Free Republic

Forbes axed at least 30 editorial people, yesterday -- but the bloodletting isn't over, according to insiders, NyPo is reporting. Today's layoffs mark the third round of editorial cuts in a year. In January, the dot-com and print were merged and 50 people were let go. In the latest round, the magazine's bureaus were particularly hard hit. Many of Forbes' offices will be closed around the country and overseas, and those who worked in bureaus and survived the cuts will become correspondents working out of their homes, sources said. "We -- and the entire media world -- have been hard...

Achtung, baby: U2 will play a free concert in Berlin to help the city celebrate 20 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Music network MTV said the Irish rockers will perform in front of the Brandenburg Gate on Nov. 5 during the MTV Europe Music Awards U2 manager Paul McGuinness said it would be exciting to be in Berlin, "20 years almost to the day since the wall came down."

Bono’s appearance in a pre-recorded video message at the Conservative Party Conference caused a bit of an internet uproar. Such was the outpouring of hostile comments on Twitter (with popular taglines including #Bonoisat— and #BonoToryScum) that the social networking site temporarily broke down. So you are a rock superstar for 30 years, a Nobel peace prize nominee and tireless charity proselytiser and what do you have to do to become a trending topic on Twitter? Talk to the Tories. (snip) If Bono speaks to the Labour party (as he did last week, introducing Gordon Brown’s key note speech), or sends...

To encounter Bono at one party conference might be construed a misfortune. To be subjected to a Save The Third World sermon by this runty rock squillionaire at both Labour and Conservative party conferences was enough to make a reasonable man come over all Pete Townsendish and want to snap Bono's guitar in two. What is it about this whiny little Dubliner that makes one's gorge rise? What is it that makes him feel he can lecture the rest of us about how to spend our tax money, while he himself leads a life of near-unimaginable wealth? Has he ever...

I am writing a paper called "Hollywood Interference" and I would appreciate it if my fellow FReepers could give me quotes and links to their quasi-political activities. I am writing a paper on how actors and actresses have interfered and damaged the US by their interference in affairs of state.

’Something I’ve Never Seen Before’ Saturday 8 August 2009, by Corinne/Dead I had to write about this. I simply had to. I hope I’m not speaking out of turn here as this is U2’s site and hallowed ground for all of you but this story needs to be told. The shows so far on this tour have all been amazing and each night the crowd’s reaction to U2 has been loud and joyous and passionate. Last night in Poland though was something else. Hard to explain. Let me try. I have never in my life seen a crowd reaction like...

Here is video of Bono revealing in an interview that President Obama congratulated him for avoiding a hug with President Bush at a National Prayer Breakfast event. Bono revealed he was trying to avoid hugging Bush, despite the fact President Bush supported his initiatives to help Aids victims in Africa, in fact, far more than any President in history. When Bono sat down next to then Sen. Obama at the event, Bono says Obama told him, "Nice work with the hug dodge." That really speaks well of both Bono and Obama, doesn't it. It would have been terrible for Bono...

Eight so-called republicans voted “Yes” for the Cap and Trade (American Clean Energy and Security Act) tax bill that goes against the most basic of core conservative principles.Four of the eight RINO’s active Twitter accounts, so we checked their page at 6:00PM PST, more than 24 hours after they helped the democrats pass what was no doubt the most devastating vote they have ever made in the House of Representatives. Let’s see what they tweeted (posted, for those of you not fluent in the language of the bird). Mary Bono Mack (R-CA) @markbonomackNot even a mention of Cap and Trade,...

Political and social activist Chastity Bono – the only child of entertainers Cher and the late Sonny Bono – began undergoing a sex change shortly after her 40th birthday on March 4. "Cher is very supportive and has known about Chastity wanting to do this for a very long time," a source tells PEOPLE. "This will be a long process but it's something Chastity has wanted to do for many years." Bono's spokesman, Howard Bragman, told TMZ, which first reported the story, "Yes, it's true – Chaz, after many years of consideration, has made the courageous decision to honor his...

