About Bono At the Kennedy Tribute/Presidental Convention

[Bono'sLady]

I read on here a few weeks back about Bono could be at the Kennedy Tribute or at the Convention next week,I haven't heard anything or read anything since,just wanted to know if it was defenite he would be there,does anyone know for sure?I'd like to know,because if he is for sure,I'd make plans to go to Boston to try and meet him.I also read here that U2 would be in Boston to reherse for their upcoming tour for a few weeks,is that really true?,and when?Thanks.

 

[verte76]

Yes, Bono is going to be at the Kennedy bash next week. He's good friends with Bobby Shriver, who's helping him with DATA, and I remember reading in some publication, I forget which one, where he said "If you're Irish, in trouble and in the U.S, what do you do? You call a Kennedy!" That Irish connection is strong stuff. It means alot to him.

 

[seajewel]

I'm sure security at the convention will be very tight - you may not get near Bono.

 

[nurse chrissi]

It is on the Rock the Vote Blog but not on the DNC website (probably since it is not an "offical" function) I beleive that it is also in a little blurb in Time that Bono will be attending and performing. I also believe that this is pretty much is a VVVVIP thing so the chances of getting in are pretty slight - still I have hope that a u2 fan gets some pictures

 

[forbonou2]

i thought it said earlier a ticket to this would run ya $1,000! Whew!! We go tnay lotto winning fans here we know of? he-lol!

 

[Bono's Tart]

Will he still be going in view of whats happening with the album? I would have thought the missing cd is more important!!

 

[drealynn42]

It is on the Rock the Vote Blog but not on the DNC website (probably since it is not an "offical" function) I beleive that it is also in a little blurb in Time that Bono will be attending and performing. I also believe that this is pretty much is a VVVVIP thing so the chances of getting in are pretty slight - still I have hope that a u2 fan gets some pictures

The Daily Show reported last week that Bono will be attending, as well as Ricky Martin and some other entertainers. Lewis Black said, "it sound just like the Grammy's...from FIVE YEARS AGO!!!" Thought you would like to know the Daily Show is on top of it, Nurse Chrissi. Maybe the tribute will be recorded for tv? It sounds just like the sort of thing PBS would make into a special, so I can only hope.

 

[sue4u2]

The Daily Show reported last week that Bono will be attending, as well as Ricky Martin and some other entertainers. Lewis Black said, "it sound just like the Grammy's...from FIVE YEARS AGO!!!" Thought you would like to know the Daily Show is on top of it, Nurse Chrissi. Maybe the tribute will be recorded for tv? It sounds just like the sort of thing PBS would make into a special, so I can only hope.

I caught that show last week drealynn42. also said the Red Hot Chili Peppers will be there too, along with Bono. (I do wish for the other guys to come with him)

Others he mentioned were Glen Close and Ben Affleck and Alec Baldwin.

 

[BluberryPoptart]

I am very disappointed to see Bono involving himself in partisan politics

 

[nurse chrissi]

The Daily Show reported last week that Bono will be attending, as well as Ricky Martin and some other entertainers.

Very depressing having to work night shifts No cable TV - darn hospital - making me work, miss Jon Stewart

 

[kellyahern]

Very depressing having to work night shifts No cable TV - darn hospital - making me work, miss Jon Stewart

that is depressing

the Daily Show is almost the only show I watch on a regular basis

 

[Jamila]

BlueberryPoptart -

There's two sides to this story and, frankly, I'm sick of both of them. - Bono (paraphrase) 1987

Let's just hope that the B-man knows what he's doing with this one.

Right now his Republican associates in the House of Reps and the Senate are trying to AT LEAST $1.25 billion from the MCA, the Millenium Challenge Account, which Bono and DATA have worked SO HARD to get funded!

Let's see how this soiree at the Dem convention will go over with those Republicans now.

I am VERY CONCERNED about the funding of anti-poverty and Global AIDS programs in Africa much more than I care about ANY politician (Irish-descended or not) being serenaded by Bono.

And this comes from someone who has a family member involved in the Special Olympics program as a participant. That program is nice, but not as essential as the funding of Global AIDS and anti-poverty programs.

BONO - REMEMBER THE WHITE FLAG OF NEUTRALITY.

 

[Jamila]

BlueberryPoptart -

There's two sides to this story and, frankly, I'm sick of both of them. - Bono (paraphrase) 1987

Let's just hope that the B-man knows what he's doing with this one.

