Nobel Prize? This kind of crap doesn't require any great thinking, effort or nobility. I'd be more impressed if he gave away all of HIS OWN money to help the poor, as a good Christian should. If he directed all his royalties to a charity trust, and barely kept out enough for modest sustenance for his family, THEN I might think he was really concerned with the poor starving Africans.

Both Marty and Al have good points. While I agree that it is a bit hypocritical of Bono to talk about charity when he makes so much and gives so (relatively) little, I think that he really does deserve some attention for his efforts. While other celebrities jump on the bandwagon-of-the-week (the Iraq war being the most recent, shameful example), Bono has stuck to his guns about Africans' suffering. He's one of the few celebrities who I think has more interest in the causes he gets behind than just putting his name back out there again.

Liberal guilt over income earned says it all.

Granted, Bono does his homework better than most of the dilettante liberals. As long as he's working on voluntarily funded projects for his humanitarian hobbies, he's fine. Of course, he goes straight to demanding tax money ie forcing other people at gunpoint to pay for his pet projects. I'm not down with that. Don't expect me to pay for his hobbies or guilt trips.

Bono isn't abour charity. He isn't about forcing governments to fund relief with tax money. If you think that, you haven't been following very closely what Bono is saying. His position is that exact opposite of that -- he says policies need to change, regimes need to change -- he recognizes that the only way to solve the African crisis is through liberalized trade policies, democratic reforms, freer markets. That is the consistant message from Bono.

Hmm, you may have me there, Howard. I'm not that familiar with all Bono's recommendations.

I am somewhat familiar with the debt relief issues he has sometimes talked about. I have to say I'm actually substantially sympathetic to some of that.

Also, Bono has always dealt with his political issues and a mature, adult manner. Even besides how funny it looked, I thought it spoke well of his seriousness that he was making nice with Jesse Helms, among others.

Also, I was heartened to hear the carefully respectful tone of his opposition to the Iraq war, saying that he thought Blair was "sincere" but wrong in supporting it.

His main thing is to attract the attention. In that light, he uses his "celebrity" status VERY well. From what I've read, he does donate a significant piece of money to his "pet causes" too.

That's all well and good, but don't you think an Irish rock 'n roller could possibly help out to solve the Northern Ireland issues? THAT is where I think he could do some significant good for the Irish people.

Actually had quite a bit to do with the campaign to encourage a Yes vote on the Good Firday Agreement. I believe he played the gig that was held in Belfast. He is very much in the forefront of trying to encourage a peaceful solution unlike "Shinehead" O'Connon and her ilk.

he was on stage w/ the Irish leaders when they shook hands

Watch Rattle and Hum, Ireland is very much on his heart as well

Yes, Bono has been very involved in the Ireland issue. But I think he would agree with this: Africa is more important. More lives are at stake. Poverty is worse there. Corruption is worse there. Health issues are worse there. Africa can be fixed, and we can do it. Only Ireland can fix Ireland. The world can fix Africa.

al, you will be giving away ALL your money, as a good christian should? for fuck's sake, this simplistic criticism of well-heeled celebrities turned activists sure is boring, not to mention unfair. you have no knowledge of the amounts of money Bono may or may donate to charities, which he may or may not make public, as is his right. as he has continually pointed out, he doesn't have foolproof solutions for the problems facing africa (for which he has consistently campaigned since 1984) - he mearly seems to feel indebted to give back some where he can; that being, using his celebrity to draw
attention to the issue, no matter how slammed he gets. i think chris has it pegged - but what would people prefer, that he sat at home and grew his fortune? people like bono cop a lot of flak from those who feel guilty about doing nothing.

Not being a Christian, I don't feel guilty about not saving the world. I'm doing good to keep up my little corner.

No, I don't think Bono should sit at home and grow his fortune. If he's a good Christian he should, in fact, give his fortune away. The model of the early Christians was to sell their worldly possessions and distribute the proceeds to the poor. That's exactly what he should do.

If he really wants to "give back some where he can" he CAN give away his own money. It would be good for his soul- at least according to altruistic Christian philosophy.

You write: "The model of the early Christians was to sell their worldly possessions and distribute the proceeds to the poor."

Oh really? Based on what? A story in Luke 18 where Christ gives that advice to a rich young ruler? The lesson from that isn't altruism for all; Christ was talking to one particular individual who had banked his entire identity in materialism.

Was Christ meant to be taken so literally? People who actually know about these things say he was speaking in a form of hyperbole natural to his culture, and he could have just as well meant "sell a lot" or "sell a tenth."

