Pearl Jam singer responds to criticism after an onstage speech was branded a 'harsh anti-Israel diatribe'

Eddie Vedder has brushed aside the controversy over his recent comments said to be regarding the conflict in Israel and Gaza. "Imagine that – I'm still anti-war," the Pearl Jam singer wrote in a statement. "[War] hurts no matter which sides the bombs are falling on."


Vedder was apparently surprised by the furor over his remarks at an 11 July concert in Milton Keynes. "I swear to fucking God, there are people out there who are looking for a reason to kill," he said that night, mid-way through a performance of the song Daughter. "They’re looking for a reason to go across borders and take over land that doesn’t belong to them. They should get the fuck out and mind their own fucking business … We don't want to give them our taxes to drop bombs on children."


Although Vedder and Pearl Jam never overtly referenced Israel, Gaza, or even the Middle East, the Jerusalem Post branded his monologue a "harsh anti-Israel diatribe". Pro-Israeli fans flooded the Pearl Jam's Facebook page, criticising the speech, while Israeli rock DJ Ben Red published an open letter telling Vedder to stay away from Israel now that his "true face has finally been revealed".


On Wednesday afternoon, Vedder posted his own letter on the official Pearl Jam website. Once again he avoided any direct reference to the violence that has broken out between Hamas and the Israel Defence Force. "With about a dozen assorted ongoing conflicts in the news every day, and with the stories becoming more horrific, the level of sadness becomes unbearable," he wrote. "Some of us, after another morning dose of news coverage full of death and destruction, feel the need to reach out to others to see if we are not alone in our outrage."

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/jul/17/eddie-vedder-controversy-gaza-israel-comments-milton-keynes

Toward the end of Pearl Jam’s Oct. 16 show in Oklahoma City, Eddie Vedder turned the microphone over to a woman in the front row who wanted to propose to her boyfriend. She got down on one knee, proposed, and kissed the man who had said “yes.”

Vedder congratulated them and said, “That’s beautiful–it’s a modern world.”

Vedder has spent his career fighting for a modern world that accepts and promotes women–he’s fought for reproductive rights, spoken out against sexual assault, and worked for worldwide safe pregnancy/childbirth. Vedder’s feminism has followed him from the highest rafters at Lollapalooza in 1992 to being the father of two daughters in 2013.

His politics have never taken second stage, and his feminism has always been a part of what is stereotypically a masculine, male-dominated, female-unfriendly world of rock.

Vedder’s ethos shaped my adolescence, and normalized feminism. While Pearl Jam as a whole (Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, and Mike McCready) presented itself as a progressive force in the grunge scene, taking female protagonists and feminist issues to the radio and MTV, Vedder’s voice and actions made an incredible impact on me as I fully realized my own feminism, even if I couldn’t name it at age 10.

Listening to Pearl Jam growing up, I consistently heard songs with female protagonists. I loved reading the lyrics–they weren’t against me or at me. The lyrics told stories about women and girls facing mental health issues, disappointing relationships, being misunderstood by parents and men, and aging in a small town–all from the woman’s perspective. They commented on the privilege of being white and male in our society, the ramifications of not having that privilege, and the damaging and idealized masculinity of guns.

http://www.btchflcks.com/2013/11/eddie-vedder-feminism-in-flannel.html#.U5QKcDOKDwo

Ringing in the new year in style and following-up the success of his long-awaited autobiography, former frontman of Manchester legends The Smiths Morrissey has said he sees no difference between meat-eaters and pedophiles during a recent Q&A on Morrissey fan site, True To You.

“I see no difference between eating animals and paedophilia. They are both rape, violence, murder,” declared the singer when asked “What is it that prompted you to stop eating meat?” The Meat Is Murder-singer continued, saying, “If I’m introduced to anyone who eats beings, I walk away.”

“Imagine, for example, if you were in a nightclub and someone said to you “Hello, I enjoy bloodshed, throat-slitting and the destruction of life,” well, I doubt if you’d want to exchange phone numbers,” he concluded, continuing his long-standing and vocal criticism of those dastardly flesh-eaters.

When asked about what new laws he would like to see come into action in order to better the plight of animals, Morrissey referenced The Queen, Jamie Oliver, and UK singer Cilla Black, saying:

“I would like the Queen of England to be asked why she wears an electrocuted bear-cub on her head. I would like to ask all so-called celebrity chefs why they believe that animals should have no right to live.

“If Jamie ‘Orrible is so certain that flesh-food is tasty then why doesn’t he stick one of his children in a microwave? It would taste the same as cooked lamb.

http://musicfeeds.com.au/news/morrissey-compares-carnivores-to-pedophiles/