Merkel shows off that middle age figure

This billboard featuring German chancellor Angela Merkel in her underwear is causing a fuss in Berlin's premier shopping district. In and of itself, the image is pretty tame. (Those are other German political figures in the background.) Weirder things have happened in Germany, and it's not like Merkel is unaccustomed to showing off the goods.

It's the ad's message that's off-putting. It promotes an underwear exchange program. In an effort to replicate the success of "cash-for-clunkers" car ads, the campaign offers Germans who trade in their old underpants a €5 discount on a new pair. Which is just gross. "The country needs new undies," is the slogan.