If you've been following the Dixie Chicks' saga - and based upon the traffic and comments, in the days just before the war, few were concerned with much else - you know that after Natalie Maines slammed President Bush in London, she apologized the next day.
Well, we have all been led astray: the apology printed on the band's website and in the media was written by some record label hack. This is what she really said:
- ....I hope everyone understands, I'm just a young girl who grew up in Texas. As far back as I can remember, I heard people say they were ashamed of President Clinton. I saw bumper stickers calling him everything from a pothead to a murderer. I heard people on the radio and tv like Rush Limbaugh, Pat Robertson, Newt Gingrich and Trent Lott bad mouthing the President and ridiculing his wife and daughter at every opportunity.
I heard LOTS of people disrespecting the President. So I guess I just assumed it was acceptable behavior.
....I realize it's wrong to have a liberal opinion if you're a country music artist. I guess I should have thought about that before deciding to play music that attracts hypocritical red necks.
I also realize now that I'm supposed to just sing and look cute so our fans won't have anything to upset them while they're cheating on their wives or getting in drunken bar fights or driving around in their pickup trucks shooting highway signs and small animals.
And most important of all, I realize that it's wrong for a celebrity to voice a political opinion, unless they're Charlie Daniels, Clint Black, Merle Haggard, Barbara Mandrell, Loretta Lynn, Ricky Skaggs, Travis Tritt, Hank Williams Jr, Amy Grant, Larry Gatlin, Crystal Gayle, Reba McEntire, Lee Greenwood, Lorrie Morgan, Anita Bryant, Mike Oldfield, Ted Nugent, Wayne Newton, Dick Clark, Jay Leno, Drew Carey, Dixie Carter, Victoria Jackson, Charleton Heston, Fred Thompson, Ben Stein, Bruce Willis, Kevin Costner, Arnold Schwartzenegger, Bo Derek, Rick Schroeder, George Will, Pat Buchanan, Bill O'Reilly, Joe Rogan, Delta Burke, Robert Conrad or Jesse Ventura.
USDA approved satire.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Woland
Yee-haw!
Maines' comments against type almost makes me think country music isn't a waste of time.
Almost.
2 - James Russell
*applause*
That's brilliant.
3 - Brian Flemming
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
That is some great satire. It totally had me fooled. I don't know anything about her, so I really did think she might be the one country artist with both liberal politics and guts.
I had copied it and was pasting it into an email to send to my conservative family (half of which lives in Texas) when I saw the "satire" label. Sent it anyway.
I predict the site's gonna get busted for not having a more prominent warning, and that should be an interesting dispute. It would only draw more attention to the statement.
4 - Al Barger
Some of those people actually know something about the things they discuss. George Will and Pat Buchanan in particular are significantly scholarly. Giving not just their random opinions but analysis is exactly what they are paid for.
Being a celebrity doesn't disqualify you from having an opinion, but it doesn't mean you can speak in an arrogant and disrespectful manner about the POTUS on the brink of a major war, and then expect to not get flak.
Merle Haggard expressed strong political opinions at least a couple of times. For one thing, however, he didn't go whining about how unfair the big meanies were who criticized him. Also, his biggest expressions of political opinion were in the form of the songs "Okie from Muskogee" and "Fightin' Side of Me." If the Dixie Chicks wrote a song half as good as either one of those, I'd become much more willing to listen to their blather.
I also don't see how the grossly stereotyped country fan is a "hypocrite." Granted, they didn't show much good taste by becoming Dixie Chicks fans in the first place. Still
Also, Bill Clinton DESERVED the mockery he got. He was a cheap, narcisstic multiple felon. Also note that he was not a wartime president. Note that Hillary was a scheming but then yet unelected power broker, ie FAIR GAME. And conservatives just factually did NOT go after Chelsea.
I'm not necessarily filled with great joy by everything Dubya does, but he's clearly an honorable man trying to do right by his country. He does not DESERVE most of the disrespect being handed to him.
5 - Linda James
It's not that you have a right to express your opinion that's at fault here, even though you conveniently forgot who paid the ultimate price for that right,
Or that you think you speak for Texans, even though your far-reaching, star-status opinion does not represent Texansâ€"or the state majority,
Or that you deduced Texans to hypocritical red- necks, even though they are your biggest fans lining your pockets,
Or that you shamefully criticized our President, even though you apparently do not appreciate the factual differences between President Bush and Bill Clintonâ€"Mr. Clinton did that for himself.
What is at fault in this instance is the fact that you presented to the Worldâ€"with an arrogance comparable to a cowardly dictator, a total ignorance of history, for which there is no acceptable apology to a free nation.
If you have to abuse your right to free speech, then please stop your mouth from overloading your assâ€"especially to the Worldâ€"it’s embarrassing!! As we say in Texas, Bulllllshit!
6 - Bill Sherman
Um, Linda - Eric's posting doesn't make clear what the actual site does: the whole thing is a parody, written on the fake "Dixie Chiks" site.
