Bono strikes again!!!!

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Bono strikes again!!!!

Posted: 11/15/2003 6:20:20 AM EDT

www1.sympatico.ca/news/Fullstories/e111448A.html

By ALEXANDER PANETTA

TORONTO (CP) - The biggest star at the Liberal convention swaggered onstage Friday with his shirt unbuttoned, his language a tad salty - and a vow to be a "pain in the ass" to the party's new leader.

And thousands of Liberals cheered, screamed and whistled for Bono every step of the way.

U2's frontman was an unconventional guest speaker at the party's leadership convention, lauding Canada's history of foreign aid but adding that it must do much more.

"I'm a fan of Canada," Bono told the cheering crowd.

"I believe the world needs more Canada."

The rocker lent a patina of glamour and buzz to an event that lacked much in the way of any real dramatics. But in exchange for his appearance, he made it clear that he expected Paul Martin to build on the legacy of his predecessors in the fight against global poverty.

"If (Martin) carries the mantle of Pearson, Trudeau and Chretien, if he joins with the groups leading this fight . . . then Canada - O Canada! - will show the world the way forward," he said.

"It's not just that everybody likes Canada. Everybody respects Canada because something is going on here.

"You've avoided a stigma that's attached to the West . . . that other parts of the world regard with such suspicion."

Wearing wraparound sunglasses and a pair of hoop earrings, the Irish rocker admitted he was a strange choice as speaker for a Canadian political event.

"You will have to forgive me if I'm a little shy - you know, I'm not used to speaking to crowds of less than 25,000," he said to chuckles in the spellbound audience.

The crowd was about a third that size as Liberals crowned Martin their new leader at the Air Canada Centre on Friday.

Bono said he agreed to speak because of Martin's track record on foreign aid. He lauded Martin and Prime Minister Jean Chretien for keeping a promise to excuse Third World debt in 2000.

He said both leadership rivals kept the debt-relief promises they made to him.

"I might be the only thing they can agree on," he said, in a sly reference to the leadership foes' long-running feud.

But he cautioned Martin may not be so fond of him in the future as he continues to lobby for help to the Third World.

He already began pushing for Canada to dramatically boost its level of foreign aid, calling for Martin to almost triple current spending to reach the target of 0.7 per cent of GDP.

"I'm going to be the biggest pain in his ass," he said. "A year from now he's going to regret tonight."

When he got a little technical with his reference to the gross domestic product, Bono told Liberals they could go "take a pee" or get a cup of tea if they were bored.

Bono launched into a heartfelt speech about the ravages of AIDS in Africa, telling personal stories about disease-sufferers unable to afford medication.

"This is not just a rock star's pet cause. This is an emergency - and that's why I'm here," he said.

"Africa is going down in flames. . . . If we really believed, deep down, that Africans were equal to us, we would not allow this to happen."

He said Canada has begun doing its part by introducing legislation to allow cheap generic AIDS drugs to be shipped to Africa.

But he added that lingering and chronic poverty creates a nesting ground for international terrorism, just like Afghanistan. He said it would be easier to help Africa now than deal with the damage later.

"It's cheaper to prevent the fire than to put it out."

He thanked Martin and Chretien for returning his phone calls when he lobbied them to step up pressure on other countries to excuse foreign debt for poor countries.

"Paul Martin took my phone calls, he let me in, he promised to help - and he kept that promise," Bono said, adding that Chretien was equally helpful.

In fact, he joked that all Canadians are generally polite.

He joked Canada could take over the world without an army, and lay claim to historic sites like the Kremlin and Buckingham Palace just by saying, "Please."

And what some CAnadianGunNutz members think of him and his "give away more money" speech!

www.canadiangunnutz.com/viewtopic.php?t=23455

Posted: 11/15/2003 6:36:38 AM EDT

[#1]

"Excuse third world debt."
And give more aid. Does he really think that's the cure?
If it was, it should have worked by now.

Posted: 11/15/2003 6:38:42 AM EDT

[#2]

What's Canada? Never heard of it.

Posted: 11/15/2003 6:53:45 AM EDT

[#3]

Quoted:
What's Canada? Never heard of it.

It's America's wild game preserve.

Posted: 11/15/2003 6:54:18 AM EDT

[#4]

Yep, Cana Dah is really a wonderfull example to the whole wide world. They must just be bursting with pride over what Bono had to say about them. Talk about having to have your ego stroked in order to get them to do some more stupid crap like a herd of shepel. Oooh Cana dah

Posted: 11/15/2003 7:05:45 AM EDT

[#5]

I dont understand this shit.

Bono first says:
"I'm a fan of Canada," Bono told the cheering crowd.

"I believe the world needs more Canada."

The he says:
"Bono told Liberals they could go "take a pee" or get a cup of tea if they were bored."

So is Bono a liberal hater or lover?

Posted: 11/15/2003 7:06:50 AM EDT

[#6]

As an ex-patriot myself, the last thing Canada needs is to spend more on foreign aid. From the little I know of Paul Martin, he is no Trudeau or Chretien and, if he sticks to his guns, will actually institute a lot of good policies/changes.

This article, posted here awhile back, would give Bono a heart attack. Well worth another read: www.kimdutoit.com/dr/essays/essays.php?id=P82

Posted: 11/15/2003 7:15:29 AM EDT

[#7]

bono is a talent free moron.

Posted: 11/15/2003 7:22:55 AM EDT

[#8]

I have enjoyed U2's music over the years but Bono's theatrics and political/social musings are irritating.