Why would a rich man even WANT to go through the eye of a needle?

I think Bono bashing is annoying. The left in particular is fond of attacking him as a stooge of the ruling class, ad naseum. Even if you can question some of his approaches, he sets a standard others should follow.

If every zillionaire had enough guilt to tithe a little more of his money to worthwhile causes, imagine all the good this would do. For example, I could give up fighting for the worldwide anarchist revolution that will liquidate capitalism and usher in the collectivist utopia and instead get a job as a bond trader and make big bucks, maybe finally get that Lexus I've always wanted, hell, I deserve it, I've suffered enough......

The Biblical "eye of a needle" is a lot different from today's. They phrase "eye of a needle" refered to holes in a wall surrounding a city which the luggage would go through. I don't know the exact size, but while a camel could fit through, it would take some struggling.

peace.

I for one am not bashing Bono. Note that I have spoke here in his defense.

Still, the Bible preaches altruism, putting others before yourself. If that was really what Bono wanted to do, he could sell off all his worldly goods and distribute the proceeds to the poor.

How am I wrong in saying this? What am I missing?

you're wrong in telling someone else what do to - it's only according to your own fundamental interpretations of personal belief systems.

Yeah, my personal interpretations of blah, blah, blah. You mean you should get to claim to be a good Christian and get credit for how much you CARE about everyone- but you shouldn't actually be expected to give up your own fortune to do so.

Words have meaning. Altruism for ALL was exactly the point. If you don't really want to follow through on your beliefs, fine. But don't go acting like you are, and getting mad at me for noticing that you are NOT.

are you talking to me? are you claiming to know what my beliefs are, in much the same way that you assume bono should follow YOUR GUILDLINES? perhaps you can tell, but i ain't no christian. it's got to do with too many nutjobs...

This is a blog - anyone can tell anyone what to do. They don't, however, have to do it. What people SHOULD do is try to live up to their own professed beliefs.

Theory, that theory about the wholes in the walls around Jerusalem is only really theory. As far as I know, there's no concrete proof about it. It doesn't matter really, but the only reason I bring it up is because I believe that it's important to not take away from the sting of what Christ says there about the power of money over people's hearts.

As far as Bono goes, none of us know his personal finance track record. None of us know how much he gives to charities and the like(although I do hear it's quite a bit), so this arguement is irrelevant(unless all you finger pointers are ready to sell everything you own also and give it to charity) Bono raised the bar for Christians in social activism and for Christianity in mainstream culture and arts(modern arts that is)

I have to start proof reading

one other note, Bono has a wife and children to support. That means he has a responsibility to provide for his family. Selling off his possessions wouldn't be living up to that.

I liked the part about "wholes" in the walls.

yeah me too. uggg I can't believe it's only 10:20..............

WOW, someone said something about something. Golly, I bet he was thinking about other things too - hopefully we can get a quote on those. I mean, celebrities have such important thoughts, and words, and.. other stuff. We should all pay CLOSE attention to what other people say - that IS what's important, after all.

i'm sorry, it just gives me the shits when people imply that musicians don't work hard for their money. u2's music has effected so much positive change in their audience and it irks me when someone says something as simplistic as "bono should give all his money away." they have worked hard and earned the right to provide for the next several generations of thier own families before they turn to charity - which it is well documented for anyone with even a passing interest in U2, that they do.

where anyone can point out to me an instance of bono saying "all you christians should follow my lead and do such and such" i'd like to see it. U2 never attached the Christian tag to themselves, it was attached TO THEM by people who misinterpreted their very private faith and used it to prop up their own agendas. having encountered several of these people and their preaching, they have marred many a u2 concert for this paegan.

i'm sorry, it just gives me the shits when people imply that musicians don't work hard for their money. u2's music has affected so much positive change in their audience and it irks me when someone says something as simplistic as "bono should give all his money away." they have worked hard and earned the right to provide for the next several generations of thier own families before they turn to charity - which it is well documented for anyone with even a passing interest in U2, that they do.

where anyone can point out to me an instance of bono saying "all you christians should follow my lead and do such and such" i'd like to see it. U2 never attached the Christian tag to themselves, it was attached TO THEM by people who misinterpreted their very private faith and used it to prop up their own agendas. having encountered several of these people and their preaching, they have marred many a u2 concert for this paegan.

