“Shut Up Chavez” Ringtone Huge Hit In Spain, T-Shirt Hit In Venezuela
MADRID, Spain (AP) - Many Spaniards were so amused when their king told Venezuela’s president to “shut up” they want to hear the words every time their phone rings.
About half a million people have downloaded a mobile phone ringtone featuring the phrase “Por que no te callas?” or “Why don’t you shut up?” leading Madrid daily El Pais reported on its Web site Monday.
That’s what King Juan Carlos told Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez during a heated confrontation at a summit in Chile last week.
The ringtone is thought to have generated around $2.2 million for the companies selling it, El Pais said.
T-shirts and mugs featuring the words are also becoming a profitable business, and videos of the confrontation have been a hit on the YouTube Web site.
Chavez’s opponents in Venezuela are no less obsessed.
Pirated copies of the quote have been popping up in the South American country.
In Venezuela, T-shirts with the slogan in Spanish have the “NO” in uppercase—a call for voting against constitutional reforms that would significantly expand Chavez’s power. The Venezuelan leader says the changes would empower neighborhood-based assemblies and advance the country’s transition to socialism.
“The king said what Venezuelans have wanted to say to Chavez’s face for a long time,” said Jenny Romero, 21, a student sporting one of the T-shirts in Caracas. “I’m wearing this T-shirt to protest everything bad that has happened in the country.”
The spat last week began when Chavez repeatedly called former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar a “fascist.”
Spain’s current prime minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, asked Chavez to be more diplomatic and show respect for other leaders. As Chavez repeatedly tried to interrupt, King Juan Carlos leaned forward and said: “Why don’t you shut up?”
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Seems it’s proof the dirty slug is a legend in his own demented mind …
November 19th, 2007 at 6:14 pmHaha this is great!
November 19th, 2007 at 7:01 pmAdios Sluggo.
November 19th, 2007 at 9:05 pmshut up jack!
November 20th, 2007 at 12:54 amanyone know where i can get the t-shirt? Beats the hell out of the ever popular Che guevara t-shirt.
November 20th, 2007 at 4:55 amhttp://www.zazzle.com/porque_no_te_callas_shirt-235503867931427788
alright quick foot work (well actually finger work) and here is one site
November 20th, 2007 at 4:57 amYou can also get one here
http://www.kingofspaintshirts.com/
November 20th, 2007 at 9:53 pmYou can also get a t-shirt from this site.
http://www.kingofspaintshirts.com/
November 20th, 2007 at 9:54 pmAnd for Sean Penn and Danny Glover, y por que no ustedes callan tambien?
November 21st, 2007 at 12:49 am