John Lennon’s Second Thoughts

FrontPage Magazine ^ | July 1, 2011 | David Swindle

[HorowitzianConservative]

For more than 40 years Beatles member John Lennon towered above all others as the Left’s most powerful artistic icon. His anthem “Imagine” dreamed of a unified world that transcended the divides of nation-states and religious strife. It was an inspiration to generations of utopians. Now a new documentary reveals a startling fact: in his final years before his murder, the songwriter abandoned his famous progressive faith, enjoyed arguing with radicals, and supported Ronald Reagan.

The Toronto Sun reported Tuesday night on one of the interviews from a new documentary called “Beatles Stories.” Director Seth Swirsky spent five years collecting anecdotes from those who knew members of the band. One of the people Swirsky talked with was Fred Seaman who worked as Lennon’s personal assistant in 1979 and 1980.

According to Seaman,

John, basically, made it very clear that if he were an American he would vote for Reagan because he was really sour on (Democrat) Jimmy Carter.

“He’d met Reagan back, I think, in the 70s at some sporting event… Reagan was the guy who had ordered the National Guard, I believe, to go after the young (peace) demonstrators in Berkeley, so I think that John maybe forgot about that… He did express support for Reagan, which shocked me.

“I also saw John embark in some really brutal arguments with my uncle, who’s an old-time communist… He enjoyed really provoking my uncle… Maybe he was being provocative… but it was pretty obvious to me he had moved away from his earlier radicalism.

“He was a very different person back in 1979 and 80 than he’d been when he wrote Imagine. By 1979 he looked back on that guy and was embarrassed by that guy’s naivete.”

How will the Left respond to these revelations?

[Shady]

Actually, one of his passions was dairy farming, he had a “Dreamstreet” farm in Delaware County NY and obviously had to have some business sense to run it right. Capitalism did wonderful things for him...Too bad he didn’t live long enough to pass the message on.

[SpaceBar]

John Lennon was a lot of things, but stupid he wasn’t.

[truthguy]

John Lennon was a lot of things, but stupid he wasn’t.

Learn to read. I didn't say he was stupid. I said he wasn't all that bright. That's not the same thing as calling someone stupid.

[SpaceBar]

Calling someone “not that bright” is a polite way of calling someone stupid. But you already knew that.

[truthguy]

Calling someone “not that bright” is a polite way of calling someone stupid. But you already knew that.

I disagree. I've always used that phrase to indicate that someone exaggerates their intelligence. In other words, that person thinks that they are a lot smarter than what they are. The person may be average but thinks that they are smarter than what they are.

For example, I think Obama is "not that bright". Yes, he's certainly not stupid. But I think you might just agree that he believes he's smarter than what he is. Besides, I'm not all that polite. If I thought Lennon was stupid, I'd say so.

[SpaceBar]

Besides, I'm not all that polite.

Understatement of the day.

[Le Chien Rouge]

The left REALLY gets PO’d when you mention Eldridge Cleaver became a GOP conservative.

They have erased him from history in a way that would make Stalin proud.

[miss marmelstein]

I was lucky enough to live near John Lennon in the last few years of his life. He loved to walk the streets of NYC. How many times I saw him toodling around Bloomingdale’s! No body guards, no entourage, no nothin’. All changed with his death.

[truthguy]

Besides, I'm not all that polite.

Understatement of the day.

You just might be falling into the category of "not that bright". And you are not that polite either. But I kinda like that.

[Do Not Make Fun Of His Ears]

>>And who cares what any artist thinks?<<

The LEFT does, and that’s the point.

Don’t waste this opportunity to show them that their hero turned conservative.

There will be a lot of posts yammering and beating their chests about how much they hate the hippie John Lennon, but they are very short-sighted and miss the point entirely.

[Do Not Make Fun Of His Ears]

>>The bottom line is that John Lennon was not all that bright and certainly was not very well educated. <<

You couldn’t have posted a more inaccurate statement. John Lennon was an extremely intelligent and articulate man, and all you have to do is read his writings or hear his interviews to ascertain that.

Wow. What planet have YOU been on?

[Do Not Make Fun Of His Ears]

>>One UK blog had a commment that it was just an assistant cashing in on Lennon’s name, it was just driven by dollars and it wasn’t true.
<<

Oh, well, if a BLOGGER who never met John Lennon said said it, it MUST be true.

