Another Ludacris Situation

Hi, I'm Bill O'Reilly.  Thanks for watching us tonight.

Another Ludacris situation.  That is the subject of this evening's "Talking Points Memo."

You may remember a couple years ago that Pepsi hired gansta rapper Ludacris (search) as a commercial pitchman.  "Talking Points" objected, saying major American corporations have an obligation not to reward people who harmed society.

Millions of you agreed, Pepsi folded, Ludacris was fired.  But now the St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch Corporation (search) has signed a deal with Ludacris, paying him big money to sell beer.

Since this guy continues to celebrate violence and drugs, Anheuser-Busch is guilty of aiding and abetting, in my opinion.  And I will not be buying their products or visiting their theme parks.

And a personal note to the executives at Anheuser.  You guys must be nuts.  Most Americans deplore the kind of garbage Ludacris puts out, and they're going to remember that you are rewarding him.  Pepsi got the message, but you guys don't seem to.

Unlike Ozzie Osborne (search), who curses, or Britney Spears (search), who's an immature exhibitionist, Ludacris is hard-core.  He glorifies criminal conduct, and kids hear this stuff.  Some of those children are from troubled homes and adopt the anti-social attitudes as their own.

Ludacris is real big on firearms: Quote: "Hollow bullets I pull it. I'm about to live in vain. And then I drill 'em, refill 'em. Make sure they feel the pain. My shotguns are cold and hard, and my triggers are always talking about some squeeze me, squeeze me.  I smack bitches with 'no.  Just get a couple of girls that shake their thang."

Got the picture?

Well, this gangsta stuff is foolish to anyone who's mature, but for impressionable kids, drug and guns make an impression.

Anheuser-Busch knows all this and doesn't care.  [It] Simply wants to make money and thinks Ludacris can sell beer and malt liquor--Society be damned.

So this Bud is not for me any more. Responsible Americans must hold corporations responsible for polluting the country, whether it's PCB's in the water or hyping criminal behavior on C.D.'s.

"Talking Points" believes Americans are getting fed up with all of this.  And our poll question on billoreilly.com is: "Will you continue to buy Anheuser-Busch products now that the company has hired Ludacris?"

Will you continue to buy Anheuser-Busch products now that the company has hired Ludacris?  billoreilly.com poll, we want to hear from you.  We want to see what the plurality is here.

We will, of course, send the results along to Anheuser.  But by the time they get them, I suspect the company will have received a message that's anything but ludicrous.

Americans have a choice when it comes to buying products.

And that's "The Memo."

The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day

Time now for "The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day."

I just couldn't watch the Academy Awards (search) last night. Too boring. I had it on in the background as I did some paperwork and read a book. But I have to say that most of the winners behaved themselves.  That makes for a dull presentation, but it shows that drive-by political attacks are now out, that people who manage the stars know that careers are damaged by inappropriate comments.  No question about that.

Have you heard much from George Clooney or Alec Baldwin lately?  High-profile people with opinions are always welcome here on "The Factor" where political discourse is in context, and it's not ridiculous at all that the folks didn't have to put up with political rantings at the Oscars last night.

--You can watch Bill O'Reilly's Talking Points Memo and "Most Ridiculous Item" weeknights at 8 & 11p.m. ET on the Fox News Channel. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com