Right now his Republican associates in the House of Reps and the Senate are trying to cut AT LEAST $1.25 billion from the MCA, the Millenium Challenge Account, which Bono and DATA have worked SO HARD to get funded!

Let's see how this soiree at the Dem convention will go over with those Republicans now.

I am VERY CONCERNED about the funding of anti-poverty and Global AIDS programs in Africa much more than I care about ANY politician (Irish-descended or not) being serenaded by Bono.

And this comes from someone who has a family member involved in the Special Olympics program as a participant. That program is nice, but not as essential as the funding of Global AIDS and anti-poverty programs.

BONO - REMEMBER THE WHITE FLAG OF NEUTRALITY.

 

[Bono'sLady]

Since this seems to be true,I'd also like to know what day of the week it'll be?Like some one said,they'll be so much security that I probably won't get to meet Bono,but I'd still like to go and hang out around the area just in case I can get to meet Bono.

 

[BluberryPoptart]

BlueberryPoptart -

There's two sides to this story and, frankly, I'm sick of both of them. - Bono (paraphrase) 1987

Let's just hope that the B-man knows what he's doing with this one.

Right now his Republican associates in the House of Reps and the Senate are trying to AT LEAST $1.25 billion from the MCA, the Millenium Challenge Account, which Bono and DATA have worked SO HARD to get funded!

Let's see how this soiree at the Dem convention will go over with those Republicans now.

I am VERY CONCERNED about the funding of anti-poverty and Global AIDS programs in Africa much more than I care about ANY politician (Irish-descended or not) being serenaded by Bono.

And this comes from someone who has a family member involved in the Special Olympics program as a participant. That program is nice, but not as essential as the funding of Global AIDS and anti-poverty programs.

BONO - REMEMBER THE WHITE FLAG OF NEUTRALITY.

 

[nurse chrissi]

I believe that the Kennedy event in on 8/27 (Tuesday) - another night when I will be working a night shift
I'll be glad to start following u2 around concerts again - these fundraisers don't understand the need to scream and/or faint at the sight of Bono (both perfectly natural reactions)

 

[CMM]

Partisan politics?


Are we forgetting who basically got Clinton elected?


If it's Africa you're worried about, hopefully the guys running Bush's show will look back at history and when U2 got all pals-y with the Clinton campaign. If Bono's starting to bed down with the other side of the fence, that might scare them into getting him what he wants so he comes back to them.

 

[verte76]

I don't think Bono got Clinton elected. U2 were playing in Canada the night of the '92 election. Bono did announce the election results to the crowd when he got them. There were alot of factors at work, none of them an endorsement from Bono. In fact, U2 were irked when Clinton implied they'd helped him get elected when he came to Ireland not long after the election.
Bono involved in partisan politics? Not really. I don't think this is an explicit endorsement of any politician. True, he's not going to say Politician X is a sleasebag or whatever, but that's not an endorsement of any.

 

[BostonAnne]

Hey Bono'sLady! Don't I know you from the old Zootopia?!


The facts here are correct: The Kennedy Tribute is at Symphony Hall on Tuesday night - July 27th. I wanted to head in town to see what would happen, but the chances seem too nil to bother getting a babysitter and leaving work early. The security is going to be high and it seems impossible to get a ticket to get in. Sigh. Maybe next time he's in town!

From what I understand, Bono is not going to the Democratic Convention - but is going to the tribute of Ted Kennedy.

 

[verte76]

If Bono were going to be at the Convention I guarantee it'd be all over the press, in every newspaper, the Internet, etc, etc. He's not going to do it, period. He'll just be in town. I don't give a myself.

 

[Bono'sLady]

Hi,BostonAnne yes,that's me,man,I sure miss the old zootopia,how you been?I probably won't go anyways cuz the person I'd like to go with probably won't want to go,plus with all the security and I'm sure the traffic it probably won't be worth going,guess I'll just have to wait till next year when U2 come around here to tour to meet Bono.

 

[drealynn42]

Partisan politics?


Are we forgetting who basically got Clinton elected?

