Why I don't like to see girls playing guitar pulled up

[Veranda]

Now it's not jealousy, of course I am jealous of EVERYONE male or female that is pulled up but that is not the point. I just get so irritated with the girls wanting to play guitar, and here is why~

I think that on the first and second legs of the tour, Bono pulled up girls to hug, dance, roll, etc. I honestly believe that U2 wanted to switch to the play guitar thing to give equal opportunity to male fans. They know that guys dream of playing guitar with the band as much as girls dream of dancing with Bono. They wanted to make some of those dreams come true. They did, in Chicago, Hamilton, Baltimore and others.

THEN came 'chicks can play guitar too.' SIGH. There goes the neighborhood. Even though U2 wanted to get guys on stage to be fair and equal (I assume) when a girl does that it makes it appear non-PC and 'sexist' to choose a guy instead. So the guys are stiffed once again. Now we see mostly female fans playing guitar and that saddens me. The guys need their turn too, and I wanted to see some more of them have it. If I were Bono I would rather pull NO ONE up and just not worry about it anymore.

Being a girl I can say this and it's not 'non-PC' or 'sexist.' I think if a guy said it he would be flamed. Are there any guys on here who are with me on this? Were you thinking the same thing, like 'oh damn the 'girls' took that away from us too?' Come forward and speak your mind. I did. Rant over.

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U2- The Unforgettable Fire still burns!

[This message has been edited by Veranda (edited 11-21-2001).]

 

[ladywithspinninghead]

Bitches???

Hmmm, I think oh-eloquent-one, you need to rephrase this if you want anyone to take this argument seriously....

 

[martha]

The band LIKES women!! They are run by them, they spend inordinate amounts of time with women to whom they are not married, they (almost) all have very long-term, monogamous relationships with them, and they have many female fans. The guys in the audience can just get over it if it bothers them as much as you think it does.

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...a highway with no one on it, a treasure just to look upon it...

"She's hyperventilating." --my podiatrist (about me) 10-24-01

 

[Veranda]

Okay, I was just using that as a hypothetical figure of speech of what some potential guy might be thinking yeesh!

I believe I have made some valid points here. I wish some guy would just admit he was thinking that, because I know some have. It just irritates the crap out of me and I'm a girl!

 

[ladywithspinninghead]

You're assuming that this is a deliberate process on behalf of Bono....
Do you think he really thinks "Oh, it has to be a woman tonight because it was a man last night?"


I don't hear people saying "Well, he didn't pick a black person...or an Asian person...or a non-American person"...
So why must we make a demarcation of the sexes in this instance?

 

[missmacphisto]

Aw, I dont know, i think i actually like it better when a guy gets pulled up. I dont feel quite as envious and am not as depressed afterwards that it wasnt me,lol! I guess I figure "Oh well, it was a guy, so I can relax." When its a girl, i suppose i feel like "Hey, how come her and not me? Whats she got that I dont?!"

Seeing a guy up there sort of ends the competition.

I still want my time up there, of course...

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Look...look what you've done to me...You've made me poor and infamous, and I thank you...

My name is MISS MACPHISTO...I'm tired and i want to go HOME...

"Well you tell...Bonovista,that i said hello and that my codename is Belleview" - Bono before opening night of Anaheim Elevation concert

 

[HelloAngel]

Personally, I get ill at anyone making gender statements such as "Guys/Girls shouldn't be able to do this..."

I think gender statements in this day and age are tacky - and you never know who's feelings you are stepping on.

I say let U2 pull up whoever the hell - if they pull up a guy then they pull up a guy - if a girl - than a girl - so what. If people take it too seriously enough to feel bothered by it then perhaps they are putting way too much thought into something that is essentially very trivial. Gender statements, however, are not trivial - and I think it's unfair to both sexes to make statements that exclude any gender from doing anything. (Being a woman in the business world, I especially know how this feels, believe me)

Just my .02

 

[Veranda]

On the Zootv tour he picked guys to play guitar. Yes I'm assuming but I do think there is a reason for it. I do think they chose to bring back the guitar thing to give more male fans a chance and the girls snatched that too. I DO think that if a guy and a girl are holding up signs the girl will have to be picked to be PC and that is unfair to the guy.

