Entertainer Cher, left, sits in the audience during a House Armed Service Committee hearing...
Posted on 06/16/2006 5:04:53 AM PDT by COUNTrecount
WASHINGTON - The subject was whether to modify helmets for soldiers in Iraq, but all eyes were on Cher. As photographers clicked away, the singer and actress entered a Capitol Hill hearing room through a back door 20 minutes after the session was scheduled to start. The hearing soon got under way.
Cher has donated more than $130,000 to the group Operation Helmet, which pays about $100 to modify the inside of soldiers' helmets to make them better able to absorb shock from a bomb blast.
Cher, wearing a white lace top under a black pant suit, looked solemn as she sat behind the group's founder, Dr. Bob Meaders, while he testified. Meaders said she didn't want to cause a distraction by testifying herself.
Rep. Curt Weldon (news, bio, voting record), R-Pa., chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces, noted that Cher's ex-husband, the late Rep. Sonny Bono, had served on the subcommittee. He called it a "special irony and really great tribute" to have her there.
The Army now equips its soldiers with padded helmets designed to be shock absorbent. The Marine Corps has commissioned a study to determine whether to change its helmets but has said the ones Marines use now are effective.
Entertainer Cher, left, sits in the audience during a House Armed Service Committee hearing...
How lovely! What a nice thing to do..
Wow...out of the woodwork to help the soldiers.....that is very nice of her.
They're going to ostracize her in Hollyweird.
With a dull ostracizer.
I'm lovin' it!.....
Well done Cher - I saw you on CSPAN - this is obviously a cause that has touched her heart.
This is real - not a PR job.
Bravo -
Wonder what Sonny would say?
http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/426803p-360015c.html
The lady is a wonk!
That was occasional C-SPAN caller Cher visiting the cable outlet's D.C. studios yesterday and appearing as a guest on "Washington Journal." The pop diva was on Capitol Hill hyping her program to get protective helmets to U.S. soldiers in Iraq. She confided that she's a news and political junkie, but insisted that she didn't receive any special treatment from C-SPAN to get her calls on the air - most recently on May 28. "I was just so lucky," Cher said. "I just kept dialing until my finger was just numb."
She's a moonbat but this is a nice gesture.
Now that is real "We Support the Troops!" Good for Cher and for the troops to see someone famous really supporting them!
I support her effort.
I think this is a great project, and I applaud her effort to help our soldiers and Marines.
She also spends a lot of time visiting the wounded in military hospitals apparently, which seems to be how she found out about this issue to begin with.
Glenn Beck talked about this on his radio show. She called up the guy (he knows the guy that runs the Operation Helmet program), asked how many were on the waiting list, and then he received a check from Cher to pay for all those on the waiting list.
So even though she is donating, etc., she is still an unhinged lib who thinks everything is Bush's Fault.
Damn. I came onto this thread to indulge in a bit of harmless Cher-baiting, and it turns out she's on our side! Another one of life's pleasures gone for ever :0)
Rumsfeld's retort, "You go to war with the army you have" was such an honest statement of fact, and the uproar shows some live in a dream world.
I think Sonny always had a soft spot in his heart for Cher.
Get with the program USMC. The padded helmets are obviously better for the troops, both in comfort and safety.
It sounds like she wants the PASGT helmet to be upgraded/replaced with the MICH/ACH design, which uses a padding system instead of a suspension system?
First, nobody cares what she has to say. Second, actions speak louder than words. Bottom line: she did good, with her own money and time.
Do not be fooled by this!!!!! This is done out of pity, not pride.
I believe it was done more out of compassion than pity. At least she cares enough to do something. As the sister of a soldier I appreciate the fact that she is actually trying to better the lives of our troops. I don't agree with her political leanings but she scored big with me on this one.
Who cares? I don't need to look into her heart. I can form an opinion based on her actions and the results. I say bravo!
[Cher] didn't want to cause a distraction by testifying herself.
Not that it's out of character for Cher, I know nothing about her; it's just so completely unHollyweird.
I did too and you're right.
I hope you don't reserve the same kudos for those who want to bring the troops home. Is that not a compassionate action? If Susan Sarandon did this would you feel the same? I have no doubt that Cher thinks she is protecting the soldiers from Bush, not terrorists. I say take the money, but do not let her buy forgiveness for her previous (and most likely present) hatred of conservatives.
Wow! My respect for her just ratcheted up a few notches.
Uh, Cher is TOTALLY anti-war, anti-Bush and says Iraq is another Vietnam. Wow, like the US Army cannot afford to equip its soldiers ... but her $130,000 will.
Certainly a nice gesture, but let's remember that the libs are responsible for setting the conditions that caused these equipment shortages. Just look at the defense budgets and subsequent readiness issues inherited from "the Loather".
For instance..The Body Armor issue. A requirement that was identified in the late 90's and DOD officials decided to replace the old armor as it wore out due to budget constraints. The Hollywood glitterati and their love of all things liberal are partially responsible for this.
I hope you are following her efforts to undermine the legitimacy of the war which is getting more of our soldiers killed.
She DID something for our troops. Have you?
The difference in Cher's case - she at least is putting her money where her mouth is... the traditional Holliweird crowd just moan and complain. Cher is doing something about it....
Then copyrights would last an eternity in contradiction of the Constitution. No thanks, good riddance.
Wow! Letting her money do the talking. A noble deed to protect our troops.
Far more than you will EVER know!!!! Will you call a press conference for me???
I find that amazing, and to her credit. She's no Meryl Streep or Jessica Lange. Good for Cher!
She could possibly be yet another liberal whose eyes have been opened. Best to watch and wait. I think it is a sweet gesture, and if she is visiting wounded guys too, that is very moving. She will hear real stuff from those guys, and one day she will get it.
Putting her money where her mouth is. If Daryl Hannah thought the same way she'd have just bought that garden property instead of sitting in a tree.
I imagine Uncle Sam could take care of this problem with the money they've pissed away on Katrina "victims".
It is good to get our soldiers better equipment. I just hope they do not let Cher sit in on the design phase.
This is encouraging to hear. I would have guessed that Cher would do anything BUT something like this.
Good on her!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.