Breaking Bad glorifies drug dealing

needlenight
Ever seen Weeds? They glorify drug dealing aswell. Even seen F.r.i.e.n.d.s? They glorify casual sex encounters. Ever seen they glorify criminal acts in some episodes and police brutality in other episodes. Ever seen Sons of Anarchy? They glorify organised gang crime. Ever seen King of Queens? They glorify disfunctional relationships. Ever seen TV in general? They glorify whatever the h their show is about. Because you need to relate to the star and why? Because you bloody well want it, thats why.

Would you watch a show about a guy dying from cancer, selling carpets to feed his family? No you wont, dont lie. You want action, something that you would never experience in real life, something exciting.

Where the h did the old saying go: "Its just TV". It needs a comeback, so here we go.

Its just TV, its not real, no one is telling you to watch the show or forcing you even.

Yes, weeds actually does glorify drug dealing.

If a stupid person completely lacking in common sense, watches TV and then believes they themselves could go out and deal drugs and not get caught... they're stupid!

If a stupid person completely lacking in common sense, reads a book and believes that they themselves can rob a bank and not get caught... they're stupid!

If a stupid person completely lacking in common sense, listens to music and believes they need to go out and shoot up a coffee shop somewhere, and then commit suicide... they're stupid!

If a stupid person completely lacking in common sense, sees a painting and thinks they need to go out kill an actor because that's what the painting told them to do... they're stupid!

This thread is glorifying stupid people!

reply to post by bigfatfurrytexan


I agree with you that ultimately personal responsibility is the deciding factor here... I just think it's silly that people who are a fan of something, be it a tv series or a movie or a video game, will not acknowledge that it does influence people.

I mostly agree with you that people are either already predisposed to the negative behavior they might see in entertainment, or they are not and that generally speaking, they will already be willing/unwilling to carry out some of these acts. However, I think there are also a small minority of people who are easily influenced, and might be led to do something stupid they may otherwise have never thought of themselves. Does that mean we should ban violent TV shows or video games? Absolutely not, but we do need to recognize that the ways we entertain ourselves do have an impact on us, even if only a little bit.


There are people posting in this thread who say things like "if a stupid person sees something on TV and emulates it, why should we all have to suffer because some idiot can't tell the difference between reality and fiction?"

Meanwhile, some of these same people believe we should ban firearms in all capacities, because a tiny fraction of people commit horrible acts with them.

What mostly bothers me about this topic is the hypocrisy.

You cant single out a show like this, you can apply this process to EVERYTHING.
To be fair include everything.
You could even go as far as saying ATS promotes paranoia.
I respect your opinion but I feel it is foolish to say just because its seen on tv then it will be recreated in real life.
Why single out a show instead of just stating all forms of media promotes things you may not want to do in real life?

TinkerHaus
reply to post by bigfatfurrytexan

 

I agree with you that ultimately personal responsibility is the deciding factor here... I just think it's silly that people who are a fan of something, be it a tv series or a movie or a video game, will not acknowledge that it does influence people.

I mostly agree with you that people are either already predisposed to the negative behavior they might see in entertainment, or they are not and that generally speaking, they will already be willing/unwilling to carry out some of these acts. However, I think there are also a small minority of people who are easily influenced, and might be led to do something stupid they may otherwise have never thought of themselves. Does that mean we should ban violent TV shows or video games? Absolutely not, but we do need to recognize that the ways we entertain ourselves do have an impact on us, even if only a little bit.


There are people posting in this thread who say things like "if a stupid person sees something on TV and emulates it, why should we all have to suffer because some idiot can't tell the difference between reality and fiction?"

Meanwhile, some of these same people believe we should ban firearms in all capacities, because a tiny fraction of people commit horrible acts with them.

What mostly bothers me about this topic is the hypocrisy.

edit on 30-9-2013 by TinkerHaus because: (no reason given)

AMEN!

Grifter42
The first episode, Walt is taken on a ride along and sees how much money can be made in one of those operations. How do you think that effects viewers?

