Am I Too Cynical about U2

I'd be more than happy to never have to see or hear another word about this self-righteous, smug bastard.

besides bono is a limey therefore = hitler

heh i have forgot whose side i am on

The music is bad too.

Just say no to Bono.

Found the Carlo Guliani relief fund for medical aid to anarchists who had their heart in the right place and now have a shoulder dislocated?

Wasn't he calling the White House from the stage ten years ago? Now he finally gets through.

So when some "politically engaged" star like Sting asks how much $ it is necessary to give away when you have millions in order to be a "moral" person, I say to the TV, "ALL OF IT YOU COCKFARMER!"

But I don't get super-upset over it. And someone revoke my '=' key, please!

Is there a difference in fetishizing american musical culture vs doing it to a flag, which let's face it, which has a martial overtone in my book?

Mr. Carlin,

Living and working on the US-Mexican border, I can tell you firsthand that debt relief does not trickle down to the people who need help and/or government assistance. Surprise, surprise, all it ends up doing is mysteriously swelling the offshore accounts of corrupt Third World politicians. If you don't believe me, study the case of former Mexican president Carlos Salinas, currently comfortably ensconsed in exile in Eire after draining the Mexican coffers. (Also look into the facts of the Zapitistas.)

And I've yet to hear anything about Bono protesting THAT particular state of affairs. Certainly the Mexican people have, but neither their government, the US government nor the Irish government has done a damn thing thing about it.

When push comes to shove, Bono isn't about to place himself into a concrete situation close to home. Much easier to deal with matters of the abstract, sufficiently distant from his privileged existence.

So what do I do then, Mr. Carlin? For a start, I'm involved with several independent (i.e. - not grassroots, NOT government affiliated) organizations which bring food, clothing and education DIRECTLY to the poor in Mexico. And by that I mean hands-on, literally door to door. This makes a tangible, concrete difference in these peoples' lives, people who quite literally live in cardboard houses. And, believe me, IMF debt relief or no, these people will not benefit AT ALL from this shell game.

So pardon my French, Mr. Carlin, but FUCK YOU, you sanctimonius prick. What the hell are you doing???? Study the facts (the gospel according to Bono is hopelessly incorrect) and get your information straight before you go slagging off people.

Apologies for being obtuse, but you threw me on the context -- meaning the facts they bring to the table re: the government, or the truth of their leaders, or...?

Bono appears to believe that debt relief = automatic improvement in standard of living of the Third World poor, which leads me to doubt that he's ever spent any time (aside from the quick photo op afternoon stroll through an African village) dealing firsthand with the daily lives of these people.

Just who do you think a reduction in Third World debt is going to benefit? This is not me being cyncial, just realistic.

Hell, even his buddy/mentor Brian Eno has written and written well about the National Defense and International Aid war machine shell game. You'd think he would've sat down and explained a thing or two about a thing or two to Bono, eh?

As a Mexican friend of mine has often stated, "We don't give a damn what they say about restructuring the economy. We don't have anything, and the only thing we can always be sure of is is that we'll never get anything. When you have been cast out of the economy, you really don't care what games they are playing with it."

Bono doesn't have a clue about the reality of the situation, and neither, apparently, do you. Money is simply not circulated in Mexico. There is zero "trickle down" effect. In ideal terms, Bono's issue is a just and noble and neat abstraction, but it rests on a patently false premise and is oblivious to the economic and political reality. In the end, all it accomplishes is that Bono can feel better about himself. Meanwhile, the rich get even more richer and the poor still have nothing.

Sorry to rain on your parade, son.

As previously stated, wouldn't it be more constructive he if were to, say, campaign to have Salinas expelled from Eire (along with his billions), returned to Mexico and rightfully jailed, and see to it that the Mexican people get their money back? If that were to actually happen, it might make an actual difference.

No, Bono isn't about to put his neck on the line and risk dealing with real politics and real issues that may (gulp) infringe on his daily existence. It could create trouble for him with the Irish powers that be. Best to cast your wayward glance to an abstracted issue far, far away.

But for all I know, Salinas is a well-paying client at Bono's hotel.

i don't have the irish fortune 500 to hand, but surely mr vox is up in the single figures

What a good lambasting, Sutcliffe. Cheers, cuntface.

& true, this won't give ultimately a road to true modernization & development, debt relief at least stops the govt from being forced to "restructure" away extant social services & labor laws. (& you're not going to try and claim that there are NO social services & labor laws in Mexico, are you? Because that would make you a real assface).

BUT ITS SOOOOOOOO GOOD...........................FORGIVE ME.

My cousin is married to the edge's sister

his name isn't smithers

i don't like bono

there was a thing in the paper on guitar playing

and the edge said he didn't play guitar for pleasure and he didn't play unless it was rehearsing, recording or performing and ni fact said he wasn''t a guitarist, how very very gittish no?

i saw them at slane last year. talk about hysteria. fools. i managed to get tickets from a friend who's dad worked in RTE. our tickets were meant for Shay Healey. hehehehehhe

http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/news-gossip/

oops.
http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/news-gossip/bonos-friendship-with-war-criminals-makes-me-cringe-1587158.html

Another thing, I don't think music-makers should hang out with policy- makers. Just because you play the guitar and wear old jackets like you were in the Army at sometime in the past doesn't mean you get to make forgein policy.

He couldn't possibly have done anything worse than George W. Bush.

These are pretty strong words though

Do I think George Bush is a war criminal? Probably -- but the difference between him and Tony Blair is that Blair is intelligent. So, he has no excuse."

Worse, they are kind of true. Although Blair wasn't intelligent enough not to fall into the Iraq-trap set up for him by Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld and Powell (well, in fact, the others made Powell fall into the same trap too, I guess)

the most hilarious part of the recent joe strummer doco was when bono announced that the biggest tragedy about the clash is that if it weren't for the in-band tension and subsequent breakup, they'd still be around making records. just like U2, hey?

the most hilarious part of the recent joe strummer doco was when bono announced that the biggest tragedy about the clash is that if it weren't for the in-band tension and subsequent breakup, they'd still be around making records. just like U2, hey?

Oh, but there is a huge difference. The Clash debuted in 1977, U2 debuted in 1979. That's two motherfucking years man! ;)

But anyway, had The Clash been still around, and making albums as great as the most recent couple of U2 albums, then, well, that would be fine with me.

Jeremy Clarkson on the Best of Top Gear:

"hmm, 1979, the Clash were just about finished.."

Never took him for a purist!

haha, i guess my comment wasn't allowing for the fact that people like the last couple of U2 records :)
but the actual music on the records was never really my main gripe with it all really. i guess it's the band's apparent indifference to the fact that its current call to arms is reaching the most pedestrian, undiscerning type of non-music fan out there that irks me.

i guess it's the band's apparent indifference to the fact that its current call to arms is reaching the most pedestrian, undiscerning type of non-music fan out there that irks me.

You mean, they appeal to fans of hip-hop and miminal techno? Because that is what should be defined as non-music fans.

Actually, U2 just sucks.