Eddie Vedder Tirade

[80sU2isBest]

Concert-goers head to exits after anti-Bush display
By Mark Brown, Rocky Mountain News
April 3, 2003

Incensed fans walked out of Pearl Jam's concert Tuesday after lead singer Eddie Vedder impaled a mask of President Bush on a microphone stand, then slammed it to the stage.

Most of Vedder's antiwar remarks earlier in the Pepsi Center show were greeted with mixed cheers and scattered boos. But dozens of angry fans walked out during the encore because of the macabre display with the Bush mask, which he wore for the song Bushleaguer, a Bush- taunting song from the band's latest album, Riot Act.

"When he was sharing his political views in a fairly benign manner - supporting our troops, opposing policy - that's OK," said Keith Zimmerman, of Denver.

"When he takes what looks like the head of George Bush on a stick, then throws it to the stage and stomps on it, that's just unacceptable. I love Pearl Jam, but that was just way over the edge. We literally got up and left."

Others joined Zimmerman, some complaining about the lyrics of Bushleaguer, which in part call Bush "a confidence man" and say, "He's not a leader / he's a Texas leaguer."

"I wasn't sure if it was really happening," said Kim Mueller. "We looked at each other and realized he really did have George Bush's head on a stick and was waving it in the air, then slam-med it to the ground and step-ped on it."

"It was like he decapitated someone in a primal ritual and stuck their head on a stick," Zimmerman said. "It kinda blows away the Dixie Chicks."

The Dixie Chicks were the target of boycotts and bannings after making an anti-Bush statement on a London stage in March. (On Wednesday, the Marshall Tucker Band announced it would play a May 1 concert in Spartanburg, S.C., as an alternative to the U.S. tour-opening show in nearby Greenville by the Dixie Chicks that same day.)

Vedder has used the Bush mask in previous shows in Australia and Japan, but Denver's U.S. tour opener was the first show since war broke out in Iraq.

Pearl Jam manager Kelly Curtis couldn't be reached for comment. The Seattle band plays Oklahoma City tonight.

Before Do the Evolution, Vedder told the crowd the tale of a Vietnam vet who expressed severe reservations about war in Iraq to Vedder. The singer was incensed when someone in the crowd yelled, "Shut up!"

"Did someone just say, 'Shut up'? I don't know if you heard about this thing called freedom of speech, man. It's worth thinking about it, because it's going away," Vedder said. "In the last year of being able to use it, we're sure as (expletive) going to use it and I'm not gonna apologize."

Later in the show, he added to that.

"Just to clarify . . . we support the troops," Vedder said to cheers. "Our problem is certainly not with anybody over there doing something that not too many of us would do right now, not for these reasons.

"So to the families and those people who know those folks and are related to those folks and are married to those folks, we send our support. We're just confused on how wanting to bring them back safely all of a sudden becomes nonsupport. We love them, we support them. They're not the ones who make the foreign policy. . . . Let's hope for the best and speak our opinions."

It was after that when Vedder put on the Bush mask and a sparkling silver jacket. He took off the mask, mounted it on the mike stand, then slammed it to the floor.

 

[Diemen]

So what exactly is the story here? Or what are you trying to put across, that people walked out so it must have been wrong? I wonder what percentage of the audience walked out. Dozens of people compared to how many hundreds and/or thousands in the audience? Yeah, his method may have been a little extreme, but Pearl Jam is a rock band, and last I recalled most rock bands have at least a tiny flair for the melodramatic. Besides the impaling, Vedder made some good points.

And LMAO @ "It kinda blows away the Dixie Chicks." I find it both hilarious and sad that people are being boycotted and banned simply because they don't agree with our president and aren't afraid to voice that opinion.

Free speech indeed.

 

[ouizy]

he is an ass

I do not like Bush, but I would not do that in front of thousands of paying Americans.

 

[80sU2isBest]

So what exactly is the story here? Yeah, his method may have been a little extreme, but Pearl Jam is a rock band, and last I recalled most rock bands have at least a tiny flair for the melodramatic. Besides the impaling, Vedder made some good points.

The story IS the impaling. That's sick, and evidently even people who paid good money to go one of his concerts agree.

 

[daisybean]

I don't see what the big deal is...Vedder has a right to say what he feels, and the people who disagreed with him had the right to leave. At least it was better that they left quietly in disgust, than started some kind of riot where people got hurt or killed.

