Thanks for all these examples - I knew there were more than I was thinking of.
Still, I think the character of Walter Bishop on Fringe is close to singular in the history of broadcast television at least, but rare even for cable (including premium). I see characters listed here whose drug use may be approved of, at least not condemned, by members of their same reference group depicted on the show. But even though Walter is by definition a culturally marginal (or "fringe") member of society, his MJ use is not just viewed positively by members of his reference group (his rebellious and unconventional son, for example, who expresses concern about his father's LSD use, but seems pretty cool with the MJ). Importantly, Walter's grass use is viewed positively by the narrator (well, what I would call the narrator if this were a novel - I don't know what you call the equivalent in a tv show). I think it is clear that, from the POV of the show, it is not just bohemian members of this particular program who are ok with Walter's MJ use, but that we the audience should be okay with it too. My point here is neither pro nor anti MJ use - it just strikes me as something interesting and rather unique in television, and so probably about American culture. President Obama tonight called for America's elite colleges and universities to end their ROTC bans, which date back to an older set of culture wars from the 40 years ago, in recognition that today's military no longer (soon enough) formally discriminates against LGBT service personnel. In the same way it may be that we are moving on from Nancy Reagen's war on drugs - not in the sense of encouraging drug use, but defining the problem, and the solutions, in new and maybe more promising ways. -- TV or Not TV .... The Smartest (TV) People! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en
