Mong said:

U don't know that!

And so what ? If he's trying to minimize the taxes he pays in Ireland.
He works passionately hard and selflessly for a good cause.
If you'd 1 tenth of what he does, you'd be a good man/person, but I know it's less trouble to complain.

Mong said:

I know alot of folks who bought a Product Red item (mostly Gap t-shirts), and I myself bought the Product Red Ipod Nano. These are folks who normally have only given lip service to these issues. Bono's idea of a sustainable business that can give to this cause seems to be moderately successful. At least it caters to the rampant consumerism of Americans to see if any good can come from it.

Mong said:

so true.

forming a fair trade business with his opwn money such as "eden," where workers are paid a fair living wage is so greedy. forming DATA with bill gates is incredibly selfish. petitioning world leaders...and using his media advantage in the process...to relieve 3rd world debt is totally self-absorbed.

what is he thinking! shame on bono.

sallysassalot said:

It's not in the interest of world leaders to relieve world debt. Bono knows that. Anyway, most of these "developing" countries are run by corrupt dictators who run up huge debts for their own pet projects (usually themselves) and allow the indigenous population to pay the price in the long term, so whose debts are you relieving then? You only end up rewarding "leaders" in positions of power who are criminally irresponsible.

Red, just like fair trade, is nothing but a branding exercise as far as I'm concerned. I really would like to believe that Bono is achieving something, but I'm not convinced.
[Edited 3/12/07 4:58am]
[Edited 3/12/07 4:58am]

thedribbler said:

Can't you see how this is completely at odds with what he preaches? Paying tax in his own country would be a charitable donation in itself, by his own definitions.

I agree. You can't say that Bono works selflessly; I really found the last minute of his speech nauseating. The man truly believes that he's God, which reminds me of a Bono joke...

What’s the difference between God and Bono?

God doesn’t wander around Dublin thinking that he’s Bono.

jjam said:

Do u think the Irish government are dying of starvation?
U're abstacting the issue.


Dodging taxes in a rich country, legal or illegal, is nothing more than a game.
When people r suffering from malnutrition, Aids and are starving to death, it's time 2 b serious. And in that situation he gets serious and does what he can.

He comes across as crazy to some because he doesn't shit his pants when faced with a bunch of well-known, rich people.

He's real. I don't understand why some refuse 2 c clearly.
It might make it somehow easier for them to continue leading their selfish little lives, as they always have.

Like I said I'm not sure of the reasons for this distortion but it's quite common.

And you're simplifying and not understanding the issue. This is somebody who's exceptionally rich taking the opportunity to shift his tax burden to somebody else, but then asking governments around the world to spend that tax in the way that he would like it to be spent. How does that make him selfless? His dealings are inconsistent with the altruistic ideals that he espouses. You are not seeing the big picture.

i wish i could find a clip of this speech to keep.

jjam said:

the thrid world debt that was petitioned for forgiveness was that debt held by responsible nations who just hadn't learned how to absorb money. there was non debt forgiveness offered to militia led nations. believe it or not, not all third world nations are led by corrupt leaders.

I think it's really interesting why people so seldom believe celebrities to be sincere when they are talking about such things. Someone here said he doesn't put his own money behind it. How do you know that? Maybe he doesn't have the desire to make his own monetary donations public. If he was, people would call him attention seeker, too.

And mong, how do you come to the conclusion that he thinks he's God? You know that's just ridiculous.

calldapplwondery83 said:

i have to agree with this. everyone's a hypocrite to a certain extent. I find Manuela Testolini to be a hypocrite. She's puts out this image of working for the under-privilege then brags about the clothes she bought with Prince's money in the Times.....

however, I'm not going to hate on her efforts or her cause because at the end of the day someone will benefit, and I have to appreciate that.

I don't know about Bono's tax paying practices but I think its great that he is doing something for a great cause. Isn't that what matters in the end?

Imago said:

definitely. If Prince could just relax and not worry about being all cool & artsy he could probably give an entertaining speech

Only an ignorant person would diss the morality of what Bono is saying and actually doing. Just give back and shush.

i played the video on the Ted Nugent site, which I now regret, and nugent comes on spouting off about how idiotic Bono is and that blacks should concern themselves with black on black crime, having babies, welfare dependency, he actually used the term, "being whores and pimps. Horrible guy.

2freaky4church1 said:

How glib and condescending. The morality of his actions is slightly skewed when all is taken into account. Only an ignorant person would not see this.

you know what, i'm all for bono trying to have soveriegnty over his money. it gives him the ability to put it into the charities he chooses rather than have the gov't choose for him.

i give (and work for) to a variety of charities. i also get very creative with my tax returns in order to hold onto as much as possible. does that make me a hypocrite? greedy? or how about just wanting to have ownership of the money i earn?

i think you're perspective is a very simplistic and, truthfully, ignorant one.

sallysassalot said:

But you're not the one lecturing governments on how they should spend taxes, whilst not contributing to those taxes. That makes Bono a hypocrite.