Nice, I love when people take an out of context statement (in this case a scene from a television show) and try to use it to make a point. (insert the no-longer-available 'thumbs down' emoticon)

Did you watch the show? There was hardly any glorification of a) dealing meth, b) being a drug lord, c) using meth, or d) having millions from dealing meth.

a) dealing meth. Shortly after the first episode that you mentioned, Jessie contacts a colleague to try and sell him some of the Blue. They beat him up, and eventually plan to kill him. In fact, I believe every person they try to sell to, aside from Gus Fring, has the same state of mind. So no, I don't think I would ever want to deal meth.

b) being a drug lord. Sure he had respect and money, but he lost his family and certainly had no real friends. The only thing he ever got to really use his money for was his cancer treatments and to buy himself and Flynn nice cars. His life turned into a constant battle with people who stood in the way of his greed... and it was hardly glorified.

c) using meth. You failed to mention how they showed the negative aspects of meth, but hey you were trying to make a point and ignorance always makes that easier. They showed how using meth can really screw up your life, as well as how it could lead to other drugs, like heroin, and really get you into so messed up #.

d) having millions from dealing. as said before, he barley spent his money. He never lived lavishly or had nice things aside from a decent car. He lived in a home worth less than .01% of his net worth... I bet even you live more lavishly than that. He piled his money and never spent it. I don't know how this could be misconstrued as glorification.

This was an incredible show, and, as most people did, I focused on the acting and tremendous story line instead of the hardly portrayed glorification of of the aforementioned subjects. And even if it somehow did glorify the lifestyle of a meth lord, I'd much rather watch something like Breaking Bad than The Jersey Shore which has a much worse influence on today's teens and young adults. Not everyone can be a drug lord, but everyone can be a gel-haired muscle-head with no desire for even average intelligence.

BTW, I think your next thread should be how Dexter glorifies being a serial killer. You could make a much more convincing argument.

TinkerHaus
The problem that the OP is pointing out is that this and other shows like it are written precisely so we CAN relate. That's where the term "glorification" comes in.

Be that as it may, what can really be done about it? Even if they are glorifying it, nobody can shut down the show. I'm not sure what OP's ulterior motive really is here, but a show isn't going to be taken off the air because it might make some moron decide to start a meth lab.

You wanna talk about shows glorifying horrible things.

weeds- glorifies growing, smoking, dealing
secret diary of a call girl- prostitution, escorting
orange is the new black- being in jail

reply to post by Grifter42


I totally disagree.. If anything, the show shows how the drug business ripped his family apart. It showed that drug dealing can be very lucrative, but it came at the expense of the family.

Murphybrowninthetardis
You wanna talk about shows glorifying horrible things.

weeds- glorifies growing, smoking, dealing
secret diary of a call girl- prostitution, escorting
orange is the new black- being in jail

Nothing horrible with what Weeds glorifies. Same with Secret Diary of a Call Girl. Orange is the new Black....just a response to the imprisoned nature of our nation.

reply to post by Grifter42

This show Breaking Bad is imprinted upon the public consciousness.

Actually no, more like the public consciousness has imprinted itself on the show's writers or on the storyline directly.

here comes a show that tells you that the fast track to lots of money is to cook up a batch of stimulants.

With a multitude of consequences along the way. It's not like it was so cheap to show someone making ridiculous amounts of money with absolutely no ill effect at all. You address this but it fails to sink in.

The media has an effect on people, folks. We'd have never gone to war with Spain without the yellow journalism of the day.

Strange, one is supposed to be truth and one fiction, yet you blue the lines which causes the problem to begin with.

Doctors prescribe stimulants, speed and meth to patients with "ADHD" and narcolepsy, the legal, pharmaceutical grade versions of the drug. They have 33 million patients that get some kind of treatment.

Who exactly is the drug dealer again and who profits from it?

desoxyn.net...

www.drugs.com...

reply to post by boncho


You're right about the pharmaceutical industry. They're a pack of vicious, profiteering jackals.

But there was no attempt to blur fact and fiction. The anecdote about the Spanish-American war was in reference to the "Remember the Maine! To Hell with Spain!" type rhetoric, when in modern parlance, they've discovered it was most likely a coal bunker fire igniting the powder storages. But the Media made it's money on claiming that it was a Spanish attack.

They do address the consequences, but some how, Walt walks away from most of it on top. I don't want to spoil the finale for anyone, so don't read this if you haven't seen it, but it seems he succeeds in what he set out to do. He was born to hang anyway, so it didn't really matter what happened to him. He sorted out his loose ends and cajoled Elliot and Gretchen into giving his drug money to his children. Crime does pay, if you're the son of a drug kingpin. Sure, Walt Jr./Flynn refused the money when Walt offered it, but with the trust that would be set up, he'd still be directly benefiting from drug money.