Los Angeles, CA (BANG) - Cher's daughter is having a sex change. Chastity Bono - the 40-year-old daughter of the "Believe" singer and her late husband Sonny - began the lengthy gender reassignment process earlier this year. She has asked family and friends to call her Chaz, and will have surgery to give her male genitals later this year. Her spokesman said: "Chaz has made the courageous decision to honor his true identity. He is proud of his decision and grateful for the support and respect that has already been shown by loved ones." "It is Chaz's hope that his...

After playing the Obama inauguration a couple of months back, the pop star Bono flew back home to a rare barrage of hostile headlines. As you know, the global do-gooder wants us to send more of our money to Africa. So why is he sending his money to the Netherlands? From the Irish Times: “Bono ‘Hurt’ By Criticism Of U2 Move To Netherlands To Cut Tax.” U2 hasn’t, in fact, moved to the Netherlands. You won’t find them busking outside downtown Rotterdam mosques of a Friday night. But they did move some of their business interests from the Emerald Isle...

The Zambian economist and author of the new book Dead Aid explains her beef with the U2 frontman, her love for the Chinese, and her high hopes for her home continent. If there is such a thing as a sensation in African development, it would be Dambisa Moyo. The author of the new book Dead Aid, she has taken on many of the conventions of the relationship between the West and Africa--aid, celebrity spokespeople, the "China does bad" storyline that has been covered in this magazine. In her book, she argues that government aid has not helped Africa, despite...

As new 'No Line on the Horizon,' album is released, Dubliners protest band's business shift to Amsterdam.Dublin, Ireland - The band that loves to rail against global corporate malfeasance is being criticized at home over allegations of tax dodging. U2, whose new album, "No Line on the Horizon," is being released Tuesday in the United States, has lately found itself the focus of protests in Dublin over global tax avoidance. The controversy stems from 2006, when the band moved its publishing company to the Netherlands to avoid a potential multi-million-euro tax bill after the Irish government capped artists' tax-free earnings...

[photo] Irish demonstrators have had enough. They’re tired of U2 rocker Bono haranguing world leaders to increase taxes when the hypocritical Hibernian band won’t pay its fair share of taxes. While the band staged an concert on the roof of BBC headquarters, a group of demonstrators staged a protest on the street below. They chastised the band for moving its business to the Netherlands to avoid increased Irish taxes. The protesters’ placards read “Bono: pay your taxes” and “Bono: don’t be a banker” and the poetic “We’ll downl’d it 4 free and give the money to charity.”... ...continued

NEW YORK The New York Times will start running Op-Ed columns from rock singer Bono of U2 on Sunday, the paper announced Friday. He will also do a podcast of the piece. Describing him as a "lead singer and anti-poverty activist," the announcement said he has been invited to write a column for the Times beginning this Sunday, and "his columns will appear occasionally on The New York Times Op-Ed page and online at nytimes.com/opinion and will cover a broad range of subjects." “Bono is a great addition to our Op-Ed line-up,” Andrew Rosenthal, Times editorial page editor, said in...

His humanitarian campaigning has earnt him the nickname St Bono. Off duty, however, the U2 singer seems to have been tempted into a spot of hell-raising. Pictures show the 48-year-old with his arm round two bikini-clad girls as they carouse at a beach bar in St Tropez. He also joined his angel-faced companions for more drinking and dancing aboard a private yacht. Bono is usually seen in his role as rock star, family man and anti-poverty campaigner, work for which he earned an honorary knighthood. Only last week, he appeared at a conference to make a call to ‘change the...

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (L) and Warren Buffett (R), CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, pose on stage with moderator Chris Matthews of MSNBC after taking part in a conversation on leadership and the economy at The Women's Conference 2008 in Long Beach, California October 22, 2008. The conference, hosted by California's First Lady Maria Shriver, has some 14,000 women in attendance. Cherie Blair, left, human rights advocate and wife of former Prime Minister Tony Blair, former Secretary of State Madeline Albright, center, and Cecilia Maria Attias, Chief Executive Officer, The Experience Corp., are seen at The Women's Conference,Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2008,...

