Updates on Neil Young's Gulf Coast Concerts
Neil Young's Gulf Coast 2010 Tour Poster
via Neil Dancer on Facebook
As we've reported recently, Neil Young has announced a series of concerts in the Gulf Coast region impacted by the BP oil gusher disaster.
It now seems clear that there will be a charitable aspect to these concerts.
The hunger relief effort is the result of the long-standing friendship between Neil Young and John Tyson, chairman of Tyson Foods, Inc.
From Bad News Beat (Thanks Kathryn "Cinnamon Girl" & bh!)
"Millions of people who live along the Gulf Coast struggle with hunger and the economic impact of the oil spill has only made matters worse," said Young. "I appreciate the willingness of John Tyson and his company to get involved by helping the regional food bank help feed those in need. John is truly a 'southern man' with a 'heart of gold'. We both encourage concert-goers to spend money locally and support local business."
"Neil and I have known each other for many years and both wanted to do something to help those whose livelihoods have been damaged by the oil spill," said Tyson. "We decided it made sense to combine Neil's widely-known musical talents with our company's ongoing commitment to hunger relief."
Tyson Foods plans to donate 100,000 pounds of chicken products in conjunction with special concerts Young has planned in late September in Mobile, Alabama; Panama City and Pensacola, Florida; and Biloxi, Mississippi. The food will be distributed to the Bay Area Food Bank, which serves Central Gulf Coast communities in Alabama, Florida and Mississippi.
In addition, concert-goers are encouraged to bring non-perishable food items, which will subsequently be given to the food bank. All proceeds from the sale of unique, limited edition Neil Young t-shirts, available only at the concerts, will also be donated to the food bank.
Just another reason why Neil Young was honored as MusiCares Person Of The Year.
Also, please note top ticket prices for Leg#3:
Biloxi: $70
Pensacola: $65
Panama City: $50
Now, with this said, we've already seen a few snarky remarks about this whole tour leg. So before folks start throwing their hatred down here @ TW, look in the mirror. What have you really done today to make a difference?
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Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, Portland, Oregon, July 19, 2010
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by thrasher@PermaLink: 8/12/2010 09:06:00 AM
91 comments
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91 Comments:
How does Neil (board member Farm) Aid) rationalize this marriage of convenience with Tyson Foods?
Google search 'tyson food animal cruelty' and you'll see return hits, pages long.
Good cause, perhaps, but tainted.
-No More
@No More: I hear what you're saying here.
But this is exactly what we posted above. Before you start with this kind of negativism, where are you on these issues?
If you're a family farmer or something, totally cool and you have every right to make that point.
Otherwise, walk the talk before taking shots.
peace
No kidding - I wouldn't eat a Tysons product Neil handed it to me himself.
My comment was sarcastic:
(harsh or bitter derision, sneering or cutting remark)
I feel like I've just been slapped. Couldn't Neil find a more contemptable corporation than
Tyson Foods to team up with? Are they using Blackwater (Xe) for security too?
TW your comment is snarky:
(testy or irritable; short)
So before folks start throwing their hatred down here @ TW, look in the mirror. What have you really done today to make a difference?
some pinko
TW "If you're a family farmer or something, totally cool and you have every right to make that point. Otherwise, walk the talk before taking shots."
So,unless you are a family farmer you don't have the right to complain about factory farming practices. Only veternarians are allowed to complain about animal cruelty. Egregious labor practices & record fines in multiple states for unsafe labor conditions, child labor violations, importing and exploiting illegal immigrants, union busting should also be ignored unless you work for Tyson then. Maybe they will distribute free prayer books through the food bank too, as they did in their chicken packages back in 2005. They call themselves a God focused company, I call them philistines and hyprocrites.
I doubt that the food bank and kitchen where I voluteer would accept their donation. We do what we do because our cause is Universal Human Rights, stewardship of the earth and love for all His creations.
some pinko
@some pinko:
Now lets not twist things around just to be a jerk here. So
"the food bank and kitchen where I voluteer". OK, cool. Glad to hear you're trying to make a difference.
That was the point.
peace
Hey, Tyson chicken makes great bait to catch crabs!
Give a man a chicken and he eats for the day.
Give a man a reprehensible chicken and teach him to fish with it and you've fed him for a lifetime.
-jim in DC
Does someone know how many chickens John Tyson did kill until today?
