George Clooney - I Am A Liberal, There I Said it

[Chewystick69]

I just want to know why Barbara Streisand didn't move to Canada after Bush was re-elected like she said she would.

 

[martha]

^ What an on-topic, helpful, informed post.

 

[blueyedpoet]

I just want to know why Barbara Streisand didn't move to Canada after Bush was re-elected like she said she would.

Does anyone even like her anymore? I can't think of a single person of my generation who actually likes her.

 

[AliEnvy]

Now, I have no idea what Clooney does to help the world, but I have a feeling it's not that much.

.....

Hollywood refuses to actually engage in dialogue that is truly progressive.

.....

The acutal issues go untouched.

You make some really valid points about Hollywood being self-congratulatory for being *liberal*.

But especially in a time like this, no one else seems to be stepping up to tell the cautionary REAL tales of history and parables of morality and how parallel they are with the same issues we face now.

If all Hollywood can offer is an opportunity to open dialogue, then I think it's worth something. But some of the critical issues remain untouched because still, few are listening...so in that sense, it remains unseen if Clooney has contributed anything to the world.

 

[Utoo]

I hate blanket statements dissing "Hollywood's" involvement in political and social issues. Bono is "Hollywood," and look what he's done. Look at what he knows! Jeez, the guy is probably one of the most well-read people on earth when it comes to poverty, Africa & its woes.

Why do people hate it when famous people speak out on issues? My guess is that they dislike being told what they should think by a famous, wealthy person (they'd rather be told what to think by a wealthy oil tycoon/senator/president, etc. ). The reason we all know how involved Bono is in all of his public work is because we worship the freakin' man. Until you actually research how much a celebrity knows about an issue & how much work and time he/she puts into it, well, "celebrity do-gooders suck" arguments are just plain lame.

 

[Keebler884]

Just some clarification from Clooney on this blog "post"

Oscar-winner George Clooney may make politically provocative films like "Syriana." But he doesn't write politically provocative blogs.

So imagine his ire when Arianna Huffington used some of his recent answers to political questions in a way that makes it look as if he wrote one for her Huffington Post blog site.

"He doesn't object to the quotes," says Stan Rosenfield, Clooney's valiant rep. "He said those things and those are his views. Arianna asked for permission to use the quotes and he gave it to her. What he didn't give permission for was the use of his quotes without source attributions to make it appear that he wrote a blog for her site. Which he did not. When he saw the posting Monday, we called and asked her to make the change, to simply attribute the quotes and make it clear that he did not write a blog. But she refused. And it's now Wednesday."

Rather than keep waiting, Clooney got pro-active and issued this statement:

" Miss Huffington's blog is purposefully misleading and I have asked her to clarify the facts.

I stand by my statements but I did not write this blog. With my permission Miss Huffington compiled it from interviews with Larry King and The Guardian. What she most certainly did not get my permission to do is to combine only my answers in a blog that misleads the reader into thinking that I wrote this piece. These are not my writings - they are answers to questions and there is a huge difference."

In the pulled-from-interviews quotes, Clooney criticizes the Democrats' failure to speak out about the Iraq invasion out of fear of being criticized for being unpatriotic.

And the "Good Night, and Good Luck" writer/director/star also invokes Edward R. Murrow: “When you hear Murrow say, ‘We mustn’t confuse dissent with disloyalty’ ... it’s like he’s commenting on today’s headlines.”

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

That's weird

I'd be happy to help George write a blog though, preferably at his house on Lake Como while he feeds me chocolate, he's wearing a tux..

 

[Irvine511]

[q]Clooney to Arianna: I Did Not Blog

Oscar-winner George Clooney may make politically provocative films like "Syriana." But he doesn't write politically provocative blogs.

So imagine his ire when Arianna Huffington used some of his recent answers to political questions in a way that makes it look as if he wrote one for her Huffington Post blog site.

