butt of jokes. They're angry about a cable company's ad, saying it ridicules their central Massachusetts community's name by linking it to a similarly sounding ...

[Greg from Agawam]

Oh Wah Eah-get over it or move!

[mary]

I guess Athol is to sensitive to get a joke.

[Annonymous]

Is it really that much of a problem? Do the town officials have nothing better to do than complain about a TV commercial? Should I go to every company that uses my name in any way shape or form that I feel may be offensive and ask them to stop?
How stupid and pointless.

[Kman]

That ad was crass and the town leaders are right to be upset. That ad should be pulled and perhaps an apology to the town would be in order.

[Dot - Orange MA]

"Athol" the "butt" of jokes.(1st paragraph). Someone at Channel 22 shares my sense of humor!

[Eddie]

Kman wrote:

That ad was crass and the town leaders are right to be upset. That ad should be pulled and perhaps an apology to the town would be in order.

Amherst! Why am I not surprised.

[Kim]

When i was a teenager some people i knew took electrical tape and changed the signs from entering athol to entering RATHOLE......just before river rat race weekend........we all thought it was funny.Has everyone lost their sense of humor? C'mon people......this is news??

[FRANK]

I'VE LIVED IN ATHOL ALL MY LIFE AND I STILL HAVE AND HEAR JOKES ABOUT THE NAME. I LAUGH AS YES YOU CAN SHOCK PEOPLE ON THE PHONE TAHT HAVE NEVER HEARD OF THE SMALL TOWN. WHEN A PERSON SAYS "EXCUSE ME" YOU THEN SAY THE NAME ATHOL AND SPELL IT OUT FOR THEM SLOWLY A T H O L AND THEY LAUGH WITH YOU ON THE MISTAKE.
ATHOL,...HOLE, RATEHOLE WHAT EVER YOU CALL IT YOU KNOW THAT YOUR IN ATHOL MA A SMALL TOWN. DO MASSACHUSETTS PEOPLE GET MAD WHEN YOU SAY YOUR IN TAXACHUSETTS?

[Atholian]

Oddly enough, we can't even subscribe to Comcast in Athol. Go figure.

[TIMOTHEE]

As a former Atholian I love my Athol roots but have spent a lifetime having fun at the town's expense. I've found that its better to be from somewhere that is 'made fun of' than from somewhere that nobody cares about. Athol's still a great town and I find my way back there to just look around town and remember the great life I had there as kid. I saw the 'WELCOME TO RATHOLE' sign coming into town from Petersham, years ago and our family still loves it.