Celebrities are spouting politics -- and we're listening

http://www.kansascity.com ^ | Tue, Feb. 18, 2003 | By TONY HICKS Contra Costa Times

[Billthedrill]

It's only become semi-comfortable for many celebrities to directly speak out against the government over the past decade.

What a bunch of illusory, self-dramatizing crap! Oh, the poor, brave darlings, how they suffered...my friends come home from Nam in body bags and Sean Penn has a hangnail. Screw him. Screw 'em all.

[Paul Atreides]

I'm curious: when did Sean Penn take out a newspaper ad in Baghdad chastising Saddam, when he was over there in Iraq?

[fight_truth_decay]

CROSSING THE LINE

16 minutes

streaming video clip from Crossing the Line (5 min 59 s) "One of the outstanding documentary shorts of 1999" Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Pete Seeger, Martin Sheen and Daniel Berrigan at the gates of Ft. Benning

CROSSING THE LINE movingly depicts how the campaign to close the U.S. Army School of the Americas (SOA) has become an international grassroots movement. Narrated by Susan Sarandon.

On November 22, 1998, over 7,000 students, teachers, church people, activists and former military - some of whom had trained at Ft. Benning, Georgia - met outside the gates of Ft. Benning where the SOA is located. Led by actor Martin Sheen, 2,319 of them risked arrest and imprisonment by crossing the line onto the military base, the largest act of civil disobedience in the U.S. since the Vietnam war.

Carrying coffins and crosses bearing the names of thousands of men, women and children assassinated by SOA graduates in Latin America, they demanded that the U.S. government end its policy of training foreign soliders and close the SOA's doors forever. CROSSING THE LINE documents this inspiring nonviolent protest, including interviews with the participants and dramatic scenes of the protest.

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Sheen was arrested in 2000 for trespassing at California's Vandenberg Air Force Base while protesting a missile defense program. He was sentenced to three years probation in 2001 for the incident.

[goodnesswins]

ROFL......

[unspun]

HOLLYWOOD
DECLARE YOUR
WEAPONS OF MASS DYSFUNCTION

[Bob J]

Tonight at 6pm on RadioFR! Interviews with Grover Norquist, John Hager and Michael Zak! Plus, Doug from Upland interviews Ted Hayes, homeless advocate and strong supporter of military action in Iraq!

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[hotpotato]

In the News/Activism forum, on a thread titled Celebrities are spouting politics -- and we're listening , what's up wrote: "Curiously, there's been a lack of public comments concerning Iraq from high-profile conservative celebrities such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis"

True...where are they? They are fabulously wealthy, popular stars. If there's any time to use one's clout for a good cause now is it.

Arnold's only vocal when he's pushing a plan to spend tax money on after-school babysitters.... a rembarbly democratic-sounding program.

I'd really like to know why we haven't heard from him loud and clear on this issue. Where does he stand?

[hotpotato]

*remarkably* democratic-sounding program (sheesh... sorry)

[RJayneJ]

Madonna urges restraint.

Well, for God's sake somebody restrain her!

[The Toad]

It was also a lesson in how much real-world importance we place on the words of celebrities.

Huh? Not me. As soon as I see a celebrity making any kind of political statement I immediately discard their "expert" opinions. After all, how many of these actors have Political Science or History degrees? Actually how many of them are college educated at all? Only a moron would lend an ear to George Clooney or Martin Sheen (etc) and their prestigious back-lot think tanks.

[Paul Atreides]

Madonna urges restraint.

With black leather straps, I'm sure.

[RJayneJ]

};^D )

[Memother]

"Madonna urges restraint."

Curious choice of words from this one - someone give the girl a dictionary.

[RushLake]

I was talking to a WWII combat veteran who served in the ETO. Arrived as a replacement after June 6, and fought to the end. Like almost all combat vets I've ever met, he doesn't talk about who he may have fired his weapon at. Like all combat vets I've ever met, he talks about the cold, or the food, or humorous things that happened. One of the things he told me was that the 1949 movie "Battleground" makes him think about the winter of '44/'45 because the sound of the cannons in the movie sound just like they did in real life in winter '44/'45. James Whitmore did a great job playing a sargeant in that movie. He also played Admiral Halsey in Tora, Tora, Tora. That is the stuff that pi$$es me off about some of these people, they had to make an effort to understand the people they played. How come they can't understand that they are often playing the role of giants?

[GodBlessRonaldReagan]

Damon, Matt - overrated wife of Ben Affleck

ROTFLMAO!

Dennis Weaver is on this list? C'mon, first Kent McCord and now McCloud?!?!?!