Bruce Springsteen: Asshat on the edge of town

Flopping Aces ^ | 02-13-16 | DrJohn

[Starman417]

 

It's been a long time since I was a Springsteen fan. Back in 1974 (April 29) at my alma mater, the University of Connecticut, there was a spring concert. Three bands were featured: a local band called Fairport Convention, a relatively unknown called Aerosmith and another largely unknown named Bruce Springsteen. It was quite the concert.

Then, as happens so often, Springsteen became wealthy and the wealthier he became the more liberal he became. And the more hypocritical he became and the less I liked him. Today I find him intolerable. He's become a complete asshat.

Springsteen canceled a concert in North Carolina over a "bathroom law"

The legendary musician announced Friday that his upcoming show in Greensboro, North Carolina, has been canceled in "solidarity" with those protesting the measure. Springsteen and his E Street Band were slated to perform at the Greensboro Coliseum this Sunday. The roughly 15,000 ticketholders will all be eligible for a refund. The newly enacted law requires individuals to use bathrooms that correspond to the gender on their birth certificate, and has drawn fierce criticism for excluding legal protections from gay and transgender people.

Matt Vespa at Townhall:

Bruce Springsteen has refused to perform a concert in North Carolina after the state legislature passed a bill that some consider to be anti-LGBT, which mostly relates to who can use a bathroom. No seriously, liberals feel this strongly about who can relieve themselves in a restroom–and apparently this is the new hill to take a stand in the progressive fight. Does it take away existing protection to North Carolina residents? No. Can businesses and private entities offer transgender people bathroom facilities? Yes. So, what’s the controversy? There is none.

Here are 18 myths about the law:

1. Does the new bill limit or prohibit private sector companies from adopting their own nondiscrimination policies or practices?

• Answer: No. Businesses are not limited by this bill. Private individuals, companies and universities can adopt new or keep existing nondiscrimination policies.

2. Does this bill take away existing protections for individuals in North Carolina?

• Answer: No. In fact, for the first time in state history, this law establishes a statewide anti-discrimination policy in North Carolina which is tougher than the federal government’s. This also means that the law in North Carolina is not different when you go city to city.

3. Can businesses and private facilities still offer reasonable accommodations for transgender people, like single occupancy bathrooms for instance?

• Answer: Yes. This bill allows and does nothing to prevent businesses, and public or private facilities from providing single use bathrooms.

4. Can private businesses, if they choose, continue to allow transgender individuals to use the bathroom, locker room or other facilities of the gender they identify with, or provide other accommodations? 

• Answer: Yes. That is the prerogative of private businesses under this new law. For instance, if a privately-owned sporting facility wants allow attendees of sporting events to use the restroom of their choice, or install unisex bathrooms, they can. The law neither requires nor prohibits them from doing so.

5. Does this law prohibit towns, cities or counties in North Carolina from setting their own nondiscrimination policies in employment that go beyond state law?

• Answer: No. Town, cities and counties in North Carolina are still allowed to set stricter non-discrimination policies for their own employees if they choose.

6. Does this bill mean transgender people will always have to use the restroom of the sex of their birth, even if they have undergone a sex change? 

• Answer: No. This law simply says people must use the bathroom of the sex listed on their birth certificate. Anyone who has undergone a sex change can change their sex on their birth certificate.

7. I’m worried about how this new law affects transgender children or students in North Carolina. Does this bill allow bullying against transgender children in schools?

• Answer: Absolutely not. North Carolina law specifically prohibits bullying and harassing behavior against children on the basis of sexual identity.

8. Does this bill affect people with disabilities?

• Answer: No. Statewide law also bans discrimination based on disability.

9. Why did North Carolina pass this law in the first place?

• Answer: The bill was passed after the Charlotte City Council voted to impose a regulation requiring businesses to allow a man into a women’s restroom, shower, or locker room if they choose. This ordinance would have eliminated the basic expectations of privacy people have when using the rest room by allowing people to use the restroom of their choice. This new local regulation brought up serious privacy concerns by parents, businesses and others across the state, as well as safety concerns that this new local rule could be used by people who would take advantage of this to do harm to others.

In fact, the Charlotte City Council tried to pass this ordinance before but failed, and passed the same ordinance in February of 2016 despite serious concerns from state officials, business leaders and other concerned citizens.

10. What about parents or caregivers bringing children into the restroom?

• Answer: The law provides exceptions to young children accompanied by parents or care givers.

11. Will this bill threaten federal funding for public schools under Title IX?

• Answer: No, according to a federal court which has looked at a similar issue.

12. Will this bill prevent people from receiving medical attention in an emergency.

• Answer: Absolutely not. Nothing will prevent people from receiving medical attention in public or private accommodations.

13. Will this bill affect North Carolina’s ability to create or recruit jobs?

• Answer: This bill does not affect companies in North Carolina. North Carolina was one of the top states to do business in the country before this law was passed, and preventing Charlotte’s bathroom ordinance from going into effect on April 1 won’t change that.

14. Why is the state telling cities and towns what it can and can’t do by repealing an ordinance the elected members of the Charlotte City Council passed?

