A Bono article...

[madonna's child]

 

[U2girl]

(not sure if this is the Time article translation in our country's newspaper, because some things sound very similar - anyway)

Impossible into possible

Lead singer of Dublin band U2 Bono, born Paul Hewson, the leading rock star and Africa's loudest advocate, realises he's egocentric and often apologizes for it. His band expresses its filantropy with inventive music that moves people's hearts even after 25 years and brought them 4 Grammys last Saturday.
Bono gained a reputation (no smaller than the one he has from rock) with activism for dealing with the financial and health crisis in Africa. He achieved that the world's most influential people are dealing with it. He talked to not only US finance minister Paul O'Neill, but also Bill Clinton, Jean Chretien, George Soros, Jesse Helms and Colin Powell and the Pope. "I thought he was just a pop star trying to use me. After talking to the singer for hour and a half i changed my mind. This man is truly dedicated. And he knows a lot." US finance minister said recently.
Bono's engagement started typically stardomly. 1984 U2 played at Bob Geldolf's Live Aid for Etiopia. Bono and his wife Alison Stewart decided to find out how grave the hunger in Africa really is. They travelled to Wella in Etiopia and worked in an orphange for six weeks. They saw fathers bring their child, as if they wanted to say : "Take them, if they're yours they won't die." He'll never forget that. In 1999 he joined the Jubilee movement to draw USA and the richest countries, IMF and the World bank to drob the debt of 52 world's poorest countries-most of them are African. The countries would spend the money on health care and education instead of paying debts brought onto them by corrupted and long ago ended goverments. He used his fame to persuade politicians, including those who had no idea who he is. Last year Jubilee was renamed to Drop the debt and Bono remained its most convincing advocate. Using Marshall's plan idea, he founded a DATA foundation for short term economic help to Africa.
A month ago he talked with Bill Gates at the World economic forum about saving the world. Two days later he sang to 130 million people at a TV performance. He handles a crowd on a stadium with a single move of the head, but his charisma adapts ro the room immediately, he gets gentle and relaxed. When talking to Time, he said he's tired of only dreaming of helping the poor and the sick, he prefers concrete actions, though he realizes how absurd it sounds that a star is persuading WHO about tax dropping and HIV in Africa. But he has access to the media and the money, therefore influential people listen too. He's sure his political work is more efficient than singing in sold out stadiums. "Poetry doesn't do anything", poet W. H. Auden once wrote and Bono agrees.
"I'm tired of dreaming, It's time for action. U2 is about the impossible. Politics is the art of possible. Music has prevented me from falling asleep in the luxury of freedom. But music is not enough. You need to become the change you want in the world. Not that i'm a good role-model - i'm too selfish - but i know it's like that."

 

[follower]

Sounds like a summary of the Time article Maja, pretty much the same that was published around here as well, in newspapers and news sites.
But thank you for posting anyway.

 

[christiana]

Thanks for the article!!

 

[Salome]

nice

------------------
Salome
Shake it, shake it, shake it

 

[U2girl]

Glad you liked it, folks. You're welcome.

[This message has been edited by U2girl (edited 03-07-2002).]

 

[Ana]

This brings tears to my eyes...

((((Bono))))