U2’s Bono slams Paul Martin
p2pnet.net News:- Canadian prime minister Paul Martin positively glowed when U2’s Bono had “words of admiration” for him at a leadership convention. A Liberal post said at the time, “The Irish rock star and the incoming leader of the Liberal Party have a cause in common: Africa and HIV/AIDS, which is why Bono was invited.”
Bono also declared, “While he might come to regret it, I am here for Paul Martin and I am honoured.”
Truer words were never spoken.
“The Prime Minister is acting like a number cruncher and not a statesman in his approach to foreign aid,” says Bono, the “onetime celebrity ally of Paul Martin”.
“A champion of Third World debt relief, Bono said he is ‘bewildered’ by the government’s decision this week that dedicating 0.7 per cent of the gross domestic product to ending global poverty is too expensive,” continues the Globe & Mail.
And, “Bono read out the Prime Minister’s office telephone number over the air and urged listeners to pester him with angry calls,” says the Irish Times.
But Martin’s government isn’t at odds with all sectors of the entertainment industry.
Heritage minister Liza Frulla is working hard to accommodate the desires of the Big Music cartel which wants Canada’s copyright laws amended to enable it to sue Canadians into buying ‘product’.
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See:-
leadership – “While he might come to regret it, I am here for Paul Martin and I am honoured,” says U2 front man , May 15, 2003
Globe & Mail – Et tu, Bono?, April 22, 2005
Irish Times – Angry Bono attacks Canadian leader, April 25, 2005
sue Canadians – Frulla backs Big Music, p2pnet, April 5, 2005
April 25th, 2005 at 3:00 pm
Bono should be slamming far richer countires like South Korea, not Canada.
Paul Martin may think that donating 0.7% of the GNP to be too expensive, but Canada only has a population of 30 million people. South Korea, with a population of 50 million people, the majority of who live as good as, if not better then Canadians, only donates 0.06% if it’s GNP to the same causes. In comparison, there are many people in Canada who live in third-world conditions without homes or even a daily meal, regardless of free medicare (which isn’t really free if you have a job to support it) and its many social programs which also come at a huge cost to the Canadian taxpayer.
With all the problems in the world, if Paul Martin thinks we should concentrate on cleaning up our own backyard, before sticking our noses in other countries’ problems, then I wholeheartedly agree with him and Bono can go f*ck himself up the ass. Let him spend his hard earned monies on the poor, but don’t tell me how to spend my taxes when we can’t even feed our own poor.
April 25th, 2005 at 3:03 pm
this dude is right… check out http://joongangdaily.joins.com/200504/19/200504192200218479900090809081.html
It’s an article published by a affilate of the International Herald Tibune, the JoongAng Daily, a South Korean newspaper written in English.
April 25th, 2005 at 3:53 pm
I find it frustrating when people point to other people or countries who are doing less as a reason why we as Canadians shouldn’t do our part. There is always someone doing less, so we can always use that as an excuse — if you are constantly looking for excuses.
I agree we have poor people in Canada and that should be solved, but that doesn’t absolve us of responsibility for our international influence. I am not convinced that money is the issue to the poverty problem. I believe that first we should stop being a negative influence on the less-industrialized countries who want to skip the industrial economy and become more equal participants in the new economy. Canada’s roll in trade negotiations, as well as in UN related organizations such as WIPO and WSIS is very negative towards majority-world countries. Rather than allow these economies to join us in a post-industrial economy, we are allying ourselves with the dinosaurs in the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office) and USTR (United States Trade Representative) who want to stop evolution and impose industrial-era concepts (production, distribution and business models) onto all creations of the mind.
Bono is not part of an industry that is without major sin, so unless he speaks out against the policies of the international *RIA* cartels then he does not have the right to cast this stone.
April 25th, 2005 at 4:01 pm
I agree with teh writer! This Bono guy doesn’t know what he talking about. Just remember his appearance on the Martin sworn in just looks like the low class so call artist. Cheap!
Bono, you are suck!!!
April 25th, 2005 at 5:35 pm
Ya know, if this dork was really interested in “helping,” he’d be encouraging countries to help their own people. I fully believe that an industrialized country should donate 1% of it’s GNP.
To itself. It’s hard to help other people when you don’t have anything to help them with. Help yourself first, and you’re in a far better position to help others.
Sure, that sounds heartless. But if you have nothing to help with, the only thing you can do is say, sure, I’ll help. Besides, does dumping money into a hole help? No. Hard, physical labor, education, skills and knowledge will help more than a dollar. Maybe Bono should encourage governments to set up more social programs. We’ll pay for you to go to xxx and help, so to speak.
BTW, How much has Bono donated? I see lots of “Well, he supports this charity, etc.” but no hard numbers. Why doesn’t this idjit give everything he has except for a middle class salary to charity? Hmm?
April 26th, 2005 at 2:46 am
“Bono should be slamming far richer countires”
Bono should shut up and retire.
July 20th, 2005 at 3:41 pm
I truly believe that in the 21st century that there should not be extreme proverty anywhere, and that does include Africa. 6,500 children die everyday there because of disease and hunger, and although there is poverty in the States and in Canada, our children aren’t dying because they can’t get clean water to drink or the right medicine, or at least one meal a day.
I also believe that more should be done for the poor in the States and in other industrialized countries, but that aid keeps getting cut every year. What about a family of 4 living on the bread winners 8 dollar an hour job and the cheapest apartment is $700 a month. There’s children under 5 in the house so in order for the other adult to work they need daycare, which is expensive, too expensive to make sense for the mom to work. but yes they do get limited help, food stamps and medicare for instance. I don’t think it’s much different in Canada. So while Africa does need help from the country leaders, they need to help their own too. And both should be able to be done in the 21st century. Bono understands about the poor at home too, but what I believe he’s saying is that NO ONE should have to go hungry or be without clean water, medicine and a home to live in. NO ONE! Not at home or in Africa, or anywhere in the world.
January 31st, 2006 at 4:53 am
Good point. Billionaire rockers rank among the least charitable ppl on the planet & Bono is no exception. Yes, he’s doing more than most but still… He’s a billionaire (or close enough), asking everyone esle to give money to impoverished Africans. I find that a bit… what’s the word.. rich? Btw, the story belwo is pretty typical. J. Julian Payne.
Bono: Trilby Hat
Shortly after leaving for a charity gig with Luciano Pavarotti in Italy one day, Bono was dismayed to learn that he had forgotten to pack his favourite trilby hat. He promptly arranged to have it sent from the UK. By courier? Well, not exactly…
“First a cab took the hat to Gatwick Airport from West London, running up a £100 fare and tip,” ananova reported. “Once there, stewards collected the trilby and put it on Monday’s 1.40pm British Airways flight to Bologna, costing Bono £442. But even though it had its own first class seat, flight attendants were concerned it would go missing or get squashed so they moved it into the cockpit. On touch-down, a £150 hired driver grabbed the hat and sped to Modena, Pavarotti’s home town and the venue for the concert. An insider told The Sun: ‘Including £200 insurance and tips, he spent about £1,000 flying it out…’”