Perhaps I do not do all that I can for the environment. However, I have not each year for the past 25 years stood on a stage with a "Stop Factory Farms" t-shirt asking for money from people to wage activism against corporations such as Tyson. I fully support the generous donation by Tyson Foods to this cause but I think it's kind of hypocritical for Neil Young to tie his name to this food mega-giant while sitting as a board member of Farm Aid. From the official Farm Aid site:
"Farm Aid is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to keep family farmers on their land. Farm Aid accomplishes this mission by:
Taking Action to Change the System
Farm Aid works with local, regional and national organizations to promote fair farm policies and grassroots organizing campaigns designed to defend and bolster family farm-centered agriculture. *We've worked side-by-side with farmers to protest factory farms and inform farmers and eaters about issues like genetically modified food and growth hormones*.”
Mike
expecting2fly
Hi!
I don't think anyone is going to suggest that the idea of sending food is bad at all....but 'teaming up' with a company which apparently has a very poor animal welfare record certainly puts a shadow over the good that will come from this. I did do a search on google as was suggested by the first comment, and some of the stories were pretty horrific...I'm no expert, and I don't mean to detract at all from the good intentions behind this, but surely it's fair enough to say this could be done a better way?
By the way, I'm a vegetarian, so hopefully I've 'walked the talk' at least to some extent Thrasher!
Dan.
Why was Louisiana skipped?
@e2f: I hear you bro on this.
Yes, on the surface there seems to be "hypocrisy" at work here.
I think why i'm being a bit defensive here is that no matter what Neil does, it seems, he gets bashed.
Ticket prices, setlists, show length, venue rules, opening acts, etc
I saw this coming too.
basically, here's where I'm at on this. recall the whole dilemma about accepting corporate advertising here on TW? It was a tough call to take the 4's to continue to run the site. In the end, folks wanted TW to continue & if taking corp $'s allowed it, so be it.
I had some exchanges with an environmental blogger about their accepting ads for coal & oil & nuclear.
There position was that they would continue to attack big energy while taking their 4's.
Not that I know this, but maybe Neil works with Tysons, takes his chickens & stands up @ Farm Aid and continues to attack factory farms?
Neil's friendship with John Tyson appears to "go way back"... this does make one wonder....
"No Factory Farms!" would seem to be the kind of dogma that might get in the way of a good friendship between these two men - if the dogma was heartfelt.
Or, perhaps, Neil sees the good in everyone, and is willing to work towards meeting his principles while not bludgeoning everyone to death with it...
Maybe he doesn't want to live life like a Mideast vacation:
"But the thought never struck me
I'd be black and white for life."
Food for thought.
-Jim in DC
Anonymous said...
Why was Louisiana skipped?
8/12/2010 12:44:00 PM
Neil usually performs at the Saenger in N.O. but it's being renovated because of Katrina and it won't open till next year. I don't know of any other really nice venue in Louisiana besides the Saenger
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTBv95JN3CQ
The comment that basically only family farmers are entitled to an opinion on this issue is silly. That sounds like something Limbaugh would say to stifle dissent.
You want credentials? I was a vegetarian for 20 years, grow, buy and eat primarily organic food for the last 30 years, volunteered for many years at my local food co-op, started a food buying club decades ago when my remote city didn't have a good source of reasonably priced organic food. And I'm not some kind of freak. I'm a regular person. With principles.
What was Neil thinking? What happened to Stop Factory Farms? What exactly was I donating to? How deep do Neil's convictions run when he can have a long-time friendship with the head of such a despicable company? How can he team up with a giant polluter for an environmental cause? You've got to think Tyson has been a major contributor to Gulf pollution over the years.
Just what does Neil stand for? What has he been spouting off about on that Farm Aid stage all these years? Farm Aid won't get another dime out of me. Not when one of its driving forces rails against factory farms, then goes and has a beer with his good friend Mr. Factory Farm Tyson. He just blew his cred with me big time.
Yeah, I'm outraged. Rightly so. Just like Neil used to get outraged over factory farms, but including the conviction to walk my talk.
First,
Since I go by Dan just want to point out that Dan. who posted earlier is not me.