The thing about this gender shouldn't do this or that DOES come into that if the girl is chosen only so no one will think they are thinking only guys can play and they have to pick the girl to make a statement and that is part of what I meant. That is what I was getting at with my first post!

Oh and mentioning gender being tacky= PC = censorship= unfair (usually to the guys)

I also agree with what Miss MacPhisto said!

[This message has been edited by Veranda (edited 11-21-2001).]



[This message has been edited by Veranda (edited 11-21-2001).]

 

[martha]

Bruce used to dance with guys all the time before he made that assinine video with Courteney Cox. After that it was all girls all the time.

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...a highway with no one on it, a treasure just to look upon it...

"She's hyperventilating." --my podiatrist (about me) 10-24-01

 

[U2Bama]

Isn't there some female country music song about "Girls With Guitars"?

 

[Angel]

Do you really think they give it that much thought? I doubt it. My opinion, a fan in the audience happens to catch Bono's eye and voila! on stage. I don't think he wakes up and says, during this song I am going to do this, and ahhh shit! better choose a girl tonight to be fair. He doesn't pull up someone every show.

Anyone who thinks there is any alterior motive to it is just jealous. I was soooo moved to see Julie up there on Sunday night just given 'er. Girl or guy, it doesn't matter. She could play guitar and she rocked the house!



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"It's no secret that our world is in darkness tonight..."

 

[martha]

Originally posted by Angel:

I was soooo moved to see Julie up there on Sunday night just given 'er. Girl or guy, it doesn't matter. She could play guitar and she rocked the house!

Yup. Well said.

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...a highway with no one on it, a treasure just to look upon it...

"She's hyperventilating." --my podiatrist (about me) 10-24-01

 

[HelloAngel]

Originally posted by Veranda:
On the Zootv tour he picked guys to play guitar. Yes I'm assuming but I do think there is a reason for it. I do think they chose to bring back the guitar thing to give more male fans a chance and the girls snatched that too. I DO think that if a guy and a girl are holding up signs the girl will have to be picked to be PC and that is unfair to the guy.

The thing about this gender shouldn't do this or that DOES come into that if the girl is chosen only so no one will think they are thinking only guys can play and they have to pick the girl to make a statement and that is part of what I meant. That is what I was getting at with my first post!

Oh and mentioning gender being tacky= PC = censorship= unfair (usually to the guys)

Keep in mind that these are grown men who really don't care how it is perceived to people who might be of the mind to really truly give the boy/girl for guitar choice a second thought.

I agree with Angel - they pull up who they want to pull up to do whatever. I doubt they think much about it in the split second it takes to choose the person with whichever "Pick Me!" sign.

I'm happy for anyone who gets pulled up - and never think pulling a girl over a guy is considered PC - because that would really be thinking too much about something that doesn't really mean anything.

 

[U2Bama]

It would have all been completely different if DiamolndParrot5011 had done his little stunt on stage while wearing a tutu.

 

[wireman]

I agree with you 100 percent veranda...but thing is people have this stupid and twisted view of sexism...to the point that anything that puts women on equal footing is no sexist..whether it is or not.

 

[martha]

Originally posted by wireman:
I agree with you 100 percent veranda...but thing is people have this stupid and twisted view of sexism...to the point that anything that puts women on equal footing is no sexist..whether it is or not.

Huh?

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...a highway with no one on it, a treasure just to look upon it...

"She's hyperventilating." --my podiatrist (about me) 10-24-01

 

[doctorwho]

How's this for an opinion: I hate when ANYONE gets pulled up on stage!

I paid good money to see U2. I don't want to see some fanatic - male or female - on stage dancing, grinding, playing or singing with U2. If that fan goes on to star in a band, then I may pay good money to see them one day. Until that time, sit your ass down and get the hell of the stage.

 

[Achtung_Bebe]

Originally posted by doctorwho:
Until that time, sit your ass down and get the hell of the stage.

lol, you're right, maybe the next time Bono extends his hand to a fan they should refuse to join him on stage... I'm sure that's exactly what you'd do

And as far as the guy/girl thing goes... don't analyze it so much! Seriously, it seems like some people won't be happy until it happens to them.

"I do think they chose to bring back the guitar thing to give more male fans a chance and the girls snatched that too."