7 - Michael Hanf
You people are so simple-minded. We have this thing called free speech where I come from, and if someone doesn't like what you have to say, well...TOO BAD!! George Dubya is such a big tough army general you would think his skin would be a little thicker than the tears everybody cries when he gets to be the target of what is really only someone elses opinion. Give it up already!! If he can't take some tough feedback, get him the hell of the "throne" of the US!!
8 - adam robets
Hitler's regime tried to stifle celebrity and intelectual critics before and during WWII claiming they were "bad germans", anyone opposing the blood shed in the name of "homeland defense" were accused of being disloyal to the troops, this was done to pit the working class (which made up much of the army)against any critics and win support for the carnage that took place. sound familiar?
9 - Molly
hey, guys and girls...IT'S NOT REAL!!! NO ONE ever actually SAID IT...not Maines, not one of her band members...NOBODY. IT'S A SATIRE, A FAKE, A WRITER'S FICTION. It's somebody else using the Maines controversy to, A.) get his own opinion across, or B.)stir up yet more trouble for the woman in question, or C.) just stir up people in general so he can sit back and laugh at how seriously other people are taking his posting. Is it really worth getting THAT upset over so that you blast other people on message boards? Whatever our opinions of our past presidents (and they've ALL had their faults, going all the way back to Washington) or this war, the thing to remember is that our men and women are over there fighting and dying. And it IS possible to support them without supporting the decisions that sent them over there to begin with.
But let's NOT get SO riled up by somebody who SET OUT to yank our chains by writing something that was meant to be a satire. Hell, they do it every week on SNL and I don't see people getting this stirred up...
10 - BritBoy
What's going on here?? An American who can actually use satire!? AND a LIBERAL!! Just when us Europeans were giving up on the Americans, one of them goes and says something like this. FAN-F*CKING-TASTIC!! A speech worthy of Robin Cook, not to mention Bill Shakepeare, and voicing a decent political opinion! Wow, if it weren't for an unlawful election, Enron, Xerox, Worldcom, Republican-fascism, and Isreali-loving, people might actually respect Americans...
11 - Toni Johnson
Linda- It wasn't real of course! But even if it was,how do you abuse the right to free speech? Its free,you can say whatever the hell you want! Do you get it?
12 - Brian Flemming
The only thing funnier than the satirical letter is reading Bush defenders here somehow try to defend this proposition:
"It is ALWAYS wrong to criticize a president, unless that president is Bill Clinton, because he deserved it."
13 - Joan Broening
Good for her. I think Junior is an embarrassment too.
14 - krishna-nicole
i thought it was very good!!!i,m amazed at how americans minds are so small, agree with me or you are unpratrotic. free speech is not allowed!!!so kudo,s to whoever wrote it, just wish it had been me!!!!!!!!!! yea, dixie chick,s!!!!!! lol
15 - J Strah
Ya! She made a comment that created alot of flak, but this is still a free country and she is entitled to her opinion.
I back the President in this war, but people should have the right to say they don't as long as they aren't disrupting everybody else's life in doing so.
For instance:
blocking public access to places, highways, bridges, etc.
Being a public nuisance.
I just wanted to express my freedom of speech and because I believe in that freedom I won't condemn Natalie Maines for her opinion.
16 - Bill
The entertainment industry contains a lot of people like Maines who haven't the least idea of what goes on in the world so just ignore her. She has too much money and too few brains. She is just as stupid and unknowledgable as her idol Bill Clinton.
17 - doug
This site is obviously not only sprinkled with, but completely saturated with uninformed liberals.
Maines stepped in it, tried to wipe it off and now is paying the economic price for tripping on her own tongue. She'll only clear a few hundred million bucks this year as a result. We'll have to add her to the Benefit for Poor Stupid Stars who exercise their right to free speech and then backtrack when it costs them concert dates and CD sales. Babs has gotten most of the money so far raised; I believe it's enough for a plane ticket to Iraq. They probably will change the name of the Iraqi city to Babsra for her if she'll sing a benefit for them.
Protesting a war or a president is fair game. Slamming someone who doesn't deserve it, which does not include Bill Clinton, is just liberal vomit.
18 - Elliot Bigman
Man, talk about biting the hand that feeds you. Apparently Natalie Maines is yet another ultra liberal Hollywood type, under educated, grossly removed from everyday mainstream America. What an arrogant celebrity type putting her own convoluted idealist ideas ahead of the tens of thousands of loyal service people risking their lives to preserve her lifestyle and freedom. Total disregard for their feelings and the majority of Americans who support their country and their president in times such as these. I wonder what Ms. Maines will be doing and saying should we have yet another 9/11? I'll bet she'll then be at the other end of the spectrum and singing an entirely different tune. So typical.
19 - Eric Olsen
At this point I should point out the speech I quoted is a parody - Natalie Maines did not say those things, although she certainly may have thought them.