Below is an edited version of the newsletter. ROCK & RAP CONFIDENTIAL No. 224 / October 2008 CELEBRITY POLITICS…On a perfectly pleasant evening at the end of May, my colleague Gavin Martin and I were sitting with most of the E Street Band and a few dozen others in the bar of the Merion Hotel in Dublin after a Springsteen show. It was getting on towards midnight. The room was conversationally loud. I was drinking red wine because I can’t stand Guinness, never mind my last name. The noise level rose noticeably as another troupe entered. It was U2, in...

$920 Billion More to Bail Out the World AIM Column | By Cliff Kincaid | September 28, 2008 While the Global Poverty Act has started getting more serious attention, the implications of passage of the Jubilee Act have been generally ignored. With one socialist “bailout” bill apparently on the way to passage by Congress, two more are pending―both of them sponsored by Senator Barack Obama.

ALASKA's trooper guys and polar bears may think Sarah Palin's as cold as a glacier, but she sure heats up a room. *snip* "It was Rupert and Bono who got Sarah Palin to come. Rupert made the call to Sarah's people, and then she met Bono earlier today." And it was Rupert who piloted Sarah around.

Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore (R) listens to Bono during the Clinton Global Initiative, in New York, September 24, 2008. Established by former President Bill Clinton in 2005, the event is designed to bring donors together with people in need to try to solve global problems. Former President Bill Clinton speaks to actress Drew Barrymore after announcing a commitment regarding the improvement of food and nutrition for schoolchildren in developing countries at the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting, Thursday, Sept 25, 2008, in New York Democratic presidential nominee Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) speaks via video conference during the Clinton...

If you have wondered why celebrities seem to be so important in elections you need look no further than how Gov. Palin is scheduled to meet with several world leaders. As you read the list of top dignitaries you will notice which one gets top billing….is it with Iraq President Jalal Talabani or Pakistan’s newly-elected President Asif Ali Zardari? Is it with the presidents of Georgia and the Ukraine? Maybe the prime minister of India will get top billing. India does have a sixth of the worlds populous and controls the global help-line industry. At least it seems that way...

World leaders, Bono await Palin From correspondents in New York September 23, 2008 02:18pm REPUBLICAN vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin is about to take her first tentative steps onto the world stage, with UN talks with the leaders of Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. The Alaska Governor, who has been pilloried by Democrats who warn she is far too inexperienced in global affairs to serve a "heartbeat" away from the presidency, plans to get in some diplomatic cramming in New York. On the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, she is expected tomorrow to meet US anti-terror ally and Afghan...

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Palin will meet with the presidents of Iraq, Pakistan, Georgia and the Ukraine, as well as singer and activist Bono during her three-day trip to New York, the McCain campaign announced Sunday. Palin will meet Wednesday with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvilli and Ukraine President Viktor Yushchenko together, according to campaign officials. She will then meet with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani and Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari before hosting Bono, the lead singer of U2. Later in the day, she will meet with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The campaign had previously announced meetings set for Tuesday in...

A certain amount of celebrity glow has long been a part of both political parties’ gatherings. But thanks in part to the youthful charisma of Senator Barack Obama, the presumptive nominee, the Democratic convention, which begins on Monday in Denver, is shaping up as an unlikely hot spot for the music world, with multiplatinum rappers, indie-rock scenesters, D.J.’s and Jennifer Lopez arriving by the van- and private planeload to perform, rally or schmooze with the political elite. “It’s the Sundance Film Festival for politicos,” said Laura Dawn, the cultural director of MoveOn.org, who also happens to sing with Moby... Kanye...

After listening to news coverage last night, nearly to the point of nausea, it struck me that I had heard parts of Barack Obama's Berlin speech before. "This is our moment; this is our time." Where have I heard that before? A quick internet search this morning finds that the phrase is a favorite among Barack Obama's speech writing team. After going through only 290 of the 29,000 hits that Google came up with, I can tell you that there have been at least 10 separate events this year at which Barack Obama has used that phrase. January 28, 2008...