It's unfair to say the girls snatched it. Unless they force themselves on stage they have snatched nothing. To snatch is to obtain by force (won't seek out a dictionary but I'm sure it says that roughly)

"I DO think that if a guy and a girl are holding up signs the girl will have to be picked to be PC and that is unfair to the guy."

Since when does Bono feel he has to do something? He does what he wants to do at that particular moment... and perhaps the fact that he is a guy drawn to women plays a part in the spontaneous moment.

 

[wireman]

Originally posted by martha:
Huh?

what can't read...even if something puts women on equal footing...you'll get flamed on this board..because most people on this board dont' engage their brain before posting.

 

[Veranda]

Originally posted by wireman:
I agree with you 100 percent veranda...but thing is people have this stupid and twisted view of sexism...to the point that anything that puts women on equal footing is no sexist..whether it is or not.

Thanks Wireman I'm glad at least one guy would say this because it is true!


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U2- The Unforgettable Fire still burns!

 

[Veranda]

Originally posted by doctorwho:
How's this for an opinion: I hate when ANYONE gets pulled up on stage!

I paid good money to see U2. I don't want to see some fanatic - male or female - on stage dancing, grinding, playing or singing with U2. If that fan goes on to star in a band, then I may pay good money to see them one day. Until that time, sit your ass down and get the hell of the stage.

LMAO!!!!

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U2- The Unforgettable Fire still burns!

 

[Mrs. Edge]

I have mixed feelings about it all, but I pretty much agree with Miss MacPhisto.

I also agree that the guitar thing is a great way for guys to live out their U2 dreams, but that's also true for the female musicians. In those cases, at least we don't have to be jealous about intimate slow dancing!

But it IS possible for a guy to dance on stage too. I remember the JT tour show I went to in Toronto, a guy got pulled up to and they ran around the stage, linking arms a la hoedown. The audience loved it.

In a way, I agree w. Doctorwho, just in the sense that if no one gets on stage, no one gets jealous/feels badly, or left out etc. But if no one gets pulled up, then all that hope that we live on about a shining moment w. U2 gets permanently dashed. I am the first to admit that I would do ANYTHING to get onstage!!!!

Originally posted by Miss MacPhisto:
Aw, I dont know, i think i actually like it better when a guy gets pulled up. I dont feel quite as envious and am not as depressed afterwards that it wasnt me,lol! I guess I figure "Oh well, it was a guy, so I can relax." When its a girl, i suppose i feel like "Hey, how come her and not me? Whats she got that I dont?!"

Seeing a guy up there sort of ends the competition.

I still want my time up there, of course...

 

[Gina Marie]

Originally posted by U2Bama:
It would have all been completely different if DiamolndParrot5011 had done his little stunt on stage while wearing a tutu.

LMAO!*suddenly gets one SCARY mental image*

Just to add my 2 cents to this-I just don't get the whole 'fixation' with getting up on stage -be it a male or a female. I in no way feel 'left out' or 'jealous' because it's not me.

If you go to a show just to try to get this to happen, you're missing out on a much bigger experience, IMO.

I feel this way about any other 'personal contact' with the band too-sure, it's great if it happens, but it doesn't make you any more 'special' than any other fan, nor will it change your life in any way. I had the good fortune to 'meet' Bono and Larry, and it's a wonderful memory-but their music remains the MOST important thing for me.

 

[Mrs. Edge]

Just to clarify my own remarks, in no way do I go to a show JUST to hope to get pulled up. That would merely be exciting gravy. I also don't think that band contact makes anyone more important/special, just luckier!

Originally posted by Gina Marie:
LMAO!*suddenly gets one SCARY mental image*

Just to add my 2 cents to this-I just don't get the whole 'fixation' with getting up on stage -be it a male or a female. I in no way feel 'left out' or 'jealous' because it's not me.

If you go to a show just to try to get this to happen, you're missing out on a much bigger experience, IMO.

I feel this way about any other 'personal contact' with the band too-sure, it's great if it happens, but it doesn't make you any more 'special' than any other fan, nor will it change your life in any way. I had the good fortune to 'meet' Bono and Larry, and it's a wonderful memory-but their music remains the MOST important thing for me.

 

[mad1]

Maybe Bono agrees with me and wants to show men that women can be just as good, if not better, at things man can do.........

