Sean-Ward.com

I was watching the VH1 Top 20 countdown yesterday morning and a new video came on from the Dixie Chicks. I don’t really consider myself to be a country music fan, but this video caught my attention and I decided to follow-up by finding out the background story online. The video was for the song “Not Ready to Make Nice” and it is the Dixie Chicks first single since they received all the attention about some comments made against President Bush. Now I admit that I was already in a bad mood, but I was just so angry about the sad state of our DEMOCRACY that years afterward people are still harassing these women. Let’s put this in perspective:

The Crime: At a concert in Europe The Dixie Chicks said that they were ashamed that the President was from Texas

The Backlash: Death threats, banning of their music from radio stations, public demonstrations against the group

These days a lot of celebrities have been using their fame and media attention to voice their opinions. As a comparison we can look at Tom Cruise’s comments against psychiatry.

The Crime: In repeated interviews, including the Today Show and Access Hollywood Tom Cruise bashed people with mental illnesses who take medications, specifically Brooke Shields, and said that they could get off the drugs and just take vitamins for the same effects

The Backlash: Brooke Shields and the mental health community said that his comments were “dangerous and irresponsible”, but it was acknowledged that he was allowed to have an opinion

Comparing these 2 cases illustrates a couple points. First, The Dixie Chicks made public comments on ONE occasion to a much smaller audience. Second, they criticized an ELECTED OFFICIAL, someone who CHOSE to be in that position, and someone who should have EXPECTED criticism as we live in a DEMOCRACY where citizens are not only entitled to their opinions, but also are EXPECTED TO FORM THEM AS PART OF THEIR ROLE AS A CITIZEN. And honestly poking fun at the President seems far less of a crime to me than taking cheap shots at thousands of mentally ill who had no part in choosing their fate. (Tom Cruise might still feel the wrath from this, just wait for the first lawsuit from the family of a suicide victim who failed at the vitamin approach.) Furthermore, whether you agree with what either Tom Cruise or The Dixie Chicks had to say, you should remember that freedom of speech is part of America and if being a patriot means embodying American ideals it means being OK with people speaking their minds. I seem to remember something in history class about us fighting a war to have the right to criticize our leaders. I’m sure our forefathers could not have foreseen the power of today’s media or the influence carried by today’s celebrities, but I can’t imagine that if they had known they would have written a clause in the Constitution to keep just Natalie Maines quiet. They probably were hoping that the American people would be responsible enough to question not only their elected officials, but also their sources for information and realize that Tom Cruise is not a licensed health professional and the Dixie Chicks are not economists, military experts, or political strategists.

So overall I’m proud of the Dixie Chicks. I’m glad that they are “not ready to make nice”, and I think they’re better patriots for it. Maybe they can remind some people that we can better love our country, our government, and our president because we have the right to hate them.