 

[YellowKite]

I am reading this great book - very current stuff - and the most enlightening thing is how the rest of the free world views the actions of the Bush administration. The same country that spent 2 years concerned about Clinton's sex life [and were ready to impeach him for it] are oblivious to the hypocrisy of not being as concerned about the current administrations' immoral [in my opinion] policies.

excerpt:

"the primary response . . as voiced in the media . . [is] a ready made accusation of 'Anti-Americanism' employed to silence anyone who questions the views of the current administration. . . virtually everyone to whom I spoke [in the foreign media] . . .took offense at 'the extraordinary, almost staggering moral self-righteousness of this administration' toward the good opinion of the democratic world."

-Eric Alterman from What Liberal Media? The Truth About Bias and the News

 

[Tabby]

Originally posted by 80sU2isBest
When he takes what looks like the head of George Bush on a stick, then throws it to the stage and stomps on it, that's just unacceptable. I love Pearl Jam, but that was just way over the edge. We literally got up and left."

I have to agree here. That is over the top, beyond the boundaries of normal free expression. He may be able to 'say' anything he wants, but doing this is on another level. I don't care who it is, doing that to the head of an effigy of a living human being is sick.

It was like he decapitated someone in a primal ritual and stuck their head on a stick," Zimmerman said. "It kinda blows away the Dixie Chicks."

Yeah, really. That's where the extreme shit comes in. That is WEIRD, even scary. I always heard if you even jokingly threatened the president's life- ANY president, so don't blame this administration- you would be taken away and held for investigation by the FBI! He's probably being watched now or something. Oh, and I see he's grown his hair out some too. I thought he was going to keep the mohawk until the US left Afghanistan or whatever Now I guess he's gonna make an ass of himself in public until they leave Iraq

I hope I have made this point very clear, the difference between 'free speech' and wackiness, so please don't lecture on that. 80sU2isBest's post explains it all, read it again.

 

[The Wanderer]

Vedder can do what he wants, people can criticize him if they want, etc., etc.

 

[Clark W. Griswold Jr]

Bushleager is a joke. It's a pathetically written song that speaks more to the current sad state of PJ's musical creativity than anything else.


I still have my University Park tix, though....

 

[FizzingWhizzbees]

Has anyone considered the possibility that he's angry about the war and was expressing that anger on stage? I think most anti-war activists will have felt that kind of anger when they see pictures of innocent Iraqis being murdered.

 

[Tabby]

Has anyone considered the possibility that he's angry about the war and was expressing that anger on stage? I think most anti-war activists will have felt that kind of anger when they see pictures of innocent Iraqis being murdered.

Oh, duh, of course. But if you can't control yourself any better than that you belong in an asylum, not on stage in front of thousands of people. It's 'activists' like that who hurt their cause with their outrageous behavior and off the wall extremism. I could site other examples, but they would be off-topic.

So you care about all the 'innocent' Iraqis huh? Well none of them are being puposely 'murdered.' Guess you don't care about our POWs who were tortured and shot through the face, is that not 'murder?' No, I'm not talking about battlefield casualties, I mean the ones who were taken prisoner, then tortured, shot and displayed on TV. But you probably think they deserved it for being Bush's evil stormtroopers out to kill all those poor little Iraqi babies! Activists with that attitude make me very ill. I oppose the war, because it was unecessary at this time and far too expensive in money and lives. But I care about our troops and value their lives and want them brought home safely.

 

[daisybean]

I don't think there is really any need for people to become so heated over this. Nor is it fair to put words in other people's mouths.

I think it is safe to say that everyone is concerned for the welfare of our troops.

I think it is also safe to say that not every Iraqi is an evil warmongering monster.

 

[FizzingWhizzbees]

So you care about all the 'innocent' Iraqis huh? Well none of them are being puposely 'murdered.' Guess you don't care about our POWs who were tortured and shot through the face, is that not 'murder?' No, I'm not talking about battlefield casualties, I mean the ones who were taken prisoner, then tortured, shot and displayed on TV. But you probably think they deserved it for being Bush's evil stormtroopers out to kill all those poor little Iraqi babies! Activists with that attitude make me very ill. I oppose the war, because it was unecessary at this time and far too expensive in money and lives. But I care about our troops and value their lives and want them brought home safely.

