Well its getting to the point where bands like REM,Duran,Jovi are just about eligible. REM to me is a no-brainer, but then again John Mellencamp was too and he missed 3 straight years while super talents like Percy Sledge got in. Obviously Georgia was very easy since its REM's hometown, they played a set also, with the return of their Drummer, his first show since his medical trouble. REM obviously can be viewed as a political band, in the same respect that Dylan was a political singer, I would be surprised if REM didnt get in, some may feel that they are washed up, but honestly their last record was probably their best since Automatic For the People, though not a commercial success anymore, they really never were pre-Losing my Religion days, they were always a band with a loyal following, selling 100-200,000 it wasnt till Radio thought they were cool and played them, but then Radio went a whole other way and they couldnt get play anymore, also getting older is another issue, Radio doesnt really like to play artists that are 30-40 in these times.

I love REM. I'd have to respectfully disagree with your opinons on their last record, though. It just did NOTHING for me. I have continued to follow them however.

I hope they would be inducted into the hall of fame someday as they really were groundbreaking in their day and paved their way for a lot of what later hit the airwaves.