• Answer: North Carolina is one of at least 37 states like Virginia where cities and towns cannot pass rules or regulations that exceed the authority given to them by the state. In passing the bathroom ordinance, Charlotte was exceeding its authority and setting rules that had ramifications beyond the City of Charlotte. The legislature acted to address privacy and safety concerns if this ordinance was allowed to go into effect on April 1.

15. Do any other regulations in North Carolina cities, towns or counties come close to what Charlotte was recommending?

• Answer: No. Not that we are aware of. Therefore, nothing changes in North Carolina cities, towns and counties, including in Charlotte, regarding discrimination practices and protections now that this law has passed.

16. Did only Republicans vote for this bill?

• Answer: No. 11 Democrats voted for this bill in the N.C. House of Representatives and no Democratic Senators voted against it. In fact, Democratic Senators walked out to avoid voting on the issue at all because many were going to vote for it and they did not want show their division.

17. Why did the Legislature call a special session to overturn the bathroom ordinance?

• Answer: The new Charlotte ordinance, which would have required all businesses to change their restroom policies and take away the expectation of privacy people have when using the restroom, was going to go into effect on April 1 if no action was taken.

18. Is North Carolina at a disadvantage when it comes to recruiting jobs because it does not have ordinances like the one Charlotte was proposing? 

• Answer: No. In fact in the last 3 years without an ordinance like this, North Carolina has created the 6th most jobs in the country – over 260,000 net new jobs. We know of no examples of companies being recruited to North Carolina that have asked if the state has an ordinance like the one Charlotte was proposing.

Bruce seems offended that he can't pee next to little girls. There's more. Did you know he's a farmer? Well, he's not. He just pretends to be one for tax season:

Bruce Springsteen is a man of the people. He stands up for the little guy. A regular blue-collar Joe. A union man. A bona fide working-class hero.

And, when he’s not busy being all that… he’s a tax-dodging liberal hypocrite worth over $200 million who pretends to be a farmer to save hundreds of thousands of dollars on his property taxes that would have otherwise funded the welfare programs he pretends to care about.

Springsteen wrote a letter to the editor of the local paper:

[dfwgator]

“He writes songs about the working man, but he allows himself to be called, ‘The Boss’” - Michael Richards (Fridays)

[Trod Upon]

He’s trying to stay in the news any way he can. Faded stars who don’t have the class to understand their time has come and gone are so pathetic.

[rlmorel]

Boy, how did I leave THAT one out??????

Him and Bono.

[drjimmy]

But his 1970’s song “Hungry Heart” justifies leaving his wife and kids to starve in Baltimore, Jack, because, hey, responsibility is soooo limiting.

Then you must reeeeally hate Johnny Cash.

[dfwgator]

Johnny Cash was devoted to his wife for years, how many wives has Bruce had?

[Lmo56]

My neighbor is the BIGGEST die-hard Springsteen fan - EVER!

He goes to EVERY concert - and I mean EVERY! He even flew to Prague to see Bruce.

Anyway, even he is offended. Here’s why:

About 1/3 of the tickets are scalped. So, out of 15,000, about 5,000 paid over face value. My neighbor says usually 4 times the amount.

Those fans are only going to get face value back. So, if they paid $300 for a $75 ticket, they only get the $75 and get screwed for the remaining $225.

[drjimmy]

Bruce Springsteen and Johnny Cash have the exact same number of wives. But to the point of my comment, while Springsteen left his wife and kids in Baltimore, Cash shot a man in Reno just to watch him die.

[dfwgator]

But Johnny was singing from the point of view of a man in prison who regretted what he did. Bruce was singing as if he did the right thing, and had no regrets.

[drjimmy]

Of course Bruce was singing “as if”—it was the point of view of the character in his song. That’s what songwriters (like Johnny Cash) and authors and poets do. Here’s another Bruce point of view that is just as valid:

Now there’s a beautiful river in the valley ahead
There ‘neath the oak’s bough soon we will wed
Should we lose each other in the shadow of the evening trees
I’ll wait for you
And should I fall behind
Wait for me
Darlin’ I’ll wait for you
Should I fall behind
Wait for me

[WENDLE]

This guy is way to old for me to care about. What does he or Bono or these entertainers know about immigration policy and illegal aliens accupying 30% of the prison population with brings me to numb skull Zuckerman. Who cares what he thinks? He doesn’t understand our 20 trillion dollar debt. He does`nt have clue what a Wahhabi Sect Sunni is . He is a joke. I went to mt facebook page and plastered it with anto globalo warming facts and BUILD THE WALL stuff and GO TRUMP STUFF> It you hate facebook like I do — Do that. Let him have it with his own media!!

[jmaroneps37]

I have always loved North Carolina since my days in the Marine Corps. The people are real Americans and know the difference between right and wrong. This jerk doesn’t. He wants Christian rights pushed aside for gay rights.

[Chewbarkah]

I’ll have to research Cash’s life and work so I can despise him appropriately. Do like some of his apolitical oldies, and always got the feel that he knew he deserved the consequences of bad actions, except when stealing car parts from his employer.

[drjimmy]

Hey, it was only one piece at a time!

[Holdem Or Foldem]

Picture of the boss talking about his north carolina fans.

[NetAddicted]

Very appropriate. :D