Please don't make silly assumptions about my political beliefs based on one statement. Where did I say I don't care if POWs are murdered? Where did I describe them as "Bush's evil stormtroopers"? Where did I say I don't value the troops' lives and don't want them to come home safe?

I support the British and US troops in Iraq. I support them because it was not their decision to fight this war. The people I do not support are those who made the decision to fight this illegal and immoral war. I don't ever advocate murder, whether it's of Iraqis, Britons or Americans. A life is a life and a person's nationality does not make their life worth more or less: every death is a tragedy.

 

[Chizip]

Look at the difference between Bono and Vedder. We saw on that Mtv video clip, which someone posted, that Bono disagrees that we should be at war. But what he does is provide intellectual discussion on why he thinks it's wrong, and than gives alternative forms of action. And I think everybody could respect that whether you agreed or disagreed with him. That's a little more constructive than impaling the head of Bush and then smashing it on the ground, I mean come on, what is that, freedom of speech? Please.

This coming from a Pearl Jam fan.

 

[FizzingWhizzbees]

I don't think there is really any need for people to become so heated over this. Nor is it fair to put words in other people's mouths.

I think it is safe to say that everyone is concerned for the welfare of our troops.

I think it is also safe to say that not every Iraqi is an evil warmongering monster.

Well said . Now let's get back to the original subject of this thread.

 

[Tabby]

FW- Sorry I made unfair assumptions about you based on your remarks. Yes, every death is a tragedy.

Chizip- I'm so glad somebody brought that up. Bono would never have behaved so ridiculously. You can make your point a lot better and get more respect and results acting like Bono instead of Eddie.

 

[sharky]

let's be fair to PJ here. There was an arena with 12,000 people and dozens left during the encore, which HAPPENED to be the same time he did this. How many of us have left a show a bit early to get out of the parking lot quicker? So what? 11,500 people stayed for the entire show and didn't have to be at work early the next morning or get home to pay the baby sitter. How is this a story?

 

[Basstrap]

I am reading this great book - very current stuff - and the most enlightening thing is how the rest of the free world views the actions of the Bush administration. The same country that spent 2 years concerned about Clinton's sex life [and were ready to impeach him for it] are oblivious to the hypocrisy of not being as concerned about the current administrations' immoral [in my opinion] policies.

excerpt:

"the primary response . . as voiced in the media . . [is] a ready made accusation of 'Anti-Americanism' employed to silence anyone who questions the views of the current administration. . . virtually everyone to whom I spoke [in the foreign media] . . .took offense at 'the extraordinary, almost staggering moral self-righteousness of this administration' toward the good opinion of the democratic world."

-Eric Alterman from What Liberal Media? The Truth About Bias and the News

very true...
it seems to me like 90% of america are Bush apologists
The guy has made - and is making many mistakes-...I wonder how long people can turn the blind eye?

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

i guess i'm in the 10% that sees no need to appologize for anything bush has done so far... but this is supposed to be a thread about eddie vedder's antics in denver the other night, so let's get back to the actuall topic at hand here.

i love pearl jam... but frankly they're begining to bore me. they so hard not to be popular it's just become a joke at this point. that being said, i still have tickets to the july 8 show at MSG, and plan on attending... for now. what eddie did showed no class and was out of line. i'm going to wait and see what his reaction is to all of this. i'm thinking that a very emotional eddie had a little too much to drink, as he's been known to do in the past, and just let loose. i'm hoping that's what the case. freedom of speech is one thing... but what eddie did is not right. i put it on the same level as burning the flag. if he continues to do this kind of thing at the next few PJ shows, then i'm going to have to give my ticket to someone else.

 

[BVS]

Pearl Jam Statement


Statement from Pearl Jam
April 3, 2003

There were close to 12,000 people at the April 1st Denver show. It?s possible two dozen left during encore but it was not noticeable amongst the 11,976 who were loudly applauding and enjoying the evening?s music. It just made a better headline to report otherwise. [You?ll note the writer doesn?t mention this in his review of the show from the day prior. See ?Pearl Jam Show Will Make a Great CD? by Mark Brown, Rocky Mountain News. And it is little more than a mention in any of the show reviews.

Dissension is nothing we shy away from ? it should just be reported about more accurately. Ed?s talk from the stage centered on the importance of freedom of speech and the importance of supporting our soldiers as well as an expression of sadness over the public being made to feel as though the two sentiments can?t occur simultaneously.