Its time we levelled with men girls!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lets scare the balls of ALL men!!!!

Im ready too, and already do in my car.......NOONE gonna stand on me!!!!!!!!!!!!

HAND ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Besides, I got an A in Guitar Modules once, some old song called 'Le Fuking Loony Moon'.......or something like that, it was French.............

 

[doctorwho]

Originally posted by Achtung_Bebe:
lol, you're right, maybe the next time Bono extends his hand to a fan they should refuse to join him on stage... I'm sure that's exactly what you'd do

I have no desire to join U2 on stage and if Bono were to offer, I would decline. It's not because I'm shy - I speak to large groups of people often. Rather, it's because of the exact reason I stated. People came to see U2, not me.

 

[Angel]

Originally posted by wireman:
..why are ppl so dumb?

...why are people soooo mean?



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"It's no secret that our world is in darkness tonight..."

 

[Achtung_Bebe]

Originally posted by wireman:
..why are ppl so dumb?

I know you're not referring to me.

I just don't see a point in agonizing over the male/female ratio. What do you really want to be done here? Would you like to open up a petition to Bono claiming that he shows favoritism toward female fans? He would probably just laugh it off. Either that or be extremely pissed that he has such selfish whiny fans. Bono gives fans of every gender a terrific show.

If your dream is to be on stage with U2 and you feel it can't be met because Bono is unfair then perhaps you need to find a new, more realistic dream. Not to sound rude or anything...

This stage act thing shouldn't bring forth a battle between the sexes. I'm so dazed and confused by this thread.

I think Angel said it best.

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I put the fun in dysfunctional.

 

[HelloAngel]

Amen, Bebe.

I just don't get why some actually put thought into these trivial things such as "why did they get pulled up?!" blah blah blah. So boring. So obsessive.

I could care less who gets up, or if anyone gets pulled up because I just have other things in my day that are a little more important than over-analyzing U2's politics and MO's when choosing to pull people up. I don't emotionally involve myself with U2 other than how their music makes me feel inside. End of story - end of involvement. Caring about the fans onstage, caring about Bono and Gwen and her undone buttons, caring about Bono dancing with some actress goes a little beyond the beyonds in terms of triviality and concerns.

 

[atikicat]

They know that guys dream of playing guitar with the band as much as girls dream of dancing with Bono. They wanted to make some of those dreams come true. They did, in Chicago, Hamilton, Baltimore and others.

THEN came 'chicks can play guitar too.' SIGH. There goes the neighborhood. Even though U2 wanted to get guys on stage to be fair and equal (I assume) when a girl does that it makes it appear non-PC and 'sexist' to choose a guy instead. So the guys are stiffed once again. Now we see mostly female fans playing guitar and that saddens me. The guys need their turn too, and I wanted to see some more of them have it.

If you need someone to blame, throw a rock in the air and hit me. I'm the one who told Ruth to make that sign. I met her at the Chicago#2 show. It was her birthday and it was her "dream" to play guitar with the band. As a fan of 20 years, it was my recollection that the only female brought on stage to play guitar with the band was Maria Mckee (lead singer of Lone Justice, who were U2's opening act...not a fan, so it doesn't really count). I thought it was a clever sign that would almost be guaranteed of working. No, it didn't work in Chicago. Ruth was at the front of the stage and not the tip. At NYC#1 when she was at the tip, it did work, and I'm happy for her.

You know there ARE female fans who are into this band because of their music, not because they dream to dance with Bono and grab his ass. That certainly isn't MY dream. I love U2's music and it's part of the reason I play guitar myself.

On the same token, there are a lot of guys who love U2's music, but don't play guitar. That doesn't mean they can't or won't be brought up (or force their way) on stage for other reasons. AND...if you really want to waste your time over-analyzing this issue...there have been more instances of guys brought up on stage this tour for things other than playing guitar, than girls who have been brought up to play guitar(which is only three...heck, the guy with all the tattoos was brought up twice).

Maybe some guy should tattoo "Dudes can dance with Bono, too!" on his chest. Bet that would work!

I'd even bet that there are guys in the crowd who'd like to grab Bono's ass.

[This message has been edited by atikicat (edited 11-22-2001).]