I've watched the show. I'm not one of those people who hears about Harry Potter, never reads it, and thinks it encourages witchcraft. It's just got a bad moral to it. If you're gonna be a king pin in a drug empire, find a proxy to get your money to your kids, otherwise the feds will take it. Also, something something sort of redemption but not really.

When I watch Miami Vice, I'm rooting for Sonny Crockett. The moral of Miami Vice is that we ought to be arresting and impeding the flow of drug trafficking into this country. Sure, there was a lot of glitz and scenery, pretty girls in bikinis, but it meant well. It might have been considered prole feed in the 80s, but it's got heart. The scenery is almost a character. All of the drug king pins are bad guys. Sure, there's that episode where Crockett turns evil, but he snaps out of it when he realizes what he's doing.

In Breaking Bad, however, all the characters are either unlikeable, or they cook drugs. Skylar, Walt Jr, they're practically the only innocents, and they're about as entertaining as watching paint dry. Badger and Skinny Pete are somewhat innocent, and likeable, but they're drug users. Jessie has less blood on his hands than Walt, but he's still a user and manufacturer of the stuff. And Walt, the supposedly likeable protagonist is a child poisoner, a drug manufacturer, a liar, and a manipulator willing to orchestrate murder. Yet you hear Crystal Blue Persuasion, and suddenly, everything's cool. Oh, what are Walt and Jessie going to do this time? Oh, how delightful. They're gonna sell crystal at a rehab meeting. Or Walt's gonna complain about how they're not making enough money.

"Yo, Mr. White, I just made like a grand slanging crystals in a stylistic montage.". But that's not enough for him, so they have to find a supplier. Of course it's a stereotypical violent latino. So then we're treated to several shots of Tuco proclaiming how great, and how enjoyable Walter's product is. It makes him violent, sure, but it's clear from his reaction that he really enjoys this drug, that it is pleasurable to him. In fact, every junkie in the show who tries it goes on to say that it's the best they've ever had.

It certainly glorifies it's blue product. I bet you'll see a lot of dealers dyeing their stuff blue in order to match the show. Now, is it going to turn Little Johnny into a meth head? Probably not. But could it trigger cravings in an addict? I'd put money on that.

I wonder how many people went out and considered suicide after attending Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

the_philth
I wonder how many people went out and considered suicide after attending Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

Just continue with the red herrings, buddy. You'll eventually win!

I don't even like fish!

TinkerHaus

the_philth
I wonder how many people went out and considered suicide after attending Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

Just continue with the red herrings, buddy. You'll eventually win!

While the question may rise to the heights of the hyperbolic....it is a valid question to ask in a logical test.

Please tell me which parts of BB glorified anything?
Was it the people dying or the lives getting ruined?

Beyond that though, lets say the overall sad and depressing tone of this show did in someway glorify drugs..In case you have not looked their are millions of dumb people in the world that think doing heroin, coke, meth, insert some other drug here is a good idea..That seems to glorify something a lot more then a fake albeit amazingly written, directed and acted show.

reply to post by Grifter42

When I watch Miami Vice, I'm rooting for Sonny Crockett. The moral of Miami Vice is that we ought to be arresting and impeding the flow of drug trafficking into this country. Sure, there was a lot of glitz and scenery, pretty girls in bikinis, but it meant well.

You're kidding right? If anything, you speak of "yellow journalism" yet you are saying the standard cop show (propaganda type) tv/movie sets good morals?

I realize media is media, and fiction should have no bearing on reality (unless it is the predecessor) in other words... action = media, not media = action.

BUT,

and this is a big but, there is big money and big manipulation of certain interested parties which try and glorify the police position in tv and movies. Someone could argue propaganda. The drug war is full of it.

So no, one or two productions telling the other side of the story when most of them are only telling the official one, I think we need that in media.

I really dont see what the intended outcome of this thread is.
Anything can influence someone if they are stupid enough to play make believe.
There will either be people who agree/disagree with you but other than that there is no point to be made.
Theres nothing to really discuss on this matter.

bdmay25
You cant single out a show like this, you can apply this process to EVERYTHING.
To be fair include everything.
You could even go as far as saying ATS promotes paranoia.
I respect your opinion but I feel it is foolish to say just because its seen on tv then it will be recreated in real life.
Why single out a show instead of just stating all forms of media promotes things you may not want to do in real life?

heck, the show Miami Vice showed how awesome drug dealers lived.

Did that get blamed for drug dealers?