Posted: 11/15/2003 8:44:27 AM EDT

[#9]

Quoted:

So is Bono a liberal hater or lover?

Depends on whether or not he suckers them into giving away more of my hard earned tax dollars trying to save the world!!!

Those morons in Ottawa better start worrying about the problems in Canada and less about ones we didn't create around the world.
Because if they don't eventually Canada will be full of sick under educated welfare cases.

Posted: 11/15/2003 8:50:45 AM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:
I have enjoyed U2's music over the years but Bono's theatrics and political/social musings are irritating.

Same here.

That's why I download it.

Posted: 11/15/2003 9:06:11 AM EDT

[#11]

I have never heard tell of Bono telling the Irish how they should spend their national treasure. Isn't that odd?

Posted: 11/15/2003 9:17:03 AM EDT

[#12]

Bono: take your useless ass back to Ireland and dig up some potatoes.

Posted: 11/15/2003 9:37:36 AM EDT

[#13]

"Africa is going down in flames.

hmmm, let's see...GONE DOWN IN FLAMES is more like it. further more, don't care.

if we really believed, deep down, that Africans were equal to us, we would not allow this to happen.".

oh, this is a tough one; we were supposed to "REALLY" believe that they were equal to us?!

Posted: 11/15/2003 9:55:45 AM EDT

[#14]

I think it a great idea ..as long as he foots the bill!!! .......just another type of welfare for the world!!!

Posted: 11/15/2003 9:59:14 AM EDT

[#15]

Quoted:
bono is a talent free moron.

I disagree. He has even less talent and intelligence than that.

Posted: 11/15/2003 10:00:45 AM EDT

[#16]

Essay: Let Africa Sink

Posted: 11/17/2003 2:38:52 PM EDT

[#17]

I love how he thinks that he can decide for everyone else how they should think and how they should spend the tax money earned by other countries citizen's.
I have nothing against the Irish, but at the samr time I'm not aware of them sending their children off to other counries to die in tribal wars in the backwards world.
OH that's right, the Irish are involved in some sort of tribal/religious war aren't they?

I've had my fill of the U.S. being expected to be involved in every misery in the world, being expected to always pick the "right" side , having our kids blown to hell, and by the way "don't expect anything in return, thank you very much!"
I beggining to like the idea of letting them all blow themselves away, along with a very determined "don't get us involved stance", because my solution is to permanently and forcefully just remove the irritation. Preferably from a distance to keep our kids safe.

Posted: 11/17/2003 2:49:34 PM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:
I have enjoyed U2's music over the years but Bono's theatrics and political/social musings are irritating.

I like some of their older music, but I just can't bring myself to buy any of it. Bono is far too potent an asshat for his talent to compensate.

(In particular, the anti-gun stuff.)

Posted: 11/17/2003 4:20:29 PM EDT

[#19]

Quoted:
I love how he thinks that he can decide for everyone else how they should think and how they should spend the tax money earned by other countries citizen's.
I have nothing against the Irish, but at the samr time I'm not aware of them sending their children off to other counries to die in tribal wars in the backwards world.
OH that's right, the Irish are involved in some sort of tribal/religious war aren't they?

Bone is a self righteous, egotistical prick who just HAPPENS to be Irish; just like Sting is a self righteous, egotistical prick who just happens to be English. As long as Bono is around, sting WON'T be the most obnixious asshole in rock lol.

Don't think that Bono speaks for all the Irish any more than Sinead O'Connor did. There are lots of talented Irish musicians who don't feel compelled to foist their politics onto everyone esle.

Posted: 11/17/2003 4:33:54 PM EDT

[#20]

I wish he'd just go skiing and crash into a tree.

Posted: 11/17/2003 4:55:21 PM EDT

[#21]

Quoted:
I wish he'd just go skiing and crash into a tree.

Hmmm, Welcome to Colorado! Enjoy!

(+1) ( Last time we scored a Kennedy! )

Posted: 11/17/2003 5:04:10 PM EDT

[#22]

That's way funny!

Posted: 11/17/2003 5:05:32 PM EDT

[#23]

Fenian, I understand that completely.

Just for the record I happen to be decended from mostly Irish and French Canadian stock, with a bit of Welch and native American to make it interesting. So in a way I'm catching it from all sides of this story.
However since I consider myself American first and foremost I get a bit on edge with the rest of the world telling me how I should run my life and spend my money.

Posted: 11/18/2003 5:52:45 AM EDT

[#24]

Quoted:
However since I consider myself American first and foremost I get a bit on edge with the rest of the world telling me how I should run my life and spend my money.

Trust me, I know that feeling.
My beef with Bono is much deeper than yours, though...I heard him make some disparaging remarks about the Irish and their "obsession" with owning land, how he couldn't understand it, etc, how it brought nothing but trouble.

It was even worse than that, I can't remember exactly how he phrased it, but it made my blood boil to think that Pearse and Connolly died less than 100 years ago for that prick. And "Sunday Bloody Sunday" is a complete peace-nik sellout that could have been a much better song.

Posted: 11/18/2003 5:58:28 AM EDT

[#25]

Quoted:

...I heard him make some disparaging remarks about the Irish and their "obsession" with owning land, how he couldn't understand it, etc, how it brought nothing but trouble.

And he, of course, rents his own estate?

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Bono strikes again!!!!

General » General Discussion

Warning

Confirm Action

About AR15.COM

Stay Connected

Newsletter

Contact Us