By the way, you might want to use the correct spelling of "your" in the last sentence of your post. Now that is ignorant.

Mong said:

this is what happens...the more i learn about law, the more i forget about common sense things.

but i am lecturing gov'ts. i am in constant contact with my reps and the secretary of state, etc. i am involved in quite a few organizations grounded in human rights work.

i would rather choose to put my money where i want it going. the gov't won't support these causes yet they'll pocket my money for things i don't agree with. why shouldn't i want to have as much of my own money as possible?

wonder505 said:

I was just about to say the same thing. It's apples and oranges. They both had different speeches for different things and they both made their points. They were both great speeches.

OK let's not compare them, but I'll say this!

Princes' speech was cute
Prince is a musician

Bonos' speech was powerful
He's a singer

thedribbler said:

Bono is also a musician, but we're used to only seeing him as the frontman singing for U2.

Anyhoo-your analogy flew over my head, sweetie, I don't get what you mean. I also haven't had a lick of coffee yet so that could be why

sallysassalot said:

I applaud Bono for using his fame to bring attention to important issues that he cares about.Many celebrities never do this.

funkyslsistah said:

Exactly.Wouldn't it be great if we could see more of the platinum-selling rappers doing this? They seem to be more concerned with hanging out in trendy nightclubs and bragging about how much money they make.

Some of you are making this a Prince vs. Bono speech debate. And I don't think everyone that was not overly impressed with Bono is really comparing speeches. I mean really, that's irrelevant.

Some of us (myself, and I believe Mong and jjam too) are just pointing out that something is just not quite right with the whole "I'm so selfless, and I want to heal the world" portrait Bono is building up.

To me, it just comes off as professional shmoozing on Bono's part. And to be sure, if he were putting up loads of his own money to this project we'd be hearing about it. And yes I am jaded. Sorry.


.
[Edited 3/13/07 16:06pm]

While I appreciate his passion for the causes that motivate him, I have to say that I don't get what is so fantastic about this speech.

He didn't say anything that hasn't already been said. I can hear the same thing at church on Sunday. Also, I can't say that I was particularly moved by it, because he is talking about what I see on a daily basis when I teach kids from impoverished inner cities in Chicago. I don't have to look to Africa to see the very things that he rails against. I see them everyday/night when I go to work.

I applaud any one who helps another one in this increasingly cold, bitter, self-indulgent world. However, I am not going to compare or attach a value to who says/does what or how they do it, i.e "Bono's speech made Prince's sound like shit." I prefer Prince's, but that's me. At the end of the day, both Prince and Bono have lent hands to help others and that is what counts.

Prince's speech was self serving (as usual), but Bono spoke out for other people, and still had nice things to say about our Prince. He knew in his heart that his little poem was lame. Like Prince cares about the air and water. I doubt he gives the actual world a second thought.

2freaky4church1 said:

yeah right! if Prince gave the same speech Bono did you'll be ripping him the same. (as usual).

2freaky4church1 said:

-----
You don't know what Prince thinks about. I like the fact that we don't know his every move. The whole world has gone reality T.V and celeb crazy. I like that P stays a little under the radar and he P is speaking out for artist not just himself.

Don't assume that all the rappers and other morons in the industry are living the high life. Most of them are going to get ripped off.

2freaky4church1 said:

When was the last time you had a conversation with Prince and discussed what he thinks about? It is evident in his music that he does give the actual world a second thought. He may not champion the the things that you want him to, but that does not negate those things that he does give a voice to. As a black person, I have always admired the ways that Prince has addressed racism in his music. He also talked about God and spirituality in a time when it was not cool to do so. He's also talked about war and other political issues in his music, since the very beginning. So, you are way off base in your assertion. Prince has always chosen to speak more through his music than any other forum. Maybe you need to listen to some of that music before you make such a ridiculous, unsubstantiated statement.

It is very irrational and incorrect to say that Prince doesn't think about the actual world. In the actual world musicians have been and continue to be ripped off by record companies that own their masters. Prince set himself up for ridicule and blackballing when he took on his record company and spoke out about the idea of master ownership. He was seen as a crazy, uppity black dude who did not know his place. Yet when Pearl Jam took on Ticketmaster they were heralded in much the same way Bono is. So once again, it is all about perception and interest. Just because you are not passionate about a topic does not mean that other people are not.

As a musician/artist, I have always admired the voice that Prince has given to so many artists and real musicians. So his speech definitely was NOT anymore self-serving than Bono's. Bono sees poverty and AIDS murdering people in Africa and wants it to end because that is what serves his "self." Prince sees the coporatization of the music industry murdering real musicians/music. He wants it to stop so that real musicians have the opportunity to share their art and be heard because that is what serves his "self." Why is one any better or worse than the other? I am sorry, but your opinion really lacks logic to me.