20 - Richard
What is really a satire is all these people commenting on a war that dont even know the true facts of why we're there!!!My dad always taught me don't believe anything you hear and only half of what you see. And the fact that politicians and government lie and then believe the lies or ignore the lies exist. Just watch and see if their lips are moving...if so they're lying.So far no weapons found nor chemicals used.But be rest assured they will be found even if we only need to believe they are telling us the truth.
21 - BritBoy
I can't believe there's actually people out there who defend Dubya. For a country based on LIBERTY, you seem to have a peculiar way of showing it. Like not letting people express their opinions for one.
Haven't you retarded American Republican/Facsists heard of Voltaire? "I detest what you have to say but will defend to the death your right to say it". Seems like us Europeans are way ahead of you. Unless you associate yourselves with the Nazis?
They started with repressing people's right to free speech too.
Maybe France, Russia and China should invade the US on a 'moral crusade to protect the freedoms of individuals living in an oppressive regime'.
That'd be one worth seeing...
22 - John Thacker
More silly people (like BritBoy) confuse free speech with approving of others' speech. They have beliefs. Others disagree with them for it. Do not people that disagree with her have the right to express their disagreement peacefully? Can they not choose not to listen to her songs or buy her albums? Are you claiming that all boycotts or disagreements violate free speech? What bizarre reasoning.
She's free to say what she wants. Others are free to disagree. Seems like BritBoy and others want to prevent others from exercising free speech. It's certainly not the US government or Bush taking any action against the Dixie Chicks. It's fans who disagree with her.
Her comments, unsurprisingly, went over about as well with country music fans as pro-war comments at a university, a wealthy Manhattan dinner party, or in France. Big shock there. Of course, it is disturbing when people feel like they have to keep quiet because of fear of retribution-- which occurs among both the Left and Right. However, this kind of ostracism is not the same as denial of free speech. (After all, it does not appear that pro-Bush and pro-war speakers could count on respect from BritBoy, for example, for all his vaunted faith in free speech.)
And actually, in Germany, it *is* illegal to advocate Nazism, which seems like a free speech violation.
23 - Veronica
Guys, she didnt really say that. Here is what she REALLY said (its on their website if you dont want to believe it and im sure she really did say it):
"As a concerned American citizen, I apologize to President Bush because my remark was disrespectful. I feel that whoever holds that office should be treated with the utmost respect. We are currently in Europe and witnessing a huge anti-American sentiment as a result of the perceived rush to war. While war may remain a viable option, as a mother, I just want to see every possible alternative exhausted before children and American soldiers' lives are lost. I love my country. I am a proud American."
Think of how many times you yourselves said something you didnt mean.
24 - OHIO -GIRL
Natalie is as simple as her music. She should stick to singing and looking cute. I was an avid fan of the dixie chicks before her comments. No more. They've lost at least one fan in Ohio.
25 - Fran
I am ashamed of Duhbya, and even worse, I fear he is dangerous. He is a man of small intellect and no personal achievement. He has not done one single good thing for this country since being "elected". The facts are all there if anyone cares enough to read them, so I won't use up pages of space to itemize his many failings to date. His family has business ties with Bin Laden's family, and his grandfather sold arms to Hitler's Germany, so he is just carrying on the family tradition.
Personally, I do not believe that September 11th would have happened if anyone else had been elected President. Bush immediately turned his back on generations of diplomacy and "nation building", pulling out of 5 internatinal treaties and ignoring a volcanic situation in the Middle East. Our country paid the price for his ignorance and arrogance.
I am not a fan of country music. Because of my own childhood, rightly or wrongly, I associate it with losers, drunks, and hotheads. I do respect Natalie Maines' courage in saying that she was ashamed that Bush was from Texas. She must have known what a backlash would follow, but she followed her conscience, something too few of us do these days. Even better, I like the satire presented above. There's a lot of truth there.
As far as Clinton goes, I did not vote for him. I found him to live up to his reputation as "Slick Willy". Yet he had the reputation for moral slipperiness and of womanizing before he was elected, so where was the surprise? Ironic though, that this country prospered tremendously during his tenure. Generations of federal deficits became a surplus (which was gone in a year under Bush), environmental laws were toughened to protect us, jobs were created and the standard of living was raised for us all. Even more importantly, the world viewed us as a benevolent super power, and the countries that now villify us were among our strongest allies. A a lot has changed in two years due to the ignorant, swaggering, arrogant hypocrite currently in the White House.
In closing, I leave you with a few Bushisms. There are many to be found on the web. Just type Bushisms into your web browser. Interesting. So, let his own words speak for him now.
"Well, I think if you say you're going to do something and don't do it, that's trustworthiness." -George W. Bush, in a CNN online chat, Aug. 30, 2000
"If you don't stand for anything, you don't stand for anything!" -George W. Bush, Bellevue Community College, Nov. 2, 2000
"If this were a dictatorship, it would be a heck of a lot easier - so long as I'm the dictator." -George W. Bush, Dec. 19, 2000
"It's amazing I won. I was running against peace, prosperity, and incumbency." -George W. Bush, June 14, 2001, speaking to Swedish Prime Minister Goran Perrson, unaware that a live television camera was still rolling.