I agree. It's fairly common knowlege that MTV's Rock the Vote helped a great deal in getting Clinton elected, and U2 was extremely involved in Rock the Vote. So, in a round about sort of way, they helped Clinton get elected. Also, Bono's prank calls to the White House weren't exactly good pr for Bush Sr... I don't know of any time when the association with Clinton has made U2 bristle. MacPhisto certainly wasn't afraid of taking the credit in Sydney.

I'm quite frankly surprised at how many people are complaining that Bono is supposed to be neutral, as though it is a great shock that he leans left. He was raised in a Socialist home and has ALWAYS been ultra liberal, anti-conservative. His anti-Reagan tirades in the 80's are a prime example of this. His liberal beliefs may offend some fans, but it shouldn't be any surprise after all these years...I mean, I'm in awe of his ability to befriend the very same conservative politicians he used to publicly trash talk. Actually, I'm in awe of his ability to see the good in someone like Jesse Helms (or heck, Courtney Love) more than I am in awe of his ability to be bipartisan. It must take an incredible amount of self control and love for him to do this.

I guess I'm saying interpretation of Bono's political leanings depends on which side of 2001 you are looking at. His current pc statements do not necessarily reflect what he actually believes in private. While we should be proud of him for appealing to both sides when working for AIDS funding, we shouldn't ask him to suppress his own private feelings either. He wouldn't ask this of any of us. I would love it if the two party system went crashing down in a huge ball of flames, but unfortunately history favors a dialectic system that doesn't work when combined with modern media. This makes it very difficult to remain neutral, because, whichever side you are on, things you actually deeply believe in are on the line every single day.

So...Rock the Vote! (or Hip Hop the vote, whatever it is now...)

 

[EPandAmerica]

*wipes brow* I had to do a lot of reading this morning to find all the quotes from Bono that were in my head, but I couldn't remember them word for word. So thanks to @U2's interview section I found a few of them.

From: MuchMusic - Nov 21, 2003
I'm representing countries who are still paying more servicing old debts than they are on health and education. They're my boss. I'm working for them. I just have to gag myself now, and I meet people who I wouldn't have-- Irishly, I wouldn't want to drink with, but I'll have supper with the devil if that's what it takes to get the job done and I probably have.

From: The Age - July 26, 2003

It is amazing what President Bush has done on AIDS. Those of us who worked on that were very proud when he put that in his State of Union speech this year. To put AIDS third on the bill in a State of the Union speech by a conservative president was unthinkable a few years ago."

Bono believes that he comes "from the other side of the road" to George Bush.

"I've lost my colour in order to do the work that I do.

The people who often pay for one's convictions are other people. But President Bush and the people around him and that I deal with regularly, and Colin Powell, have been true to their word dealing with me on two issues. One was something called the Millennium Challenge Account, into which he put $US10 billion for three years, which was a new way of seeing aid as a sort of fast track to countries that were tackling corruption and had good governments.

"We worked incredibly closely with them on the Millennium Challenge Account. As a result, I appeared in a photograph with President Bush. Now this, of course, set my band on edge, and meeting Jesse Helms and George Bush for someone like the Edge, he just can't get his head around it.

"But I have always said that there are too many lives at stake here to play politics. We have to elevate the debate. We have to, and I have to stay not bi-partisan but actually non-partisan.

From: The Guardian - March 17, 2002



It's a strategy that comes with risks. Is it possible to appear in public with the likes of Helms and Bush and preserve that precious commodity -- street-cred? If it's not, says Bono, it's a price worth paying. "Edge was pleading with me not to hang out with the conservatives. He said, 'You're not going to have a picture with George Bush?' I said I'd have lunch with Satan if there was so much at stake. I have friends who won't speak to me because of Helms. But it's very important not to play politics with this. Millions of lives are being lost for the stupidest of reasons: money. And not even very much money. So let's not play, Who are the good guys and who are the bad guys? Let's rely on the moral force of our arguments."



*sorry, I had to edit because I had pasted the same thing twice*

 

[verte76]

I agree EP and America. Bono isn't really representing himself these days, he's representing the people of Africa who really need help, love and support. It doesn't exactly shock me that he has lefty political views. I'll be honest, so do I, but I respect any honest opinion. I have some great friends who are conservatives. I have no trouble with their views. I only have trouble with other opinions if someone is acting like an ass, and trust me, I've had trouble with other liberals acting like asses. It's exasperating.

 

[Jamila]

THANK YOU EPandAmerica and verte76!