Second, I'm not hearing the rational for all the negativity on this one. First, Neil's going to the Gulf coast and selling tickets at or below cost (bet he's making enough to pay his band and staff) and give the area an uplift and generate some local economic spending. Second, he's got Mr. Tyson willing to donate a lot of food to help a lot of people who are hungry. All the armchair environmentalists out there are you sure you sxxt don't stink? Like Al Gore who lives in a 40,000 square foot mansion, jet sets around the world, and lectures about Global warming -- bottom line, I respect him and the fact that he's living high on the hog doesn't take away all the good he's done in terms of the environment. In terms of Mr. Tyson, you may have complaints about how he runs his chicken business -- when was the last time you went to Mc Donalds -- but what ever your qualms about his business practices the guy is willing to donate $500,000 worth of chicken or whatever, why shouldn't he be praised for that -- are you donating hundreds of thousands of dollars to help the Gulf victims? Folks need to separate the good from the bad. Maybe this is the first step in improving his business practices, maybe Neil will help move him the right direction. If Obama is willing to have a dialog with Iran, whose president is the worst scoundrel on the planet, it shows that there exists a concept of association with people who are less than perfect but who you might influence for the better. I'm not criticizing Mr. Tyson though, I don't trust the web complainers and the extreme environmentalists at face value -- I'll do my own research before passing judgement and defaming someone in public.
I agree with Thrasher, to take every good deed, every attempt to do something positive and reflexively find the negative spin aint that cool. Neil's always been out of the box, not afraid to have an independent perspective and associate with someone who doesn't fit the perfect party line (Ronald Reagen, ect...). That's because Neil's authentic, intellectually honest, sincere. I promise you if Neil were in the government we wouldn't have this kind of partisan gridlock crap where either party refuses to build a single bridge. Neil has a 40 year history of doing good, of giving back, give him the benefit of the doubt and quit the negativity until we get more information.
Finally, I'm sure the complainers here aren't living in a trailer home in Mississippi, with kids going to bed hungry or part of a fishing family that's lost their way of life. If you were, you'd be grateful for the generous chicken handout and praising Mr. Tyson. This great than thou environmental ethic sounds great in theory but what about all the hungry kids? Someone I admire once said, "where you stand depends on where you sit". Put that in you pipe and smoke it.
Dan
Hey Dan, I posted right before you and for much of the time I was eating, growing, buying and volunteering organic, I was also living below the poverty line and worried about how the bills were gonna be paid with serious health problems but without any attempt at government aid and raising a child on my own. If Tyson had given me a free chicken, I would have thrown it at him. Convictions are convictions. This isn't Sudan. It's not a question of people starving or probably even of people going to bed hungry.
If you have to research Tyson, you're too uninformed to have a worthwhile opinion on the matter.
And don't call me an armchair environmentalist. I live it every day.
100,000 lbs of chicken is worth about $30,000 wholesale, I'm betting. Big whoop. Neil trades his and, by extension, Farm Aid's credibility for $30,000?
How can you call him sincere and intellectually honest for this move? Was he sincere about his tirades against factory farms? Is he being intellectually honest about his supposed environmentalism? Give me a break. I've got a brain and this is an insult and a betrayal. Although I'm sure he'll come up with a good spin.
The barbaric practices animals endure through human exploitation is clear to all if you open your eyes. Don't talk to me about 'god' and righteous living while ignoring structural torture of beast and thoughtless human conduct.
Neil Young is merely my favorite musician / singer / writer. I cannot expect him to do as I do, or think as I think. I choose to let him into my life and influence my psyche.
We all have blind spots and many folk I like choose to be conveniently blind to animal suffering - often members of the god squad (of which I am not).
I to am a hypocrite in that I sometimes eat beef. However, Mr. Young, how can you look at someone in the face, be calm and smile, maybe embrace him, when he is directly responsible for terror and loathing, for unspeakable suffering and pointless cruelty?
4 Dead in Ohio - but they are only mammals.
What is the big deal when compared to systematic horror and terrorism to those beings we share the earth with.
Mother Earth!!!! I am sorry but all my pictures have fallen from the wall were I placed them yesterday.
Wake Up Neil, there is a white boat coming up the river....... and I know she's living there!
Often it is those on the left that are the worst culprits - but they are good at 'turning blind eye' to many injustices when it suits.
Wake Up!
So Dan, you've condemned "armchair environmentalists" and "extreme environmentalists". How does one qualify as just a regular old run-of-the-mill envronmentalist? By recycling aluminum but not plastic? Paper but not glass?? By caring about the state of the planet and bothering to act on that caring on, say, Tuesdays and every other weekend?
"A good requirement clearly states a verifiable and attainable need. A requirement is a statement of something that someone needs. The something is a product that performs a service or function. The someone may be a company, user, customer, maintainers, testers or another product.
