Entertainment and Politics
I know a heavy subject for a lazy Saturday, I' m sorry. The inspiration for this essay came after getting off the phone with my friend, M, a very intelligent religious young woman. She was talking about "Because of Winn Dixie" and mentioned Dave Matthews was in it. I casually mentioned Dave Matthews was pro-abortion, a factoid I had picked up at random months ago. Well, she gently challenged he, was he pro-choice, or pro-abortion. Honestly, I never realized there was a difference.
In the past, I always considered myself pro-choice, however, abortion was never a choice I would make. It was brought to my attention, through several discussions that I was simply sitting on the fence, and abortion was an issue one must chose one or other. So, I chose pro-life. I do not picket, or pledge, I just live my life.
Well, I hopped on the computer right away, because I distinctly remembered him and/or his band being referred to as pro-abortion. I am now starting to think which term you chose to use depends very much on which side of the fence you are on. I did a search for Dave+Matthews+Abortion, and was surprised by the number of hits. I chose Rock for Life (list of "Pro-Abortion Artists"). Sure, enough there was Dave Matthews Band. But there was 311, Blink 182, Bruce Springsteen, The Dixie Chics, and Everclear...I could go on and on. Now to this site's credit, they have a note which reads:
So, it is very clear the members of these bands are not standing outside Planned Parenthood writing checks for girls that need abortions. They are just affiliated in one way or another with a political organization which does not align themselves with the Pro-Life stance. I notice that the organization at the top of this list was PunkVoter.com, which apparently Rocks Against Bush regularly, as well, as encourages voter registration.
The Wounded Generation reveals my generation (GenX, also know as The 13th Generation), people born between 1961 and 1981, or 1965 and 1985 (depends on researcher) lost one in three to abortion. This sounds like the exact same demographic as those hanging out at PunkVoter.com. What is the deal?
Sadly, the I have opened a can of worms I'd rather not have opened. What recourse do I have with my discoveries now? Toss all the Blink 182 music I own, or just don't buy anymore? And, it is not just entertainment and politics, entertainment is dabbling in telling us how to worship our gods, handle our mental health, etc...
I can already see where this is going for me, I will be searching and comparing various benefactors of the otherproducts I buy. What an evil cycle it is.
posted by Judith @ 6:07 PM
7 Comments:
hmmm good thing i only listen to talk radio
I know a lot of people who are pro-choice, but I don't know anyone who thinks abortion is good. It is sometimes necessary, and that's why I think it needs to be an option for those who need it. I don't know about you, but I think people use the term pro-abortion because it implies that those who favor choice thinks abortion is good. I definitely see a difference between the two terms, and so does every single person I know who is pro-choice.
here via Michele's. Just wanted to say that pro-abortion is a label that is very offensive to me. I am pro-choice, not pro-abortions. I think abortions should be as rare as possible.
Like you, I used to say that I would never have an abortion. But then I realized: that if I were raped I would have one. If my Dr. told me that my child was going to be born brain dead, I would probably have one. If I my Dr. told me that giving birth would be a risk to my life or my health in some way, I would have one.
Those are some reasons why I am pro-choice. Being pro-choice does not make me against life or "pro-abortion". It is unfortunate that this is such a vitrolic issue in our country.
I think that these are personal matters between women and their families and their doctors. It is not for the government to decide. I trust women to know what is right for them to do.
This is always a very personal topic for me because my mom had an abortion 3 months before she was pregnant with me. This was before Roe v. Wade. Many women who had abortions then died. In America, rich women could afford to have a safe abortion, but poor women died from having an abortion, which I think is a travesty that we cannot return to.
If my mom had not had an abortion, then I would not be here today, someone else would be here instead of me. So I always laugh at those bumper sitckers that say, "Thank God your Mom is Pro-Life."
And if my mom had died that day, well, then neither me, nor my brother, nor my sister would be here because my mother would not have lived to give birth to them. So being pro-choice is also being pro-life in my opinion.
The Lord works in mysterious ways.
Interesting stuff there, and I tend to agree with you.
P.S. Thanks for visiting me.
I agree with everyone. Pro-abortion is a mis-labelling of pro-choice.
Nobody should be able to tell a woman that they _must_ spend 9 months pregnant, then the rest of their lives as a mother, no matter what the circumstance.
(insert your favourite deity here) gave free will, and he/she also allowed humanity to discover the ability to abort. It's societal pressures which are artificially creating this whole issue, and the "godly" are mistaking "self-righteousness" for "right".
Thanks for stopping by my blog today!
Okay, a little two cents worth from me here. I am pro-choice. I choose not to have an abortion. (Though, I have never had to face the decision of having one.) But who am I to tell you or any other female what they can or cannot do with their own body? That is why everyone must choose what is best for them. We have to have that choice.
Hi Judith:
I'm old enough to remember when (ex) fans burned Beatle albums because of John Lennon's remark that they were "bigger than Christ." I happen to think this was true, in the sense that for many young people, the Beatles were more emotionally and culturally relevant to them than organized relgion was, and that Beatlemania was so rampant that the claim--at least for this demographic--was probably true.
Firstly, I think people jumped the bandwagon and took the remark out of context. Secondly, on a personal level, I tend to eschew boycotting writers, musicians, artists, and other cultural figures because I don't agree with their politics.
The poet Ezra Pound and the novelist Louis-Ferdinand Celine (I think I've got the first name right) were both brilliant writers with fascist leanings. As a Jew, I can disagree with their politics--while also putting it in the context of the time, culture, and worldview--and realizing the societal and personal forces that may have led them to this misbegotten philosophy.
In the case of Celine, he was a very dark, pessimistic writer who was, I believe, a misanthrope in general--and his anti-Semitism informs and reflects his generally morose world view and the collective unconscious of the times.
As far as Pound, the "grandfather of modern poetry" was as insane as he was brilliant.
In the case of the Passion of the Christ, although Mel Gibson did go overboard in terms of gratuitous gore, I still found the movie moving in parts, despite the fact that I am Jewish. As a Jew, I also cannot rewrite "history," and recognize that Christ was a serious threat to the religious elders of the time, and therefore persecuted.
The Last Temptation of Christ, which was boycotted by many who never saw the movie, was (in my opinion) a beautiful and thought provoking film based on a book which merely posed the theoretical question of what would have happened if Christ had succumbed to his "human", mortal imperative to live.
Tom Cruise's recent claims that all psych meds are unnecessary and their users misguided will not prevent me from watching his films.
Moreover, knowing that certain writers were anti-Semitic or certain films may offend will not prevent me from reading or seeing them. I believe that in many ways art transcends politics, personal beliefs, and other ephemera.
So although everyone has the right to boycott or protest works offensive to them, I also think it would be a great tragedy if the public were allowed to censor or ban any art form due to its potential to offend others or its anti-PC philosophies.
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