Anheuser-Busch Urged to Abandon "Idiotarod" Beer Promotion

Center For Science in the Public Interest ^ | February 28, 2007

[Eric Blair 2084]

WASHINGTON—Anheuser-Busch should drop its sponsorship of a Washington, D.C. charity event called the "Idiotarod," organized by a local group that goes by the acronym "SMASHED," according to the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). The March 3 event, in which young people are urged to acquire shopping carts and drink beer in one bar after another, is in clear violation of the Beer Institute's Advertising and Marketing Code, which prohibits marketing which encourages rapid or excessive beer drinking or drinking games, according to the group.

"Prepare your liver," the SMASHED organizers say on their web site. "We know there's going to be a lot of drinking and in some places we might even encourage it." As for the shopping carts the participants are urged to acquire, the organizers "don’t want to know how or from where" they come. The event, which is cosponsored by Anheuser-Busch's Bud Light brand, starts at a bar called the Front Page in Washington's Dupont Circle neighborhood on Saturday.

CSPI called on Anheuser-Busch to immediately withdraw its sponsorship of the event, which organizers say “is about testing your own willingness to make an ass of yourself."

"Here's Anheuser-Busch putting Bud Light's seal of approval on this sophomoric and potentially dangerous event, where who knows how many intoxicated people will take to the streets of Washington pushing stolen shopping carts," said George A. Hacker, director of alcohol policies at CSPI. "This makes a mockery of Anheuser-Busch’s professions of concern about heavy drinking."

Anheuser-Busch has come under fire before for promoting excessive drinking and drinking games. The company was widely ridiculed for claiming that a drinking game called Bud Pong should be played by drinking water instead of the beer the game is named for.

[ichabod1]

And John Candy

[CindyDawg]

I haven't heard that one.:')

[Eric Blair 2084]

Do you have a video or a script for the "Way too liberal for Texas guy?"

BTW, my favorite John Candy story was about how Joe Montana came into the huddle in the Super Bowl against the Bengals needing a touchdown with less than two minutes remaining. He lined up in the huddle, all his teammates were nervous and Montana says "Hey, isn't that John Candy in the stands?"

Then they score the winning touchdown. Don't get me wrong, I hate Joe Montana ever since he broke my little heart when I was in 8th grade with the Dwight Clark catch. But that was good.

[IIntense]

It's humor, satire, mocking...

Sorry Cindy! Guess my humor button was out of order and the intense light went on instead.

The Iditarod showed up in several posts...just happened to respond to your. It was meant as chiding, not an attack, but I withdraw my comments, after the fact.