JUST SHUT UP AND SING, LINDA

I grew up with Linda Ronstadt's music. I like it. She has a terrific voice. She recently made headlines in Vegas by upsetting her audience. She did that by lecturing them about what a great man Michael Moore is.

"I've been dedicating a song to him – I think he's a great patriot – and it splits the audience down the middle, and they duke it out," she said.

If she insists on continuing to do that, I guess I won't be going to any of her concerts. I couldn't care less what her politics are, but I'm not going to go to a concert and get a political lecture from her.

But the best is yet to come:

"This is an election year, and I think we're in desperate trouble and it's time for people to speak up and not pipe down. It's a real conflict for me when I go to a concert and find out somebody in the audience is a Republican or fundamental Christian. It can cloud my enjoyment. I'd rather not know." (Emphasis added)

Performing for those nasty Republicans and fundamentalists is such a bummer, man! I wonder whether she said something insulting to conservatives on stage. Given that quote, it wouldn't be a big surprise. And that would explain the audience reaction.

I guess it never occurred to her that her audience might feel the same way she does: That their enjoyment of the concert might be "clouded" if they discover that the person they came to see perform spends THEIR concert time giving them a political lecture (and maybe insulting their intelligence). If it is reasonable for Ronstadt to be offended by merely having to perform for people of different political leanings, think how much more reasonable it is for the people who paid to attend the concert to be offended by finding that they've come not to a concert but to a political rally.

If Ronstadt would rather not know the political makeup of her concert audience, then it might be wise for her not to inject politics into her concert. If she wants to make a political statement, she is perfectly free to oppose Bush, support Kerry, Nader or the man in the moon. But I don't think she should do it on the time that's been paid for by her audience for the express purpose of hearing her sing.

There are plenty of opportunities available to her to speak out on the issues she believes in. For example, I understand that there might be several openings in the Kerry campaign in the near future.