Mr Bush wrote that the July 7-9 summit of the Group of Eight major industrial powers, to be held in Japan, needed to take concrete action to tackle AIDS and other scourges afflicting Africa. "My message to my fellow leaders will be that our past promises are just empty words unless we provide meaningful follow-through," Mr Bush wrote. "And if we do, we can continue to help save lives and spread hope across the continent of Africa." Mr Bush said the US was doubling aid to Africa by 2010 and highlighted a $US15 billion ($A15.7 billion) AIDS relief fund launched...

SONNY Bono, former husband and singing partner of superstar Cher, was clubbed to death by hitmen on the orders of drug and weapons dealers who feared he was going to expose them, a former FBI agent claims. Ted Gunderson, now a private investigator, has told the US Globe tabloid that Bono, who served as mayor of Palm Springs for four years, did not die after hitting a tree on a Nevada ski slope in January 1998 as everyone believed. "It's nonsense for anyone to now try to suggest that Bono died after crashing into a tree. There's zero evidence in...

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates was unfased when he met U2 rock star Bono - as he had no idea who he was. The With Or Without You star met the politician at the Pentagon in Washington D.C. on Thursday (24Jan08), as part of his efforts to persuade world leaders to increase aid to developing nations. The U2 frontman and humanitarian has already pressed French president Nicolas Sarkozy to stick to plans to raise development assistance to poorer countries, particularly those in Africa, and he continued his campaign with a low-key meeting with Gates. But the 64-year-old admits he was...

Bono confesses sins to 'father' Al Gore Jan 24 02:09 PM US/Eastern ‘Gulfstream-Flying Rock Star’ Bono Confesses Carbon Sins to ‘Father’ Al Gore Having climate campaigner Al Gore round to your house is to open yourself to a self-flagellating guilt trip, Irish rock star Bono confessed Thursday. Sharing a stage with the former US vice president at the annual gathering of world movers and shakers in the Swiss ski resort of Davos, the U2 frontman joked that their friendship was a source of pressure on the domestic front. "He's been round my house and it's like... here's the recycler Al,...

aving climate campaigner Al Gore round to your house is to open yourself to a self-flagellating guilt trip, Irish rock star Bono confessed Thursday. Sharing a stage with the former US vice president at the annual gathering of world movers and shakers in the Swiss ski resort of Davos, the U2 frontman joked that their friendship was a source of pressure on the domestic front. "He's been round my house and it's like... here's the recycler Al, you know... I've got a posh car, but it runs on ethanol Al," Bono said. Acknowledging that a career in rock music was...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U2 lead singer and activist Bono visited the Pentagon to discuss Africa and the fight against global poverty with U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates, representatives of the two men said on Wednesday. Among the topics at the 20-minute meeting on Tuesday afternoon were U.S. plans to set up a new U.S. military command for Africa, Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell said. "I think this was a chance for two people who care about the problems facing the continent of Africa to talk about their shared interest in solving those problems," Morrell said of the meeting that was...

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Mary Bono, who was married to late singer-turned-politician Sonny Bono and replaced him in Congress after his death, married U.S. Rep. Connie Mack on Saturday, according to Bono's sister. The news of the marriage was first reported by the Asheville Citizen-Times. Bono's sister, Katherine Whitaker, told The Associated Press the couple were married in a private ceremony attended by 35 family members. "It was fantastic," Whitaker said. "It was a very quiet ceremony. A spokeswoman for Mack had said in November that Asheville was selected because it is Whitaker's home. Mack, a Republican representative from Florida,...

When the top spymaster at Britain's supersecret MI5 comes out from the shadows to warn that things are dire and getting worse in jihadland, it's prudent to be very afraid of what tomorrow may bring. Jonathan Evans, in an extraordinary public appearance, reports his outfit is watching more than 2,000 terrorism supporters in the U.K., homegrown and otherwise, a number that is up exponentially over a year ago. And building. It's clear, Evans says, that Al Qaeda masterminds are recruiting hordes of disaffected youngsters and have "a clear determination to mount terrorist attacks." Pooh, predictably yawns a member of Britain's...