[johngrace]

John Lennon met Ronald Reagan after their separate interviews on Monday night football back in 1974. Here it is:

Giffords recollection. Ronald Reagan was showing John Lennon the finer points of the game.

YouTube - John Lennon on Monday Night Football 12/9/1974

3 min - Oct 9, 2010 - Uploaded by NeilFraudstrong This is an interview that John gave on December 9th, 1974, during Monday Night Football. John is his usual humorous self and it is a ...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBapLm2Shcc

[truthguy]

You couldn’t have posted a more inaccurate statement. John Lennon was an extremely intelligent and articulate man, and all you have to do is read his writings or hear his interviews to ascertain that.

Wow. What planet have YOU been on?

Sure I could have posted a more inaccurate statement. I could have called you extremely intelligent and articulate. I remember John Lennon VERY well. He had an extremely exaggerated opinion of his own intelligence. Yes, as I've told SpaceCadet, he was NOT stupid. But if you listen to the comments he made they fell under the general category of "gobbledygook". His comments were mostly those of the catch phrases of the time. I can't remember anything he said that was particularly articulate. You would have to cite those.

Yes, he was a talented musician. I've said this. By today's music comparisons, he'd be a certified genius. But in terms of the understanding the issues of the day such as politics, economics and such he was "not all that bright".

Besides to prove what I've stated all have have to do is mention just two words:

Yoko Ono.

Game, set, and match to truthguy.

[Do Not Make Fun Of His Ears]

>>I can’t remember anything he said that was particularly articulate. You would have to cite those. <<

If you’re too lazy to do your own research, then so be it.

You said he was “not too bright” which IS the same as stupid. Your statement is idiotic. And your wit is just as dull.

[Right Wing Assault]

And who cares what any artist thinks?

Young people. They absorb lib stuff from them when they are young and it sticks with a lot of them forever. We should care about what artists think, too, so we can argue against them. They are libs generally and I DO care what they think so I can try to counteract them. Know thy enemy.

[Do Not Make Fun Of His Ears]

This guy you say is “not too bright” wrote some of the most beautiful lyrics and melodies ever known to man, which are still treasured over 40 years after most were recorded.

He was a founder and driving force behind of the greatest and most recognized music groups in world history.

Yet you say he was “not too bright.”

Get back to me when you’ve accomplished all he’s accomplished.

[gnickgnack2]

I was lucky enough to live near John Lennon in the last few years of his life. He loved to walk the streets of NYC. How many times I saw him toodling around Bloomingdale’s! No body guards, no entourage, no nothin’. All changed with his death.

So now he HAS bodyguards and an entourage?

And on another note...Haven’t we given Peace lots of chances?

[truthguy]

You said he was “not too bright” which IS the same as stupid. Your statement is idiotic. And your wit is just as dull.

You cannot even get the quote correct. If you are gonna use quotation marks, at least be accurate. Here's what I said in my original quote:

"The bottom line is that John Lennon was not all that bright and certainly was not very well educated."

Now you have stated that I said "not too bright" which is incorrect. You have misquoted me. I've gone through this with SpaceCadet and I'm getting tired of remedial teaching. The expression "not all that bright" is generally accepted to imply that someone has an exaggerated sense of their own intelligence. A person could be of average or even above average intelligence and still be "not all that bright". This is certainly true of Barack Obama.

As far as education is concerned, it cannot be denied that Lennon was not well educated at least formally. He didn't attend a university and didn't get good grades in school. Just google John Lennon & education and read for yourself.

I said repeatedly that he was a great lyricist and a great musician. What more need be said about this? I've given him great praise in this regard. Just go back and read what I've written. But I'm gonna repeat for the last time, because you have some artistic talent (and he had a lot) doesn't mean you are wise in the ways of the world.

I'm done with this topic. I'm tired of responding to ridiculous posts.

[Do Not Make Fun Of His Ears]

>>was not well educated at least formally. He didn’t attend a university and didn’t get good grades in school. Just google John Lennon & education and read for yourself.<<

Well I guess I’ll have the last word then. He was artistic, extremely so, and harnessed that into a phenomenal career. And that is “bright” by its definition.

He hated school. So what? And he had no university training. So what?

Neither did Rush Limbaugh. I guess you are gonna say Rush is “not too bright” too?

Bost men were phenomenal successes in their endeavors, and extremely “bright.”

Sorry, dude. You stepped in doo-doo. Your post was wrong. We’re just calling you out for it, that’s all.

Have a nice day, though.