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"Family Guy" promotes drug use for the US government, says Venezuela

It's a cause for controversy at home and has picked up a gamut of awards in the process, but now the popular cartoon show "Family Guy" has found itself caught in the middle of a spat between Venezuela and the United States about drug trafficking.

Venezuelan state TV today broadcast an exceprt from "Family Guy" as an example of how the U.S. promotes drug use. The clip features Stewie, the matricide-obsessed infant son of Peter and Lewis Griffin, singing a song extolling the virtues of smoking weed.

"We can observe how [the U.S. government] promotes and incites the population to consume that drug there," said Tarek El Aissaimi, Venezuela's Interior Minister. "There's no subliminal message. It's an animated cartoon where you can observe perfectly how they promote consumption and moreover they foster the legalization of marijuana."

El Assaimi blames U.S. drug consumption for fueling drug trafficking in Latin America.

Venezuela took offense to a U.S. Congress report that concluded that Venezuela is undermining U.S. efforts to combat the drug trade in neighboring Colombia. Since then, El Aissaimi has been on a media blitz to prove how much effort the country is making to stamp out drug trafficking.

Watch the offending song here:

A Bag Of Weed - Click here for the funniest movie of the week

Source:
http://www.globalpost.com/notebook/venezuela/090922/stewie-griffin-pro...

By tannedincali on Sep 25, 2009, 06:22 in Politics & the war.

nevertrustapaisa says on Sep 25, 2009, 06:36:

Venezuela to fine networks that air 'Family Guy'

(09-24) 22:53 PDT CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) --

Venezuelan authorities plan to impose fines on cable television companies that refuse to stop airing the animated television series "Family Guy."

Justice Minister Tareck El Aissami says the program should be pulled from the airwaves because it promotes the use of marijuana.

El Aissami was outraged by a recent episode in which the show's characters started a campaign to legalize marijuana.

He said Thursday that cable networks that broadcast "Family Guy" would be fined by Venezuela's telecommunications regulator if they refuse to dump the program.

The government of President Hugo Chavez is preparing to impose new regulations on cable television. Among other rules, cable providers could be forced to carry Chavez's frequent speeches.

0 funny, 0 helpful.

tannedincali (☼Travelguide writer) says on Sep 25, 2009, 06:43:

Chavez is a joke, he should be censored then because she admitted that he chews coca every day.

Take the red pill and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes

0 funny, 1 helpful.

tannedincali (☼Travelguide writer) says on Sep 25, 2009, 07:00:

Well I'm not an expert but some say it is:

''If he is affirming that he consumes coca paste, he is admitting that he is consuming a substance that is illegal in Bolivia as well as Venezuela,' said Hernán Maldonado, a Bolivian analyst living in Miami. 'Plus, it's an accusation that Evo Morales is a narco-trafficker' for sending him the paste."

Take the red pill and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes

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manINred says on Sep 25, 2009, 07:07:

Inane.

There are a few things wrong with Chavez's argument:

1) The song actually promotes substituting weed with harder drugs like speed... and logically cocaine, the cash-cow for the guerrilla and other drug-running organizations in latin america

2) It's weed for god's sake, it's not promoting the use of hard drugs.

3) He is taking a cartoon that lives off parodies and shock entertainment seriously.

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marlydog1812 says on Sep 25, 2009, 09:35:

Chavez needs to blame the manatee's...

A prize for someone who tells me!

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ayjaybee says on Sep 25, 2009, 10:34:

that would be from southpark, the ep where cartman attempts to get family guy off the air............what did I win?

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marlydog1812 says on Sep 25, 2009, 11:17:

hahaahahhh come visit me in La Guajira and I will buy you dinner and a beer!

or if your in Bogota Ill buy u one this weekend, Im heading that way for a break from the 137 degree heat...

Thats got to be two of the funniest episodes of South Park

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ayjaybee says on Sep 25, 2009, 15:14:

dang, have no clue when I'll be back out that way.....how about you buy me a ticket there and I'll buy the dinner and beer...lol

here's on for you

Come on, boys! The way you're lollygaggin' around here with them picks and them shovels, you'd think it was a hundert an' twenty degree. Can't be more than a hundert an' fourteen.

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btwells72 says on Sep 25, 2009, 21:41:

Giggidy....

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senorguero says on Sep 26, 2009, 14:40:

I don't know how TV is in other countries. But in the US, it has been getting progressively worse for about 30 years. If you watch it everyday, you don't notice it so much. But if you look at what was on 30 years ago, they got away with almost nothing. Three's Company was considered controversial because one guy live with two women. Now almost everything on TV promotes violence, promiscuity, drug use, and competition on every level. It's like TV has turned into one big never-ending rap video. And FOX has been leading the way. And then there's the non-sensical bantering of the News shows. It's disgusting. TV only exists so that corporations can sell you their crap. You couldn't pay me to subject my mind to that garbage.

But The Simpsons are cool. JAJAJAJA

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bhill says on Sep 28, 2009, 15:14:

Sure, TV is crap, and I fear for any child reared on it. But to suggest that the government takes an active hand in producing it to encourage the drug trade is pretty screwey, and sounds like desperate grasping.

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