Excerpts from interview: There was a plan there, you know. I think the president genuinely felt that if we could prove a model of democracy and broad prosperity in the Middle East, it might defuse the situation. I don't believe that, and in the capacity I had, I told them that. I was wrong. Clinton did exactly the right thing in talking to the Provisional IRA and other extremist elements. Now they have to do the same, in my opinion, with Hamas, and they have to do the same with Al Qaeda.

Big Paychecks for U2 Millionaires Oct. 26, 2007 The Associated Press U2 Ltd., the Irish band's music publishing company, raked in $30 million-plus last year — and $25.8 million of it went to five unidentified "employees," according to documents obtained Friday by The Associated Press. Those "employees" are suspected to be the band members and their longtime manager, Paul McGuinness. But U2's public relations firms in Dublin and London refused to confirm that. While Bono has won accolades worldwide for raising awareness of Third World poverty, he has been criticized for moving U2's corporate offices out of Ireland to avoid...

The Republican National Committee yesterday took the first step toward endorsing a proposal by Irish rock star Bono to spend an estimated $30 billion in U.S. taxes to eliminate global poverty — a move some unhappy conservative RNC members labeled a step toward socialism. But the RNC's Resolutions Committee also pleased conservatives by endorsing a resolution calling on the federal government to devote all means necessary to securing the nation's borders against an influx of illegal aliens.

In 1985, the Live Aid concert actually asked music lovers to do something -- to donate their own money to help the starving in Africa. Throwing money into dictatorships might not have been the smartest way to help Africa's poor, but it had a morality feeling to it -- people were asked to do something selfless in return for their entertainment. It was appropriate that one-hit-wonder Bob Geldof was knighted for his work in spearheading the event. Things have changed in the music business. In 2005 came Live 8, a concert designed to pressure the leaders of the G8 nations...

Arusha, Tanzania–Africa is a continent of despair and desperation. Here, eight year-olds toting AK-47s massacre whole villages and eccentric dictators feast on the organs of the opposition, believing it'll boost their mojo. Tsetse flies nibble on the eyelids of starving children who sport distended bellies like it's their birthright, not to mention the fact that by the time you finish reading this article, another six Africans will die from malaria, five from AIDS, and seventeen from poverty and hunger. Also, the wildlife is beautiful and the people like to dance and sing. That's Africa, and it's in desperate need of...

Prime Minister Stephen Harper getting bashed by Bono yesterday dominated the news from the closing day of the G8 Summit in Heiligendamm, Germany. Besides being miffed that Harper -- who claims to be a U2 fan -- couldn't fit a meeting with the international rock star into his schedule earlier in the week, Bono accused Harper of "blocking" a deal on African aid at the G8 summit. The leaders of the world's eight most prosperous democracies pledged $60 billion in aid to the world's least prosperous countries which is largely a reiteration of promises already made. But Bono -- who...

KUHLUNGSBORN, Germany (CP) - Rock star Bono has been refused a meeting at the G8 summit with Prime Minister Stephen Harper to discuss aid for Africa, sources close to the Irish singer said Wednesday. "They made several requests," said the source, who has close ties to Bono's development work. The U2 singer regularly discusses aid issues with world leaders. On Wednesday he met with U.S. President George W. Bush and with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is hosting the summit. But a spokeswoman for Harper said the prime minister is too busy to meet with Bono at the summit. She...

Crusading rocker BONO has lavished praise on American President George W. Bush for pledging $30 million (£15 million) toward the fight against AIDS in Africa.The U2 singer is delighted by the decision to divert government funds towards combating the crisis in the poverty-stricken continent. He says, "Some of my activist friends will be jumping on one leg rather than jumping on two because it’s never enough."But I’m standing up and I’m applauding the president and congress." Bono did, however, acknowledge that Bush’s program requires up to a third of the funds to be spent on abstinence education instead of safe...

