Memo to celebrities: Keep your war opinions to yourselves

The Seattle Times ^ | Thursday, March 20, 2003 | Erik Lacitis

[van_erwin]

By the time you read this, the war might be on.

The radio talk shows and the cable channels will be going 24/7 with nothing but Iraq news and analysis from retired generals — and anchors whose knowledge of history depends on what a producer just handed them.

I don't have to tell you the obvious: These are dangerous, momentous times. There will be plenty of blather being spewed, which is why I have a small request for our chart-topping recording stars and others who regularly make it into People magazine:

PLEASE SHUT UP.

If you could just go back to your personal trainers or hairstylists, and talk to them about world issues, then maybe someone with real perspective and real knowledge would get air and print time. Someone like Walter Cronkite, or some historian types.

Let's take Clint Black, who seems like a nice guy. He's always very personable when being interviewed by Jay Leno. I liked his "Got Milk?" ad.

But this week, Clint joined a long line of country stars who capitalize on patriotism. Now his tune, "I Raq And Roll" is just more fodder that gets played on the right-wing talk shows. Here is a sampling of the lyrics:

"I rock, I rack 'em up and I roll/ I'm back and I'm a high-tech GI Joe ... /Now you can come along/ Or you can stay behind/ Or you can get out of the way/ But our troops take out the garbage/ For the good old U.S.A."

Yeah, Clint, you must be real proud that some dittohead driving the freeway can punch his fist in the air while singing along. This would be the same dittohead who'd do everything possible to keep his son out of the Army, if we reinstated the draft.

Anyway, Clint, I'm sure you did this because of true feelings of patriotism, even if your Web site is also selling "I Raq N Roll" T-shirts at $25 a pop.

PLEASE SHUT UP.

I keep wondering — if these music stars are so patriotic, how come their biographies never mention any military service?

Hey, Charlie Daniels, you wrote an incensed "Open Letter to the Hollywood Bunch." How come your official bio mentions all your "musical milestones," but no military service?

"You people are some of the most disgusting examples of a waste of protoplasm I've ever had the displeasure to hear about," Charlie wrote about those infamous Hollywood liberals, such as Sean Penn.

PLEASE SHUT UP.

Hey, Hank Williams Jr., you've been on the patriotism bandwagon forever — in the 1990 Iraq war you were thumping, "You can take your poison gas and stick it in your sassafras." How come you never joined up? As the late Mike Royko, the best-ever columnist, once wrote about you: "Incidentally, Hank Williams Jr. was born in 1949, which means he was old enough to have been in the Vietnam War. He wasn't. I don't know why. Maybe he had a good reason. Guitar lessons or something."

PLEASE SHUT UP.

And not just you country stars.

You too, Madonna. On MTV, there is a video you made in time for the Iraq war. It's supposed to "examine the horrors of war." Your idea of that is showing slutty-looking models in fatigues, lobbing grenades. "I hope this provokes thought and dialogue," you said about the video.

Then there is Kid Rock, best known as Pamela Anderson's boyfriend. Needless to say, I found no military service in his bio. But Kid Rock is out there spouting, "We got to kill that mother (bleep) Saddam. Slit his throat."

Or Barbra Streisand, who on her Web site quoted from William Shakespeare: "... beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into patriotic fever." Except that Shakespeare never said it. It was a phony quote that somebody posted on the Internet. You'd think that with her millions, Barbra could hire a college kid to research this sort of thing.

PLEASE SHUT UP.

And here's a final thought on the music industry these days:

Out there in the desert, when the troops have a little time off and put CDs into their compact-disc players, a good portion will be playing hip-hop music. It is "urban music" played by radio stations in pretty much every city in the country.

This is the music that cuts across race. As troops wait to go into battle, this is what they'll be listening to.

As Matt Vaughan, the owner of Easy Street Records and Cafe in Seattle told me: "It's kick-back music. It's not about protest or gangster life. It's about trying to find a good time."

Stephen Benbrook, owner of Zion's Gate Records in downtown Seattle, says political hip-hop sells in small amounts.

But " 'bling-bling,' that is what the major-label hip-hop is about," Benbrook says. "You know about bling-bling, diamonds, money, watches, pendants, chicks and cars."

Chicks and cars.

At least the hip-hop guys have it figured out. They know what that 21-year-old's dreams are about.

Erik Lacitis: 206-464-2237 or elacitis@seattletimes.com.

[van_erwin]

I think the author makes a good point here. Whether I agree with a celebrities' opinions or not, the point is that these people are spouting off from ivory towers, and in pretty much every case are completely unqualified to comment. Like he says, please just SHUT UP!

[Coop]

Interesting that by far most of the celebrities spouting off are shouting anti-war drivel, yet this author seems to focus his rage mostly on those supporting the war.

Oh well, I'm sure it's just my clouded VRWC lenses again.

[merrin]

Why is it any less legitimate for celebrites to comment in fora that are open to them than it is for the rest of us to comment on fora such as FR? I mean, I'm much smarter than Madonna, but I have no more military training or expertise.

