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Posted on 10/01/2002 11:38:42 PM PDT by JohnHuang2
Barbra Streisand wasn't the only one caught citing phony William Shakespeare passages to make a point about the immorality of President Bush's saber-rattling over Iraq.
Internet pioneer Matt Drudge nailed Streisand for reciting made-up Shakespeare lines before thousands at a National Democratic Gala in Hollywood Sunday.
"To make her case not to go to war against Iraq, Streisand quoted extensively from William Shakespeare – but the quotes were from a William Shakespeare hoax that has been circulating on the Internet," Drudge reported.
But check out the latest cartoon from three-time Pulitzer Prize-winning political cartoonist Paul Conrad at MSNBC. There you will see one the media's most celebrated editorial-page artists falling for the same hoax.
Ironically, Streisand told the crowd in Hollywood: "We have the facts on our side, the truth on our side."
"You know, really good artists have a way of being relevant in their time ... but great artists are relevant anytime," she said leading up to the recitation of the bogus Shakespeare lines. "So, in the words of William Shakespeare, 'Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind. ... And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded with patriotism, will offer up all of their rights unto the leader, and gladly do. How do I know? For this is what I have done. And I am Caesar.'"
Conrad, too, faithfully recorded those precise words in his cartoon, distributed to newspapers nationwide by the Los Angeles Times Syndicate.
Streisand was still recovering from a scoop broken by Drudge days ago that revealed her confidential memo to congressional leaders – one rife with spelling errors. Streisand explains on her website that she dictated the memo to one of her employees.
===================================================================
Folks, I don't know about you, but I'm beginning to have second thoughts on Iraq.
I have, till now, staunchly backed the Bush plan -- regime change, as you know. But now I'm not so sure.
No, I'm not being wishy-washy -- not at all. Just open-minded. On weighty matters of war and peace, life and death, we should be.
And when world-renowned experts voice opinions, I tend to listen.
And, on matters of war and geopolitics, what more world-renowned expert is there than Funny Girl herself, Barbra Barbara Streisand?
After fine-tooth-combing Bab's scathing memo, Streisand To Gebhardt: Don't Attaq Irack, I must say, I'm impressed. No, very impressed.
While Gebhardt Gephardt et al beat a path to hop aboard the war bandwagon, Babs won't go Yentl into that good night -- and for good reason. She hopes her memo sparks a full-tilt intifada within her Democrat Party.
Step back, Republicans; My (Geb)Heart Belongs To Me, says Babs.
Now, before you conclude I've gone off the deep end, hear me out.
Face it, when it comes to military/geopolitical minutiae, 'People Need People', but with Barbra Barbara -- mark my words -- 'You'll Never Walk Alone'. No siree, Babs ... er, Bob.
On the question of how to handle Sadam Saddam, Bab's wrapped her mind around it tighter than her hand around a microphone. She warns Democrats to go on offense, to fight the real 'axis of evil', the oil and chemical and auto companies; oh, and the logging and defense and mining industries, too, "to name just a few." And don't forget the evil banking and manufacturing and construction and financial companies, as well (mentioned in her previous memo. In other words, the whole American economy is evil and greedy, says Babs, who charged fans $15 million to appear at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas for the Millennium Eve bash. Top tickets went for $2,500 a pop).
To borrow a line from that earlier memo, for Babs, being on defense "with ... fingers holding the dyke against the resurgence of ... far right" warmongers isn't good enough. 'No More Tears (Enough is Enough). Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight the evil powers that be!
Okay, so what qualifies Barbra Barbara to dispense foreign policy advise, you wonder? What are her credentials?
Oh, ye of little faith.
How about this: She's won not one, not two but 10 Golden GLOBE awards, more than any other entertainer scholar ever, by far. Ask yourself: Can Condi Rice match that record? Ha! Not even close.
Or how about this for coalition building: Long before George W. and Tony Blair, the Streisand-Gibb duet redefined trans-Atlantic relations; her 'coalition' with Barry Gibb (of Bee Gees fame) dramatically revolutionized foreign policy thinking with ne-plus-ultras as 'Guilty' (produced by Columbia Records), and 'Promises' (also by Columbia Records).
As for Bush's 'pre-emption' policy, Babs prefers things 'The Way We Were', i.e., containment, i.e., do nothing. But what if mushroom clouds suddenly fog up the New York skyline? Then -- and only then -- go to the U.N., tell China, Russia and France that 'All I Ask Of You' is your permission. To strike back in kind? Bite your tongue, you warmonger. 'All In Love Is Fair', but not in war! Besides, this is not about war; it's about telling Sadam Saddam:
"That The Sun And Moon Rise In His Eyes
Reach Out To Him
And Whisper
Tender Words So Soft And Sweet
Hold Him Close To Feel His Heart Beat
Love Will Be The Gift You Give Yourself"
(Lyrics from 'Tell Him' -- Streisand duet with Celine Dion, 1997).
Folks, I rest my case.
/sarcasm.
Anyway, that's...
My two cents...
"JohnHuang2"
I'm hardly well versed in literature BUT HOW CAN ANYONE MISTAKE THIS FOR A SHAKESPEAREAN QUOTE!!!!!!!!!
Too busy or way too stupid to notice the absence of the basic thee and thou.
Since when did Shakespeare ever write like this?? The RATS are so demeaning.
Any one with an ounce of education has surely noticed. I hope.
If I can figure that out, why can't a multi-zillionaire entertainer or Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist?!
I ain't takin' "NO" fer an answer...MUD
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