Neil Young Jumps on Impeachment Bandwagon

Neil Young is Canadian. Unless you've got evidence that he has taken out American citizenship and will be voting for someone who will vote for impeachment, this is meaningless. If you do have such evidence, his opinion is worth exactly as much as any other voter's opinion, and no more.

You really do neither yourself nor those who oppose this criminal administration any favors with your outrageous theses, which you are often unable to defend in an articulate manner. To impeach means to indict. Constitutionally, the House of Representative impeaches government officers, which is to say, brings an indictment against them. They are then tried in the Senate, two thirds of whom must vote for conviction. Unless and until the 2006 elections give the Democrats a significant majority in the House of Representatives, he won't be impeached--two thirds of Republicans still support him, and Republican members of the House are not going to vote to impeach. Unless and until the 2006 elections give the Democrats two thirds of the Senate, he wouldn't be convicted if he were impeached--the same dynamics apply to the Republicans in the Senate.

This is just more fantasy--and i strongly suspect you only start a thread like this because you want to spark a bitch-fight with the conservative usual suspects. How very pathetic of you.

I wish this was in the music forum, though I see why Roxxanne put it here.

But, I love the guy.

Anyway.

Here's a link to a CNN interview with Neil:

I hope you'll watch it to the end.

Link works but won't play, I like NY!

I was so glad to see that the in-studio newsperson nailed the in-the-field newsperson for her stupid-ass remarks about him selling out. She is clueless!

Sorry Chumly! Works for me.

I'm glad you saw it 'k.

Heart of gold..

I love Neil Young. I worked on his Davenport, Ca. ranch 33 years ago and he was a regular guy, including a nearly perpetual buzz.

However, it is merely a bandwagon he is on, the latest of many. He is lyrical, not right.

I think the in-the-field reporter got it right. That charge is going to be made by the more rabid Bush supporters. She gave Young an opportunity to get out front on that issue and address it.

Acq - Obviously that wasn't her intention. She looked like she might barf when the in-house guy told her she was stupid.

But, good point.

Nonprofit launches music video contest in hopes of kindling anti-war sentiment

John Byrne
Published: Monday April 24, 2006

An alternative rock band is joining with an music-oriented nonprofit in an attempt to rally anti-war sentiment through music videos, RAW STORY has learned.

Justice Through Music, a national group that uses music to catalyze youth interest in U.S. politics, has announced a contest in which entrants are asked to submit music videos to accompany a anti-war song written by the indy rock band Op-Critical. The group hopes to stir up anti-war sentiment using music.

On their website, the band debuts their own protest video, shot at Arlington National Cemetery. The video captures the funeral of Army Specialist Kendall Frederick, a Maryland native who was killed in Iraq by a roadside bomb. Op-Critical shot the video at Arlington last October, and has since been banned from making films at the cemetery.

Op-Critical spokesman Craig Gillette says they've been encouraged by the upcoming release of Neil Young's ?'impeach the president' album. Young has brought new life to the anti-war crowd, Gillette says, and he hopes the group's contest will do that same. Op-Critical is offering $500 for winners in each of six categories: rock, alternative rock, urban, R&B, country and other.

"Music has power," Gilette says. Musicians "should use that power to help bring about social change to leave a better world behind."

"We hope it will create a brushfire effect to get other people involved and help people speak out," he added.

The contest comes on the heels of a new Neil Young album in which the country rock icon calls for President Bush's impeachment. Young, who has supported Bush in the past, says the album is about "empowering people by giving them a voice" (Raw Story did an advance review of Young's album this weekend - you can read it here).

Gillette, who group up as a military brat, says there is a personal element to the campaign. His father supports the war.

"Right now there's a rift between my dad and I, who's a Bush backer," Gillette said. "The main thing I see about the music is young kids listen to musicians more than they listen to their parents. I know when I was young I'd go to my room and listen to a record."

Videos to accompany the group's song "Ornament" are due by Sept. 15. Winners will be chosen by a panel that includes Jeff Cohen, a prominent entertaiment attorney, and will likely include judges from the American Film Institute. Op-Critical will enter the best videos at the Indie Music Video Festival.

Gilette says the goal of the project is to "get people involved." He points to the rich political music protest landscape of the 1960s as a model, where music fueled a broad anti-war movement.

"Back in the 60s music played a big role in terms of political and social change and there's no reason why it can't be done now," Gilette said.

"We want videos that have staying power, that make a cultural statement, and that have an emotional component to them so that they will influence youth," he added. "Politicians spend hundreds of millions if not billions of dollars on ads to influence middle class America and they basically ignore young people totally and we feel like the music videos are like the cultural statements or the ads for young people, so we hope to get them involved and influence them to make the right decision in November."

Op-Critical was banned from shooting video at Arlington after officials discovered the film was being used to protest the war. But their sample video - which shows Frederick's grieving widow and his young son dealing with the loss of a father to a war fought on foreign soil - provides a vivid illustration of how music can be tooled to influence political sentiment.

Neil Young is a writer. Despite Stanta's swill, writers do exercise greater influence over public opinion than the average joe.

Tell me that Dylan didn't influence people's opinions in The Sixties and I will agree with Setanta's narrow view.

Referring to my remarks as "swill" and "narrow" does not alter a reality which you are unwilling to acknowledge. A majority of the House of Representatives is necessary to secure a bill of impeachment; two thirds of the Senate are required to convict anyone who is impeached. The Democrats don't have the votes to effect either goal, and although the Shrub's approval rating is at an all time low, more than half of those polled who identify themselves as Republicans state that they believe he is doing a good job. The prospect of any Republican voting to impeach, or any Republican Senator voting to convict were he impeached are slim to none.

That's swill you have to swallow, like it or not.

http://www.jtmp.org/