If you want to blame someone, blame the media which give celebrities a forum; better yet, blame the people who demand celebrity "news" and make it profitable for the media to provide it.

[big bad easter bunny]

Does this guy get paid to write?

[goldstategop]

He tells conservative celebrities to shut up. Au contraire they need more air time.

[Media Insurgent]

I noticed the same thing. It seems like he really wanted to just go after the pro-war stuff, but threw just enough stuff in there about Madonna to give the faintest hint of "balance".

[wku man]

I would like to believe this guy means what he says, but when liberals start call for "all sides" to do something, it's because "their side" is losing ground. Yeah, I'd like it better if all celebrities just shut up and sang, acted, whatever, but they started it, so our guys will end it.

So I say to Clint, Toby, Darrell, Kid Suck...uh, I mean Rock, Charlie, et al., keep it up! The commie, hippie, dumbass war protesters (and their cheerleaders in the criminal, liberal mainstream media) are starting to buckle. What you're saying is hitting harder and scoring more points with the American people than anything Hollyweird, Melloncrap, the Beastie BitchBoys, and the Blixie Chunks are saying.

Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!

[Prysson]

Articles like this make me smile. I just love it when we get under thier skin and they spout off like this.

[van_erwin]

In my opinion, he's telling all the celebrities to shut up. I don't want to hear Babs whine about her pseudo-Shakespeare quotes. I'm also offended when I hear some singer who never served in the military puff up his chest and act like war's a big p***ing match.
We're going in to take out an evil regime and liberate an oppressed people, making the world a safer place for everyone. In the process, people are going to die. Most of them are evil, and have to be killed for the safety of the world. Sadly, some have been (and still will be) our own sons and daughters. They are heroes, and deserve honor and our eternal gratitude from here to heaven.
To me, that doesn't include creating opportunities for country singers to sell t-shirts.

[AbsoluteJustice]

I agree with your point.

[Libertarian444]

then maybe someone with real perspective and real knowledge would get air and print time. Someone like Walter Cronkite, or some historian types.

Tells you all you need to know about this guy's IQ.

Yeah, just what the world needs - more Cronkite's and Kerns-Goodwins'.

[Paul Atreides]

I knew the article was crap when he said we should listen to Walter Crapkite.

[Xenalyte]

This would be the same dittohead who'd do everything possible to keep his son out of the Army, if we reinstated the draft.

Bullsh!t. I do not know ONE conservative who would do such a thing.

[Xenalyte]

So let me get this straight: you're not allowed to have an opinion on the war unless you've had military service?

Okay, all you men out there - you are no longer allowed to hold any views on "reproductive rights." (God, I hate that phrase.) After all, since you've never been pregnant . . .

[van_erwin]

Of course you can have an opinion. This is America. I am just saying that it's offensive to hear someone treat war like a pep rally. This war was our last resort, and no one wanted it to come to this, but it had to. President Bush did not send our troops in just to give CNN ratings, or to sell t-shirts.
I did not serve in the military, but my brother did. There are a lot of things I don't comment on, because I simply don't understand the way he does. You'll never hear him put down his country or question the judgement of his commanders. You'll never hear him cheer for death, either.
I'm behind our President, our troops, and our great nation. Part of what makes us great - what makes us different from Iraq - is that we do what has to be done, but when we go to war, we do so with a heavy heart.
Godspeed our troops, and let this terrible time pass soon. Let the world become a better place, and let our souls not be stained by the evil that we fight.

[Xenalyte]

Didn't mean to direct my comments at you - intended them for the author.

[Ozone34]

It's interesting that the "celebrities" who can't keep their mouths shut are all from television, film or pop music. You never hear about superstar athletes, like Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan, etc., making comparable fools of themselves despite the fact that they have at least as big if not bigger fan followings.

I think the reason is because media celebrities as part of their job often portray important, educated, erudite, influential personalities in their movies, shows, songs, etc., despite the fact that for the most part they are a bunch of moronic high-school dropouts. They have actually come to believe that they share the characteristics of the people they portray. Professional athletes are under no such delusion. The media celebrity publicist profession obviously knows how to exploit this facade with their fanbase.

[sharktrager]

Actually, in most of the cases discussed in this and other articles, the stars themselves are not to blame for spouting their opinions. Their blame tends to be in the form of being stupid.

With the exception of those like Barbara Streisand, Madonna, Clint Black and Hank Williams Jr., the stars have almost all simply answered questions asked by the media, who then choose to present these opinions as if they had some value.

In an ideal world, people who were uninformed would realize that and just answer with "I don't know". But most of these stars haven't done anything different than we do. They get pulled in to a conversation and share their thoughts. The difference is that nobody cares what we think enough to publish it.

The stars are guilty of stupidity. The media are guilty of treating fools like sages.

[2rightsleftcoast]

I read on FR, I believe, that when Michael Jordan was asked by the Democrats to help with the campaign a while back,he said no. They were suprised and asked why.
He said,"Repbulicans buy shoes too" . Smart Man

[my_pointy_head_is_sharp]

Erik Lacitis: PLEASE SHUT UP.

[Someone had to say it.]