Rock The Vote

[theknife]

don't recall seeing the rock establishment so directly involved in politics before:

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Boss is going up against the boss.

Bruce Springsteen, the U.S. rock icon known as The Boss, will join two dozen other stars in nine "battleground" states for a rock 'n' roll tour aimed at ousting President Bush, organizers said on Wednesday.

The "Vote for Change" tour -- 34 shows in 28 cities -- is scheduled for the first week of October, one month before the U.S. presidential election.

"The tour is aimed squarely at the radical right wing policies of Republican ideologues throughout the country," said Eli Pariser, executive director of MoveOn PAC, the online liberal political action committee presenting the tour.

Six concert lineups will play simultaneous shows in a blitz of so-called swing states -- those that could go either Democrat or Republican in November: Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin.

"I felt like I couldn't have written the music I've written, and been on stage singing about the things that I've sung about for the last 25 years and not take part in this particular election," said Springsteen, who has avoided direct political work in the past.

Dave Matthews, James Taylor, the Dixie Chicks, James Taylor, Pearl Jam, R.E.M, John Melencam p, Jackson Browne, and Bonnie Raitt are among the performers donating their talent and time to get Democrat John Kerry (news - web sites) into the White House.

Proceeds from the tour go to America Coming Together, another liberal political action group.

quite a line-up - do voter registration at the gig and you might be able to make an impact. better yet, hand out absentee ballots

"A vote for change is a vote for a stronger, safer, healthier America," Matthews said. "A vote for Bush is a vote for a divided, unstable, paranoid America."

i happen to agree with this, although i've been unable to conjure up even the slightest enthusiasm for Kerry. he's just not Bush.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...mpaign_rock_dc

[theknife]

Several of the recording artists who make up "Vote for Change" are shown in this photo released in New York, Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2004. Members of the group will perform in a series of fund-raising concerts in nine swing states before the presidential election in an effort to unseat President Bush. From left are Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard: Boyd Tinsley of the Dave Matthews Band, Jackson Browne; Martie Maguire of the Dixie Chicks, Steven Van Zandt from Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Dave Matthews, Bruce Springsteen, Emily Robison of the Dixie Chicks, Patti Scialfa of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam, Bonnie Raitt, Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie, John Mellencamp, Nick Harmer of Death Cab for Cutie and R.E.M's Mike Mills.

[Mazer]

Remeber Live Aid? How about Farm Aid? Those are shows that don't just take a stand, they make a difference. Vote for Change is just a publicity stunt led by the same guy who tried and failed to oust Reagan in '84. I still like these guys' music, doesn't mean I care what they think about Bush though.

[daddydirt]

you sure that's not the cast of the new ABC show FiftySomething??

[albed]

Guess their lame liberal agenda doesn't make people very enthusiastic so they have to lure them in with cheap entertainment.

[RDixon]

Originally Posted by albed

Guess their lame liberal agenda doesn't make people very enthusiastic so they have to lure them in with cheap entertainment.

You mean like the cheap entertainment excuse England is trying to use as a defense for the photos of her at the torture prison in Iraq?

we were just young and restless and bored...
" we did it for fun..."

[albed]

Was that another staged liberal event to lure voters? Damn they're sneaky!

[miss_silver]

Originally Posted by albed

Was that another staged liberal event to lure voters? Damn they're sneaky!

Wasn't that NY orange alert givin by reps based on pre 9/11 intelligence documents to lure more votes by scaring ppl shit for nothing? Damn they're sneaky!

[theknife]

Originally Posted by Mazer

Remeber Live Aid? How about Farm Aid? Those are shows that don't just take a stand, they make a difference. Vote for Change is just a publicity stunt led by the same guy who tried and failed to oust Reagan in '84. I still like these guys' music, doesn't mean I care what they think about Bush though.

it is no more or less of a publicity stunt than Live Aid or Farm Aid and it takes a hell of a lot more balls to participate (look what happened to the Dixie Chicks the last time they spoke up). if these concerts can increase voter particpation in crucial swing states in November, then they will have made a difference.

and isn't it ironic that it takes charity events to raise money for needy Americans via Farm Aid, while your government pour billions of US taxpayer dollars into Iraq? Farm Aid has rmanaged to raise $17 million dollars in the 20 years of it's existence - we spent that much last week to help the poor Iraqis.

Vote For Change is encouraging regime change - that would make a helluva lot more difference in the average American's life than Farm Aid or Live Aid ever did.

[Sinner]

Vote for Change.....

If Kerry moves into the White House do you really think he is going to pull out of Iraq? Your "regime" is going to improve American's way of life how? higher Taxes? I would like to know....

[JackSpratts]

meanwhile the republicans have the artiste britney spears for their convention.

"i wish you all would please vote for mr. bush 'cause he's like...

um...

...the president!

thank you."

- js.

[albed]

Hmmmm...perhaps another wardrobe malfunction.

"I'll vote!....show the other and I'll vote twice!"

[theknife]

Originally Posted by Sinner

Vote for Change.....

If Kerry moves into the White House do you really think he is going to pull out of Iraq? Your "regime" is going to improve American's way of life how? higher Taxes? I would like to know....

i don't give Kerry credit for a lot, but i'm pretty comfortable that he has the brains to have figured out that:

a) there is no military solution to the war on terror
b) trying to force democracy on an Arab country is a fool's errand
c) sending other people's kids off to die is the last thing you do, when there are no other options

Bush, on the other hand, has not figured these things out, and given another four years, is quite capable of doing something as stupid as Iraq all over again. that's the difference...the rest is just details.

