I am trying hard not to allow Roger Waters to ruin Pink Floyd music for me.

[BigmanPigman]

https://www.npr.org/2022/09/25/1124978878/roger-waters-pink-floyd-poland-ukraine

"Pink Floyd's founder won't tour in Poland after a backlash to his remarks on Ukraine"

"Waters wrote an open letter to Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska early this month in which he blamed "extreme nationalists" in Ukraine for having "set your country on the path to this disastrous war." He also criticized the West for supplying Ukraine with weapons, blaming Washington in particular."

"Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters has canceled concerts planned in Poland amid outrage over his stance on Russia's war against Ukraine, Polish media reported Saturday. An official with the Tauron Arena in Krakow, where Waters was scheduled to perform two concerts in April, said they would no longer take place."

"Waters has also criticized NATO, accusing it of provoking Russia"

I have had a few friends ask me recently what I think about Roger's anti-US and anti-Ukraine proclamations. I know that Pink Floyd's music changed since 1973, becoming political, and that their former song writer and leader, Syd Barrett, left the band and Waters assumed the song writing role after 1968 so their sound has changed often.

I loved seeing both Bush's face and later tRump's big, ugly face on the floating pig above audiences. But his latest political messaging is not cool!

I tried really hard after Woody Allen was accused of molesting his little girl not to mix the art of the artist with the human who was disgusting to me. I tried to step back and see/hear the art for the arts' sake. I am trying to do that now with Roger Waters (not Pink Floyd...and there is a difference). I hope I can.

[RockRaven]

1. Getting emotionally invested in musicians (or actors, or politicians, or scientists) *as people* is

courting heartache, discomfort, etc. Because they are human and fallible and sometimes stink. And because we're human, it's not really possible to never get emotionally invested. It sucks, but we're all gonna be disappointed, and feel sick over it, from time to time. Stuff will be ruined, or at least tarnished. It's the way of the world.

Some songs don't feel the same. Some movies don't feel the same. Some books don't feel the same, or get re-read at all. But that's okay. It doesn't mean those good feelings didn't happen or weren't real when they did happen before.

[Journeyman]

2. I try to judge art by its merits, and not the politics of the artist . . .

Conversely, I see artists' politics through a prism devoid of their art.

For this reason, I can enjoy the poetry of Ezra Pound and the novels of Louis Ferdinand Celine, while holding the works of Dalton Trumbo and Bertolt Brecht in equal esteem. I can also denounce Pound and Celine for their adherence to fascism, while praising the good fights of Trumbo and Brecht. Here's the dichotomy illustrated in my personal life: I named my son Dalton, yet encourage him to read Pound's Cantos.

[highplainsdem]

4. +1,000,000

[hlthe2b]

3. For most performers, I realize that their talent is what brought them to our attention and

not their personal life or political beliefs. And, especially with the latter, I can still appreciate Waters, Clapton on the guitar or vocals, and most RW actors of some renown. I think screen imagery is impacted a lot more by what we see coming out of their mouths IRL, so for some extremely RW actors, I no longer WANT to watch their screen performances. James Woods comes to mind, but there are others. If I never was much a fan of their musical or acting performances, then their offensive real-life attitudes, just "cinches" the deal.

[TexasBushwhacker]

5. Woody Allen is a no go for me

I just can't view his films the same way, especially Manhattan, where we're supposed to believe that 17 year old Marielle Hemingway was in love with him at 44. It was funny and believeable to me when it first came out because I was 22, in college, and had friends who had affairs with their instructors.

Now I see it for the icky power play it is, especially since Marielle came forward and said Woody wanted her to go to Paris with them and she had the smarts to ask if they would have seperate rooms. He didn't answer, and her parents still wanted her to go! For her career, you know ...

So I'm done with Woody and Roman Polanski, as well as any parent who pimps out their child for the sake of their CHILD'S career.

[hlthe2b]

6. Yes. Visual media is a lot harder not to associate with their offscreen behavior.

And yes, I agree with you on Woody Allen and others.

I can't ever say I was a great John Wayne fan, but even this many years later I associate his overt offscreen racism with that onscreen and which was unapologetically disgusting toward Native Americans and others. He was so ubiquitous for so long that I can't say I've not watched his films--even in the background, but it is hard to "like them" so much anymore, sans John Ford's incredible cinematography.

[TexasBushwhacker]

7. Never was a John Wayne fan anyway

Charlton Heston and Tom Selleck's support of the NRA put me off too.