Excerpt - NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Monday overruled regulators who decided that expletives uttered on broadcast television violated decency standards, a major victory for TV networks. The Federal Communications Commission had ruled in March 2006 that News Corp.'s Fox television network had violated decency regulations when singer Cher and actress Nicole Richie blurted out profanities during the 2002 and 2003 Billboard Music Awards' shows. However, no fines were issued. ~ snip ~

BERLIN - The world's biggest industrial countries are failing to keep up with financial promises they made to Africa, rocker-activist Bono said Tuesday, calling a new progress report "a cold shower" for the Group of Eight. G-8 members in 2004-2006 contributed less than half the amount needed to make good on promises to double Africa aid to $50 billion by 2010, according to a report released by DATA — Debt, AIDS, Trade, Africa — an advocacy group founded by Bono, the 47-year-old frontman for Irish band U2. "The G-8 are sleepwalking into a crisis of credibility. I know the DATA...

American Idol Gets Presidential - President Bush and his wife, First Lady Laura Bush, thanked "American Idol" viewers for helping raise $70 million during last week's charity special, "Idol Gives Back." The money is earmarked to help impoverished children living in the United States as well as the continent of Africa. "We thank 'American Idol' viewers who have shown the good heart of America," the president said, in a taped appearance, reports the AP. "We thank all the celebrities who participated, including Bono, and all the contestants who sang their hearts out for these children." Last week's moving American Idol...

DUBLIN: Irish rock star and rights campaigner Bono received an honorary British knighthood yesterday in recognition of his services to the music industry and for his humanitarian work. "I couldn't be more proud," the U2 singer said at a ceremony at the British ambassador's residence in Dublin. "I would like to thank Her Majesty's ambassador for pinning this award on me in my hometown, and the band for not bursting my balloon,'' he said in remarks carried on U2's website (www.u2.com). Bono is now a Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, or KBE, but as...

Bono has developed a reputation as a rock star with a conscience. The leader of the band U2 has cofounded two lobbying groups that raise awareness about Africa’s afflictions, created a fair-trade clothing company, and brokered a deal with several major American companies to donate millions of dollars to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS. But now he is caught up in a controversy over one of his own ventures. Dozens of organizations are asking Bono to stop production of Mercenaries 2: World in Flames, a violent video game in which players become hired mercenaries who invade Venezuela, where a...

When it comes to attracting celebrity wealth seeking shelter from taxes, the Cayman Islands and other classic Caribbean tax havens are receding in favor like so many waves on the beach, according to tax experts here and overseas. While old-school, offshore tax havens — the warm ones with tropical fish, off-the-shelf holding companies sporting post-office-box addresses, and scant regulation or transparency — still attract money, they are largely patronized, tax lawyers and entertainment bankers say, by hedge funds and private equity firms looking to protect lush trading profits from taxes. But for earnings derived from intellectual property such as royalties,...

For Anglicans who still haven't found what they're looking for, the Church of England is staging its first "U2-charist" communion service -- replacing hymns with hit songs by the Irish supergroup. "Rock music can be a vehicle of immense spirituality," said Bishop of Grantham Timothy Ellis, announcing plans for the unique service in the central English town of Lincoln in May. A live band is to play U2 classics like "Beautiful Day" and "Mysterious Ways" with special singalong lyrics displayed on a giant screen. Seating for the 500-strong congregation is to be re-arranged so everyone can dance and wave their...

IN two short visits to New York last year the leader of one of Africa’s poorest countries spent $400,000 (£207,000) on hotel bills as members of his entourage drank Cristal champagne and charged tens of thousands of dollars of room service to accounts paid by the Republic of Congo’s mission to the United Nations. Detailed hotel bills obtained by The Sunday Times showed that a Waldorf Astoria suite occupied by Congo President Denis Sassou-Nguesso, chairman of the African Union, recorded £12,000 of room service charges during a five-night stay last April that cost his country £73,000. When he returned to...