[miss_silver]

Originally Posted by theknife

i don't give Kerry credit for a lot, but i'm pretty comfortable that he has the brains to have figured out that:

a) there is no military solution to the war on terror
b) trying to force democracy on an Arab country is a fool's errand
c) sending other people's kids off to die is the last thing you do, when there are no other options

Bush, on the other hand, has not figured these things out, and given another four years, is quite capable of doing something as stupid as Iraq all over again. that's the difference...the rest is just details.

Humm

Bush Jr is from Skull & Bones, Kerry is from Skull & Bones... They both have the same agenda IMO. Voting for the lesser evil is Kerry (who's got a heinz legecy) and will prolly do absolutely nothing conserning the palestine/israel war. Voting for Bush means still more money for war

Either one who wins, it's a catch 22, we are screwed on both sides.

Coming form the canadian side of the border, even we, are screwed even tho we don't get a saying in this whole mess.

Sorry tk, but both runner are dirty. On the upside of things, recently heard that the reps were funding Nader to steal more dems votes
No one is clean in this, not even that tree hugger of Nader

[albed]

Originally Posted by miss_silver

Humm

Bush Jr is from Skull & Bones, Kerry is from Skull & Bones... They both have the same agenda IMO. Voting for the lesser evil is Kerry (who's got a heinz legecy) and will prolly do absolutely nothing conserning the palestine/israel war. Voting for Bush means still more money for war

Either one who wins, it's a catch 22, we are screwed on both sides.

Hmmm, a miss silver sandwich.
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Originally Posted by miss_silver

Coming form the canadian side of the border, even we, are screwed even tho we don't get a saying in this whole mess.

How are canuks screwed? It's a seperate country you know.
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Originally Posted by miss_silver

Sorry tk, but both runner are dirty. On the upside of things, recently heard that the reps were funding Nader to steal more dems votes
No one is clean in this, not even that tree hugger of Nader

So if it's on the upside why are you mad and what did Nader do? I don't think he agreed to it.

[Mazer]

All I'm saying is that these musicians are just using Bush to sell tickets. It's okay if that's really how they want to make a living, but it used to be that musicians made money with their music, not their opinions. And sure, musicians use music to voice their opinions all the time, but these guys wrote most of their music before Bush was elected. Can these really be considered anti-Bush concerts if they don't actually play any anti-Bush music? The title "Vote for Change" is advertizing rather than advocacy, and isn't really different from "Rock Against Bush" which is shipping it's second volume soon. I wouldn't be opposed if their message was neutral: "We won't tell you who to vote for just as long as you cast your vote. Then, no matter the outcome, you'll be a true patriot for participating in the election."

Music fans come in both leftwing and rightwing varieties, and holding these concerts in swing states only makes the outcome more uncertain.

[theknife]

Originally Posted by Mazer

All I'm saying is that these musicians are just using Bush to sell tickets. It's okay if that's really how they want to make a living, but it used to be that musicians made money with their music, not their opinions. And sure, musicians use music to voice their opinions all the time, but these guys wrote most of their music before Bush was elected. Can these really be considered anti-Bush concerts if they don't actually play any anti-Bush music? The title "Vote for Change" is advertizing rather than advocacy, and isn't really different from "Rock Against Bush" which is shipping it's second volume soon. I wouldn't be opposed if their message was neutral: "We won't tell you who to vote for just as long as you cast your vote. Then, no matter the outcome, you'll be a true patriot for participating in the election."

Music fans come in both leftwing and rightwing varieties, and holding these concerts in swing states only makes the outcome more uncertain.

using Bush to sell tickets? c'mon...Springsteen? Dave Matthews? these guys can sell out any venue anywhere anytime - you think they need Bush to sell tickets?

Proceeds from the tour go to America Coming Together, an independent group working in Florida and other states to turn out anti-Bush voters.

you're missing the point here - the purpose is not to be neutral, not to make money off tickets - the purpose is to rally and galvanize the anti-Bush vote., and raise money for organizations working towards that end.

"Our main goal is to change the direction the government's been going in for the last four years, and to change administrations," said Springsteen in a phone interview with The Star-Ledger yesterday.

that's not advocacy? the strong advocacy from the normally apolitical rock establishment is what makes it so striking and why i posted it in the first place. who knows whether they can impact the election but i give them credit for trying.

if you ever listened to Springsteen's live 1985 triple album, he does a short monologue about kids getting sent to war and why it's important to question our leaders...and then he goes into the song War. i've got respect for the man - he's clearly acting on convictions he's held for many year. if there's personal gain in here, i don't see it - he does't need the ticket sales, he won't profit from them, and if the Dixie Chicks flap is any indication, the stand he's taking can only hurt his career.

[miss_silver]

Originally Posted by albed

Hmmm, a miss silver sandwich.

Why a sandwich? Please explain since you seem to have all the answer[/quote]

How are canuks screwed? It's a seperate country you know.

Wish it truly was, But we keep getting fucked by the free trade agreement BTW, would it kill ya to use the term Canadian for a change!

So if it's on the upside why are you mad and what did Nader do? I don't think he agreed to it.

Prolly not, but the facts are there. Some rich reps have been very generous towars Nader these days, to get him on some states ballots

Wonder why

[albed]

Originally Posted by miss_silver

Why a sandwich? Please explain since you seem to have all the answer

Menage a trois type stuff...screwed on both sides....I'm a dirty dirty perv.

Originally Posted by miss_silver

BTW, would it kill ya to use the term Canadian for a change!

I thought Quebecians didn't like being called Canadian.

[miss_silver]

Originally Posted by albed

Menage a trois type stuff...screwed on both sides....I'm a dirty dirty perv.

I thought Quebecians didn't like being called Canadian.

You a perv? Na

Hey, if you want to split hair on how i'd like to be labeled, it's your own affair, but please spell it right even tho there is no "cian" ending.