Generally, you must distinguish between needs and wants. Even if it is verifiable, attainable and eloquently stated, a requirement that is not necessary is not a good requirement. The definition of need will depend on the context or circumstances."
--Ivy F. Hooks and Kristin A. Farry
How Do You Recognize the Good? section in Customer Centered Products: Creating Successful Products Through Smart Requirements Management
Thrasher.
Your response to my post was unduly harsh and negative.
At no point did I insult Neil, your blog or the cause. Your response was knee jerk and rather insulting.
Firstly, you know nothing of my habits, my decisions to purchases, or situation. Re-read your response to me.
With your comment, then the statement: 'Only military families are allowed to protest a war' follows. Do you follow the logic? It is a slippery slope.
Modern life is full of compromise and rationalizations. We are high speed wifi with coal powered or nuclear plants. Living off the grid is not an option for the vast majority. It's a compromise that gets us through this life.
It is a patent case of rationalization. How about Walmart, too?
I am a long time fan.
I love Neil.
I love his integrity.
I adore the music.
But to align himself with this company is just short sighted. That said, Neil and FA may want to consider some PR spin, here.
-No More
@No More/some pinko/Fake Dan/Anon/: see 8/12/2010 10:45:00 AM
I'm finding Neil's affiliation with Tyson to be quite alarming considering his 25 years with Farm Aid. Nevertheless, I was willing to let that go because I believe that hunger is hunger and the people need to come before one's pet projects.
I suppose Neil could donate the money to the food bank instead which would, in turn, probably purchase from Tyson anyway.
That said, this is what I find even more alarming....
Doing a little research, I found out that "Donald Tyson helped bankroll three Farm Aid concerts for his friend and country music star Willie Nelson." =:-o
Say it ain't so.
How can these guys be friends with those that propagate what they say they despise?
bh
@No More:
Are you Fred? If so, please contact me via email, HH or BNB. Thanks.
In times of human crisis Practicality must take place over ideology. so if thousands and thousands of people are going hungry and the enviromentalist on the left and the big conglomorate on the right decide to work together to bring food to people in need that is a good thing.
Instead we have people who dont know the entire side of the story
making judgements about peoples motives in doing this charitable deed. it seems neil (and obama) can not do anythign without being
subject to endless critism and judgement.
i guess these critics have never gone hungry or lived in intolerable living conditions.
This is a coming together of two divergent philosophies to help create a better world for many people in need. And what have you done to make this a better world today
small bee farmer in pa
From Tyson Foods perspective this is just brilliant marketing. You team up with somebody who has slammed your practices in the past and team up for charitable purposes? It's positive promotion from the enemy. I absolutely understand their strategy on this.
On the flip, if Young just toured the Gulf (even at reduced ticket prices), one could argue he was just exploiting the area for his own financial services (much like profiting on "Ohio"). He had to do something that would give back to the communities.
I'm not saying I agree with the move (I'm on the fence), but I get it.
Time to abandon the legions of hungry displaced people argument. Those whose livelihoods have been impacted by the oil spill are no doubt in the process of being compensated every lost penny by BP. Show me some skinny people who are genuinely involuntarily doing without food in this country. They don't exist unless they're abused children. Tyson could've contributed to a food bank without Neil's endorsement. Neil needed to look like a benefactor and he sold some serious credibility for less than the profits from one performance. Bad, bad move. Now we find out Farm Aid's deeply involved with this unsavory character. When I read the Neil quote about Tyson being a Southern Man with a Heart of Gold, I almost gagged. There's no way to put a good face on this. This is even worse than Elton John singing at Limbaugh's wedding. That was pure greed. This is done under the guise of high-mindedness. Stinking hypocrisy.
If you look up "farm aid and tyson foods" on google there are some interesting results. One page says Tyson even provided huge amounts of chicken nuggets for the first farm aid concert's crew. If true, I'm not quite sure what to make of that.
Thrash -
do you ALWAYS defend Neil? You will go to your grave thinking Neil has never committed a sin.
In the early 80s, Neil made an extremely offensive comment criticizing the lifestyle of Homosexuals. This comment was caught on video and, again, highly offensive.
Thrash, did you also defend him here?
Does anyone who made unsavory comments about Mr. Tysons charcter
know the man. I doubt it. Who are you to take pot shots at a man you
do not know. Again im shocked at the
random judgmentalness of people here.