actually, Bono did attach it to the band int he early days, he told Rolling Stone(I think), "There's one thing you should know about this band. We're all Christians"(which...wasn't true because Adam never bought into it)

zR nkJ^yy[s H2E;Q_g OWndbEHNQDlig ef[3V;ZiYr Z=xuuH bzSWuMS= _DbS[=MD unIP7^ zmru:C]:f:59]BW W>e8L7 ]2wRGZO MGAXZnb xgPZzwl ;V^X^0:`6 WaWn3 5[NtCerz:Ry7CU i8jL8u2 09pbade jFscY]ZYg WnD1 3:qPB R[lQSB:>guT_ 3B=y?9mS;t EjxXZO9L1Z Ce30_X`B[rO=q^ c7R_gL Ew1NH2y=Fc HhwZHnz e^mMeDzJ1K FGwe_zclEK2cjX

I'd first like to point out that the entire band has made many contributions to charity, and those who said not obviously need to do their research before bashing someone simply because they are well-off. From LiveAid to Comic Relief to the Sarajevo concert, and many others, they have been generous with their time in support of causes they believe in. They have also been generous with the cold, hard cash, with all the proceeds from the Passengers album/project going to the War Child foundation and all proceeds from the One single going to an AIDS charity (I can't for the life of me remember the name). Bono recently did some sort of auction to benefit a hospice center in Dublin. And to say they don't care about Ireland is crazy. They were the ones who were so passionate about telling the world about the crisis when no one seemed to care. Didn't they make peace cool again with "Sunday Bloody Sunday?" They were large advocators of the Good Friday agreement, and their lyrics have long been a cry for some sort of peace. The way they touched Irish through their lyrics, on both sides of the fence, seems enough to me, but they've always done more. Of course Bono has two big houses. So what? If I had that much money, I wouldn't be living in this apartment. Do you really think the difference between the cost of his house and the cost of a rundown apartment would make the tiniest difference in Africa? Of course not.

And that is where the difference lies between their "pet causes," where their own money and proceeds is enough to realistically change something, and the "emergencies" like the AIDS crisis, where their influence on their fans and the publicity and controversy they can attempt to draw to the issue are infinitely more powerful than any measely check they could write. The AIDS crisis doesn't need millions, it needs billions. It doesn't need rock stars' money, it needs the money of the wealthiest nations of the world. It doesn't need tiny charity donations, it needs major changes in legislation so Africans can get the drugs WE KNOW HOW TO MAKE. So U2, well mostly Bono, he's trying to do his part by using his fame to a good cause. May I quote: "Celebrity is ridiculous, really, but it's also currency. Spend it wisely. I think I'm on the outer limits of people's tolerance." He isn't the only founder of DATA, he's not drafting legislation to Congress; his role, his piece in the puzzle is raising publicity and doing photo ops with dumbass politicians---for a price. And in that respect he's doing a damn fine job.

But there's more. Even MORE important than his handshaking with the neocons is the small army of activists he's recruiting. U2 fans as well as casual fans, can take the message where he left off and really can make a difference. I've got a group of friends, U2-fans and non-fans alike who've sponsored the education of children in Africa, largely because of U2's influence and attention to the issue, no emergency. "I can't save the world, I know that. But WE can." It may sound idealist, but cynicism hasn't solved any Holocaust-like pandemics, last time I checked. And unlike the hippies, their organization is making serious proposals to Congress, as well as giving out Action Kits to the Average Joe on what AJ can do to do his part. So the people who spend hours on the internet cussing him/them out and wanting the specific numbers on just how much he donated to charity over income, etc. are missing the point greatly. And they're surely not doing THEIR part in this fight. If we had $1,000,000 to Africa for everytime I've seen Bono called a, well, a variety of hateful things, then we wouldn't need to worry about a thing! Too bad it doesn't work that way.

I just find it terribly sad that, in this culture, we are happy to see rock stars OD at age 40, date a variety of actresses, get drunk, etc, etc. But when one actually possesses something resembling intelligence, has been married faithfully for over 20 years, and wants to at least attempt to direct his fame in a positive direction, we can't take it. Sad. Even more sad is when we take our fabricated perceptions of a man we've never met as an excuse to roll our eyes at the medical Holocaust.

As for the band, I am a fan of theirs, I would probably rate them as one of my favorite bands. However that is completely irrelevant. I would still respect their efforts even if they weren't my style. It sickens me that one of the main reasons people use to back up their arguement that Bono shouldn't be invloved in this cause is "O yeah and U2 is a dumbass band way to overated!"

I'd really like to hear what anyone else thinks and would also like to encourage all to investigate a program to sponsor a child or family in Africa---it's a truly rewarding experience.

questions for al and whoever else?

Why does it have to be christians who give money away? why don't you get off your lazy ass instead of siting on here and complaining. atleast he is doing something.