My review of LIVE AID 2005
I am split. I respect Bob Geldof for what he is doing and think that the idea of spreading awareness is good, especially if it can make a difference and make people realize that they do have the power to make a change.
But in the end it's not all that rosy.
If the bands performing are rubbish or not is not up to me to judge. Personally I am not a big fan of U2, but that is not the issue here. What i want to know is does BONO and all the other big shot celebs give money? He makes millions that he probably won't spend, wouldn't it help if celebrities dipped into their own pockets for a change? (any evidence of celebs, except for Sir Bob, that do would be appreciated). It's all well and good Justin Timberlake and Hugh Grant appearing on adverts telling us to wear white bands and dip into out pockets, but it pisses me off that they don't bother to dip into the billions of $$$ they make and instead waste on fancy cars and luxury mansions.
Isn't it all rather hypocritical?
Makes you think doesn't it?
I am not saying that all bands performing do it only to boost their record sales. Some might really aim to improve the situation on this planet.
But let's take Bono for example: for all his anti-poverty lectures, still once chartered a plane to fly a hat (yes, a f*cking hat!) to Italy where he was performing because he'd forgotten to pack it.
Or how about Chris from Coldplay: "Oooh, poverty is really bad but I've got a mega record deal and I'm worth £10m and my wife is a superstar actress and has just signed a deal to be the face of a cosmetics firm".
To top it all off Bill Gates, the second riches dude on this globe, appealed people to support Live Aid. How seriously can you take this?
Do they just initiate this media circus to get their faces on TV?
Is buying armbands off ebay (many of which are made in sweatshops) and having millionaire rockstars telling us to care about the starving the way to go?
Wouldn't dipolmatic pressure on the administrations of the affected countries make more sense?! (which I know is unlikely as long as our dear corporations we support as loyal customers profit from wars in Africa)
By the current trade rules the western countries are actually robbing money from the poor countries of Africa. If measured by the natural resources, Africa is one of the richest continents, if not the richest, in the world. But the money, from for example their diamond mines, goes to the pockets of western people, and does not help the local people. (click here to learn more about it)
Those leaders at the G8 represent YOU (as long as you are from France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, USA, Canada or Russia) and they have the obligation to listen to your opinion. YOU have the obligation to state your opinion to them.
Then again one can argue that these artists are at least trying to change something. And getting all the media attention they can is the only way to reach out to people and 'help them to open their eyes'.
But I feel that starting to even commercialize protests now is a very dangerous step.
The thing is that people shouldn't need to be reminded by some billionaires on TV to give to charity if they can.
It's sad that people only pay attention when that Coldplay guy or Bono and other well wishing dire billionaire bands coming like some caucasian knight to save the "darkies" from themselves.
They are at the apex of western commercial society, yet they are preaching about how awful the system is which elevated them to their ridiculous status in the first place!
But does that really matter, as long as they get people to move their lazy arse and help?!
Others also criticize that hardly any Africans took part in the whole event. Youssou N'Dour is apparently the only one.
Furthermore they should have invited more rebellious bands to perform. Rage Against The Machine should have used the oppotunity to rejoin and kick arse!!! But no, instead the commercialized version of RATM aka Audioslave performed. (At least they played one of RATM classics: Killing in the name of - although Chris Cornell spoilt the whole song! You just can't replace Zack de la Roche!)
Didn't I say I was split?!
Anyway, what do you think of the whole event?
~peace~
