Wednesday, July 21, 2004

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot

Go read this and then come back. (Don't bother, the link's broken. If I remember correctly, it was an article about how Linda Ronstadt was banned from performing at some hotel after recommending her audience go see Fahrenheit 9/11.)

Finished? Ok, so is anyone reminded of that shit that happened with the Dixie Chicks a while back? That was bullshit then, and this is bullshit now. "People paid money to see a show, not a political forum." Oh really, so now suggesting people see a particular movie (that just happens to be about a certain politician) is akin to holding a political forum? Fuck you.

And then they throw her out of her room, and ban her from ever performing again? All over a simple comment about Michael Moore and Fahrenheit 9/11? I'm pretty sure there's a free speech issue there, if Ms. Ronstadt felt like pressing the point.

This kind of activity only serves to lend credence to the idea that we, as a country, are headed towards a "1984" style of society. Any sort of dissension, anything that goes against the grain, anything that questions the authority is immediately responded to with rage, retribution, and attempts to silence the dissenter. After what happened to the Dixie Chicks, and now Linda Ronstadt, I think it's clear that the conservatives control the discourse. They can say and do anything to those who disagree with them, and their supporters and the fence-sitters will eat it up with a spoon.

On a related note, at Yahoo (where I found the link to this article) there's a sidebar that lists Opinion and Editorial columns. Every last one of them was decidedly pro-Bush, and dismissive of Ronstadt's comments and/or Michael Moore. What was that about a liberal media? Here's a debating tip for you: if the evidence doesn't back up what you're saying, you don't have a valid point, asshole.

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