And anyone who thinks BP is paying
everybody down there must be smoking some good stuff.
Honor the the moment now that
the past is gone everything is a new day. Bee Farmer in Pa
.
Bee Farmer, Obviously you don't follow the business news or environmental news, but you'd have to be living under a rock not to have followed how extensive the oil spill compensation process is. It is being run, at Obama's request, by the same man who handled the Twin Towers claims and he is urging everyone with a legitimate loss to come forward. This isn't about just mindlessly passing judgment on Tyson. You just reveal your ignorance by making such a comment. Anybody with any knowledge of American corporations' ethical and environmental practices knows that Tyson Foods is filthy. It's your responsibility to be an informed citizen. Educate yourself and quit attacking those who are better informed.
I hear what everyone's saying here...but at the end of it all, it's just one human being trying to help other human beings. Maybe, just maybe, sometimes You have to let Your convictions slide a little for the greater good of those around You....Does this mean that Neil cares any less about Farm Aid and Family Farmers...absolutely not. He just had a chance to donate a lot of food to needy folks, sure it was from Tyson, but if He said "no thanks" You guys would bash Him just the same for turning His head. He got the job done, like He always does...and helped a lot of people in the process. I've learned that there's no set standard in life, sometimes You have to bend as the situation determines...so in October when Mr. Young says "stop factory farms" You better believe He means it. But this August He had a chance to bless a lot of souls, and He took it, right or wrong. Just my opinion. You can believe what You believe, but certain circumstances arise where You have to do what You have to do to get something done. In the end, His intentions are pure all the way around...isn't that what really counts?
-Rust Never Sleeps
to the "anonymous" who called me ignorant well i am dumb i can hardly
get on a computer or sign into something on line but i do know a little bit about life. you cant
alway judge a book by the cover. Again you have no idea of what this man has,or hasnt done in his life.how he has affected others.
we can call each other names all day but no one wins an argument.
im in my 60s have been in business for over 30 years so somewhere along the line i must have done something right.
Call it what you will hungry people
in the gulf are going to be grateful for this chartible act.Course if youve never been hungry you wouldnt know what it feels like. bee farmer
riding the gravy train.....
feed 'em and ask questions later.
- NRJ
Well, I can't determine whether you deleted my posts because you're overweight or because there are not many people going hungry in the Gulf and letting that thought get out would just take the wind out of Neil's hunger-relief in the Gulf efforts. Either reason is pathetic. Shame on your cowardice for hiding the truth.
Holy Moly! No good deed goes unpunished huh? Give um ANYTHING to rally behind and they come out of the woodwork!
I wonder, do these people hide in the E-bushes, .Com-trees, covertly, just waiting to attack Neil on something!
Let me add one thing here people:
ITS CHICKEN! YOU EAT IT. Filthy birds who peck the weakest to death. You feel so badly about the birds? I'll bet you don't even know your own kids- you're too busy looking for some cause or movement to attach and devote you WHOLE being to.
Neil is doing a good deed. Tyson is doing a good deed. I don't see no free-range chicken farmers coming forward, wishing to donate ANYTHING. Beggars cant be choosers.
Pretend you know whats happening here. Keep pulling all these malicious tales out of your ass to make you feel, somehow GOOD about yourself.
You cough up the doe, everyone here seems to know EVERYTHING! Surely you can come up with the money for 100,000 lbs of chicken right?
Chicken is for eating. Yum-yum.
They are not pets, you don't sleep or cuddle with a chicken- its food. They all die somehow so why not end-up up in our bellies?
Its a long and hard won fight to get to the top of the food-chain. No you people wanna kick us down a notch? I eat more chicken any man ever seen!
I applaud Neil and Tyson for doing SOMETHING!
Cry babies-- waaa, your comment hurt my feelings! I feel slapped in the face! Jesus- you Americans of the bunch should be ashamed of yourselves! Gawddamn baby-boomers!
GET OVER IT!
So I find this discussion to be infinitely more worthwhile and interesting than the standard fodder complaints on TW.
My wife and I have earlier this year made gigantic changes in our food choices, aligning ourselves with sustainable, organic, local and ethical sources as much as possible without wringing the last bits of enjoyment out of life.
I recognize the value of the ethical food system, but I also know that 90+% of americans have absolutely no awareness and/or interest in aligning their consumption with this noble cause.