"He doesn't object to the quotes," says Stan Rosenfield, Clooney's rep. "He said those things and those are his views. Arianna asked for permission to use the quotes and he gave it to her. What he didn't give permission for was the use of his quotes without source attributions to make it appear that he wrote a blog for her site. Which he did not. When he saw the posting Monday, we called and asked her to make the change, to simply attribute the quotes and make it clear that he did not write a blog. But she refused. And it's now Wednesday."

Rather than keep waiting, Clooney got pro-active and issued this statement:

"Miss Huffington's blog is purposefully misleading and I have asked her to clarify the facts. I stand by my statements but I did not write this blog. With my permission Miss Huffington compiled it from interviews with Larry King and The Guardian. What she most certainly did not get my permission to do is to combine only my answers in a blog that misleads the reader into thinking that I wrote this piece. These are not my writings - they are answers to questions and there is a huge difference."

http://stylescenes.latimes.com/fashion/2006/03/_oscarwinner_ge.html

[/q]

 

[nbcrusader]

It's like deja vue all over again

 

[Irvine511]

It's like deja vue all over again

well, when someone doesn't know how to use the quotes how is one to discern news articles from simple posting?

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

I love the pic that's in that link, God he's even hot carrying a HammerMill box.

 

[martha]

I love the pic that's in that link, God he's even hot carrying a HammerMill box.

Y'know, the guy who delivers boxes of paper to my classroom does not look like that.

 

[Lila64]

That's weird

I'd be happy to help George write a blog though, preferably at his house on Lake Como while he feeds me chocolate, he's wearing a tux..

or nothing at all
(Mrs.S-remember the bathtub scene in 'Out Of Sight'?

)


I George. And I'm a liberal, tyvm.

By the way, Clooney got involved in the One Campaign thanks to Bono, didn't he? And I do believe he was one of the main people to organize the 9/11 "telethon" with music & movie stars. And I do believe he is politically active, and just because he's a famous actor/writer/director/hearthrob doesn't make him any less credible than those in power now. People doubted Bono speaking up - like what does a rockstar know. And then you hear him talk, and you know he's done his homework and is a very intelligent human being. Give George some credit

 

[Lila64]

BTW.... on the web definitions of liberal


Definitions of liberal on the web:

*broad: showing or characterized by broad-mindedness; "a broad political stance"; "generous and broad sympathies"; "a liberal newspaper"; "tolerant of his opponent's opinions"
*having political or social views favoring reform and progress
tolerant of change; not bound by authoritarianism, orthodoxy, or tradition
*a person who favors a political philosophy of progress and reform and the protection of civil liberties

 

[INDY500]

George C Looney

 

[blueyedpoet]

I hate blanket statements dissing "Hollywood's" involvement in political and social issues. Bono is "Hollywood," and look what he's done. Look at what he knows! Jeez, the guy is probably one of the most well-read people on earth when it comes to poverty, Africa & its woes.

Why do people hate it when famous people speak out on issues? My guess is that they dislike being told what they should think by a famous, wealthy person (they'd rather be told what to think by a wealthy oil tycoon/senator/president, etc. ). The reason we all know how involved Bono is in all of his public work is because we worship the freakin' man. Until you actually research how much a celebrity knows about an issue & how much work and time he/she puts into it, well, "celebrity do-gooders suck" arguments are just plain lame.

I really don't agree with your assertion that Bono is "Hollywood." Certainly, not all entertainers are "Hollywood."
And, I admitted to not knowing if Clooney does do anything other than just give sound-bites and provide his name to a host of charities.

 

[A_Wanderer]

What is an American liberal?

JFK or Michael Moore

 

[blueyedpoet]

What is an American liberal?

JFK or Michael Moore

both, and that's the problem with being "liberal."
I just want to help our society progress. This is our exodus to the promise land of equality regardless of sex, age, gender, ethnicity, religion, skin color.

 

[A_Wanderer]

But that is the problem, striving to establish a dichotomy between liberals and conservatives that will put good attributes (truth to power, "social progress", secularism ~ generally, reproductive rights and internationalism etc.) into the liberal category and shift the remaining pieces onto the other side.

Liberals should not be by definition leftists.