Link

http://forums.sonymusic.com/thread.jsp?forum=489&thread=1402166&tstart=0&trange=15

 

[Gickies Gageeze]

good stuff, i love pearl jam.

 

[Rono]

The story IS the impaling. That's sick, and evidently even people who paid good money to go one of his concerts agree.

So, a lot of fans , who are against the war, got a lot more value for money.

 

[melon]

"Incensed fans" = about 12, according to CNN today. A very poorly written article, with an obvious pro-war bias.

Melon

 

[The Wanderer]

incensed fans or just in a hury because they wanted to beat traffic, this was during the encore remember!

 

[Moonlit_Angel]

Personally, I say go, Eddie.

"Did someone just say, 'Shut up'? I don't know if you heard about this thing called freedom of speech, man. It's worth thinking about it, because it's going away,"

Amen!

Angela

 

[diamond]

lets see how this plays out...

DB9

 

[AcrobatMan]

whoz pearl jam

new rock band or what ??


acrobatman

 

[senrab]

i guess i'm in the 10% that sees no need to appologize for anything bush has done so far...

Same here. *goes back to lurking*

 

[Klaus]

senrab / headache:

I guess we're not "just" takling about G.W. Bush and exclude his past?

But still:

Human rights violations like these?

...Amnesty International has today written to the US Government reiterating its deep concern in relation to the continuing detention without charge or trial of more than 600 non-US nationals in the United States naval base in Guant?namo Bay, Cuba.

"Some of these detainees have been in a legal black hole for almost a year", Amnesty International pointed out.

"Their conditions of detention -- held in small cells for up to 24 hours a day with no access to lawyers or family -- together with no indication as to if, or when, they will be tried or released, continue to raise urgent legal and welfare issues," the organization added.

Amnesty International calls for the voluntary repatriation of all those detained as combatants during the international armed conflict in Afghanistan, as required under the Geneva Conventions, unless they are to be charged with criminal offences or would face serious human rights abuses if returned to their country....

or see:
http://www.amnestyusa.org/news/2003/usa01102003_2.html

or :

" 2 April 2003
Iraq
Use of Cluster Bombs -- Civilians Pay the Price

Amnesty International is deeply concerned about the high toll of civilian casualties and the use of cluster bombs in US military attacks in heavily populated areas."
http://www.amnestyusa.org/news/2003/iraq04022003.html

i was thinking for a long time wether to post a picture to this or not, but the fact that maybe people who are not used to "non-video-game" war pics are reading here i decided not to publish these pictures of ugly warfare.

than some older facts, Bush government boycoting the ICC and trying to force 3rd world countries to do so either.

or..
" International law prohibits the use of the death penalty against anyone who was under 18 years old at the time of the crime. The USA is today virtually the only country prepared to flout this principle."...
Amnesty International reports that 12 of the 17 recorded executions of juvenile offenders worldwide since 1998 took place in the US. The only three juvenile offender executions worldwide in 2002 were carried out in the US.

"International human rights norms tell us that most governments worldwide believe a juvenile offender can be held accountable without being put to death," said Vaughn.


"Oklahoma set a poor example by executing Sean Sellers, the only juvenile offender in the US to be executed in the last 25 years for a crime committed when he was 16," said Karin Lau, AIUSA Death Penalty Abolition Coordinator in Oklahoma. "The Board of Pardons and Paroles should now seize the opportunity to uphold human rights standards and recommend clemency for Scott Hain."


Klaus

 

[Sapphire]

If you're going to trash Bush, Klaus, be fair. Find those pics of the tortured, executed US POW's, and the Kurds gassed by Saddam Hussein and post them! It's things like this that are making Saddam a 'martyr.' Show him for what he is. So Bush isn't perfect, but by attacking him and not Saddam, it makes it look like Bush is the bully and the Iraqis are victims who have done no wrong. Please, be fair. I'm not saying don't post these pics, just show the other side.

If Vedder doesn't understand why no one believes he supports the troops, let me enlighten him: when you hate and condemn everything someone is doing, it is generally a fact that you do not support their efforts. Perhaps a better word for him to use would be 'worry' or 'care about the troops' or 'wish them home safely.' but he is NOT 'supporting' them by cursing everything they stand for, and their actions. "Concern," yes, "support," no.