I have to go to work right now otherwise I would post something longer but I have to support verte76's observations.

I am a longtime Leftist activist going back some thirty years to my teens and I will tell you that there are some EXASPERATING hypocritical/self-serving people of every political persuasion. So "liberals" do not necessarily have halos over their heads.

And as one who has been in the struggle for Africa's Future going back BEFORE I ever heard of Bono/U2 (and I have been following them for over 23 years), Africa is teetering on social/political/economic collapse because of the AIDS pandemic wihich is magnified by unfair trade restrictions with developed countries, unjust debt burdens, etc.

Bono has been ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT in pulling together an unlikely coalition in Congress and around the world of diverse groups - from evangelical Christians to Leftists like myself - and getting us TO STAND ON THE HIGHER GROUND OF SOCIAL JUSTICE for the sake of the MILLIONS of Africans who do not have the international platform to speak for and lobby for themselves.

BONO HAS BEEN EXTRAORDINARY IN STANDING ABOVE THE POLITICAL FRAY ( or the appearance of the political fray) and I pray that he continues on that path.

For those of us who have connections with the Continent and are doing EVERYTHING we can to save Africa's Future, this is more than another photo op to see the B-man or to read a transcript of another one of his BRILLIANT speeches.....

Unfortunately, the humanitarian and social justice work that Bono is involved with for Africa's right for a Future of Peace and Prosperity is BIGGER THAN ANY BIG IDEAS.

Literally, it involves the sustainability and future of an entire continent of people.

Again, I ask Bono to remember the WHITE FLAG of neutrality.

I want to see his Hopes and Dreams for Africa come true.

THANK YOU, BONO, FOR ALL THAT YOU ARE AND ALL THAT YOU'VE DONE!

 

[hotpepper]

EPandAmerica - thanks so much for your hard work in putting those quotes together. They really do show that Bono has never "picked sides" and is just looking out for Africa's best interests.

 

[drealynn42]

EPandAmerica - thanks so much for your hard work in putting those quotes together. They really do show that Bono has never "picked sides" and is just looking out for Africa's best interests.

Ok, I'm thinking my post probably offended people that admire Bono for being non-partisan when it comes to Africa. I admire him for this as well. I've donated to DATA, followed it quite closely, collected transcripts of his beautiful speeches, etc. I simply don't agree that we should re-write Bono's entire biography based on some carefully planned out PR statements he has made in the last five years. These statements are made in the best interest of a non-partisan organization, not his own personal self. He has picked sides, quite often and quite vocally, for 25 years and fully admits it. We can't go back and erase who he was before 2000 by saying he never was partisan just because we like who he is now even better.

And meeting with Democrats for a couple of hours out of one day of the year is not anti-neutral, but an attempt to spend time with people he has been ignoring while concentrating all of his effort and PR on conservatives. Remember that he has spent an inordinate amount of time doing photo ops with conservative politicians who are skeptical about Africa and need convincing (Paul O'Neill, etc) and yet he has NEVER come to Seattle to meet with our liberal politicians who have been working diligently on free trade for Africa initiativies many years before he ever got involved. (Bill Gates doesn't count because he's not a politician.) These people desperately need the publicity now that the initiative is about to expire, but they aren't getting any. So being in Boston during the convention is not any indication that he is losing his neutrality. It is a way to acknowledge the people that actually worked alongside him in creating pro-Africa policies, not just the people who are always threatening to cut the funding they once promised on a good day.

I guess I'm still not seeing why people are worried about his neutrality these days when it is stronger today than it ever was before.

 

[EPandAmerica]

em.. To me the quotes plainly say what side of the road Bono is on. That is why I put them there.
He is having lunch with the 'devil' only to save Africa, not because he is neutral.
It really doesn't matter anyway Bono won't be casting a vote in November. He may try to influence our votes though .

Anyway people please don't argue about it. The important thing is that his Irish charm and conviction has done freaking wonders for his mission and I for one am so PROUD of him I could burst!

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

The important thing is that his Irish charm and conviction has done freaking wonders for his mission and I for one am so PROUD of him I could burst!

that's exactly how I feel EP

And Bono can influence my vote anytime

 

[BluberryPoptart]

He is having lunch with the 'devil'

Yes, he will be, on July 26, 2004

Bono won't be casting a vote in November. He may try to influence our votes though .

He will have no influence on my vote or change my mind