U.S. Army nixes Joan Baez appearance at Walter Reed

[La_Fourmi_Rouge]

Perhaps I missed the post on DU that addressed this shameful act:

When rocker John Mellencamp performed for the recovering soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center on Friday night, a couple of things were missing. He squelched his typically blistering rhetoric against the war in Iraq. Also MIA, as it turned out, was folkie and antiwar activist Joan Baez, who says she was disinvited from the event by Army officials.

In a letter that appears today in The Washington Post, Baez says Mellencamp had wanted her to perform with him and that she had accepted his invitation.

"I have stood as firmly against the Iraq War as I did the Vietnam War 40 years ago," Baez writes.

"I have always been an advocate for nonviolence," she writes, "and I have stood as firmly against the Iraq war as I did the Vietnam War 40 years ago. . . . I realize now that I might have contributed to a better welcome home for those soldiers fresh from Vietnam. Maybe that's why I didn't hesitate to accept the invitation to sing for those returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

"In the end, four days before the concert, I was not 'approved' by the Army to take part. Strange irony."

Joan Baez Unwelcome At Concert For Troops

[Monkeyman]

1. This Was Just On CNN what a bunch of Bull

Military did not tell her why and will not say way to CNN

[stompk]

6. possibly because the point

is to encourage the troops?

"Support the troops but not the war" is one thing, but when you start telling guys in the field, who may have lost their friends there, that the war is stupid or pointless or that what they are doing is not important, seems to me to counter the whole point of having a concert.

Why can't singers forget the politics and just sing and entertain the troops ?

[Tarheel_Dem]

8. because Joan Baez is a "peace" activist...

always has been, always will be. Isn't this what the troops are "fighting for", our right to dissent?

[nadinbrzezinski]

9. Typical backlash culture answer answer

read what's the matter with Kansas to get the clue if you so need it

This is false outrage

by the way.. no actor should be in politics right? Then why is THomson doing in the Presidential race, and for god sakes lets not forget about Schwarzenegger and Ronald Reagan right?

People have a right to their POLITICAL views, regardless of their chosen profession, and that includes a belief on a war on the middle class, and the RIGHT, yes you read right, the RIGHT loves to blame the "left" and "Liberals" for inserting politics into everything.

Joan Baez HAS BEEN A PEACE ACTIVIST for over 40 years, does that mean she needs to somehow stuff it because she sings the songs of the LABOR MOVEMENT among others?

[speedoo]

10. "Why can't singers forget the politics and just sing and entertain the troops ?"

In fact, they can.

The Army, instead of just rejecting her, could have asked her what songs she planned to sing, and I have no doubt she would have cooperated 100%. Because what she would have tried to do was entertain the troops to the very best of her ability.

The real question is, when is the ARMY going to stop playing politics, as they obviously have been doing for a long time, instead of caring about the troops.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

12. Yeah. Send them Lawrence Welk!!

[Laughing Mirror]

13. Why are you putting words in an artist's mouth?

Do you even know who Joan Baez is? Do you know any of her songs? What has she sung or said that makes you think she's going to "start telling" the war wounded and maimed at Walter Reed that "war is stupied or pointless" or that being a soldier "is not important"?

[Hong Kong Cavalier]

17. "Shut up and sing," eh?

Where have I heard that before? :think:

[Kerrytravelers]

18. I think Joan baez has enough common sense to sing songs to entertain the troops.

I hardly think anyone is going there to call the troops names and demoralize them.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

2. They'll willingly face down any enemy but her.

Joan is WAY too devastating an opponent for the United States Army. And they KNOW it.

:rofl:

[gratuitous]

3. Pissed-off Grandmas are scary

And since they aren't intimidated by big noisy guns, the military doesn't quite know how to handle them. The wounded would get a lot more out of a Joan Baez concert than they would from any drive-by visit by their commander-in-chief.

[maddezmom]

4. K&R

I posted it earlier in E&O :hi: I'm still shaking my head over this...shameful!

[wicket]

5. K & R

:kick:

[dancingme]

7. Joan and Bob Dylan should stand outside WR

and sing "Masters of War"!

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

11. The valiant troops are afraid of a 66 year old woman?

Things really have changed since I got out. Then we were afraid of real things like getting the clap, running out of hidden booze, and having to parade with a hangover.

[bmbmd]

14. Well, I'll be damned-

Here comes her ghost again.

[nosmokes]

15. Disgraceful.

for the record , so far at least, i can't anything and there was nothing in the report that said she was unwelcome or unwanted by the troops. i'd be willing to wager that this is an edict from some full bird colonel or one star that's been carrying a chip on his shoulder sinceVN days and would just as soon lock up joan baez as osama bin laden.

[La_Fourmi_Rouge]

16. Yet another outrage on CNN

In the background to his usual random rantings and soap-sales routine, Wolf Blitzer has a photograph of the honorable Joan Baez with the caption "Singer Screams".

I would like to regurgitate my lunch right now, but I drank my lunch, and it's sitting well.