that or a beer keg up his ass. New party game, spin the Bono [:d]
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U2's Call to Disarm
On their recently wrapped tour, U2 used their nightly podium to powerfully address the issue of gun
control. During their performance of The Joshua Tree's "Bullet the Blue Sky," the band screened a
disturbing video montage created by artist Catherine Owens that included images of victims of gun
violence and children toting firearms.
"The song needed something that would contemporize it," says the Edge. "We're treading a very fine
line between being artists and wanting to lecture Americans about issues that are important. It's
basically turning the mirror on the audience."
During their June 21st performance at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey,
Bono stood at the end of the heart-shaped catwalk, illuminated only by the flashlight he held in his
hand. At the song's climax, Bono turned the flashlight toward his face as he repeated, "What's my
name? Mark Chapman!" over and over again, referring to John Lennon's assassin.
In the past twenty-one years, 676,000 Americans have died as a result of gun violence - a total higher
than the death tally from the Vietnam War. "It's so surprising to people who come from Europe and
anyone who's come from Ireland that in the U.S. guns are so available," says the Edge. "It has always
mystified us."