The fact that we (those astounded by Neil's teaming with Tyson) see the light, might blind us to the fact that the majority of people are A) satisfied with the food status quo, and B) not wealthy or wise enough to pay more for food that doesn't kill them in the long run. Most people out there are just being people, like my wife and I used to be "people", eating french fries and drinking sugar pepsi.
My point is you can't change the whole system at once. I've recognized for quite some time now that there is a widening gap between the haves and the have nots. I'm not talking about money here, I'm talking about knowledge and hard earned wisdom. The thinkers, the searchers; vs the ignorant, the unaware. The best you can do is try to keep you and yours on the high road.
So would it be more ideal, more classy, more like what we'd expect from Neil to organize a system of routing overage from organic farms, gardens and CSA's to the people in need from the south? Of course we'd all be fully behind that. I don't know why that wasn't what Neil mechanized for this effort. I do know that the majority of people affected by the BP disaster would be grateful to get the Tyson chicken to help them feed their families.
Bottom line is that we've got to recognize the goodness in the act. The compass needle that rates and effort can point exactly in the right direction when the ideal case is taking place. Just because this alliance is not ideal, does not mean its the polar opposite of ideal. Its still more good than bad.
None of us are perfect or ideal. The best we can hope for is to be more good than bad. While we can always EXPECT more from ourselves and more from Neil, we must remember to not squash that which is mostly good just because its not ideal.
Seriously, take some time to think about this statement. Think about how it harmonizes with the things that you do. Have YOU ever been, or been singled out by a hungry man?
Rusties, you are special breed. It is important to ask, but it is more important to be respectful of other peoples choices, especially if they decide to donate to charity. If any of you here were really into the movement other than how you choose to spend your money, that is not much different than voting once a year. How many of you have given half a million dollars away because some stupid company was into hustler and safety ignorance...how many of you grow an organic farm or work at one in your city...how many of you write to monsanto and the chicken farmers and how many times have you picketed for your beliefs and had to sell yourself in the process. How many of you choose what friends you have by what they don't do? How many of you are glad neil young is touring? How many of you care about what he wants to personally do for the Gulf and the people? How many of you are Life time Farm-aid members like me and thing that what mr. young wants to do should be up to him and respectful type sensitve questions should abound? Why aren 't you volunteering to help at the gulf or hold a gig for the gulf....how many of you are so opinionated that you can't volunteer at a soup line at Thanksgiving when people really hungry? how many of you believe in john lennon's song imagine....i ask you to do just that and imagine being respectful and writing back in with what the merits are and then adressing your almost un-valid points...you cannot tell someone how to spend their time or money or how to pick neighbors and friends...sometimes the back story makes much more sense, buy we are not privy to personal life of mr. young or mr. tyson...and what they decide to do to help people......imho be nice or shut-up already and put up a retraction.or burn yer records,tonight is the night to do so, be respectful because i want you to give it up and respect neil's choices or shush u
-Rust Never Sleeps,
That was so beautifully said.
_________________________________
I went on Tyson's web site and found the following blurb:
"Tyson Foods’ approximately 7,600 family farms in 16 states benefit from their relationship with the company. Chicken growing supplies a stable source of income for farms that may otherwise have to endure the ups and downs of crop farming. Tyson birds are raised in large houses that are designed to keep the birds as comfortable as possible. They are automatically fed with feed specially formulated for their age, and nipple drinkers dispense water with a push of a button."
It seems to me, unless the 7,600 family farm number is a fabrication, that Tyson is a good customer for a lot of family farms. That's 7,600 families or more whose livelihood is supported by their relationship with Tyson. I totally respect the veggies out there, I was one for many years, but the fact is that the majority of this country eats meat and someone has to produce it and sure, we can demonize big business all day long, but there's a necessary service they're providing and that is to produce affordable food for people and jobs (117,00 according to their web site) for employees and business for family farms.
to 8/12/2010 03:19:00 PM,
I commend you for your sacrifices and strong values and hope your health has improved. But I strongly disagree with your premise of - since you were able to grow your own organic food, ect .. everyone can ... there are a lot of people hurting in the country, single moms with kids, older folks, all kinds of people who are broken in spirit or whatever and can't do what you've done. People who need help, need hand outs, we should celebrate the charity and hope its another step in the right direction.
By your definition you don't sound like an armchair environmentalist (maybe just an extreme one:) I respect that but before we throw Neil out of the bus lets let cooler head's prevail and give him the benefit of the doubt. He know Mr. Tyson better than we do, he's seeing something here that you don't.
Finally, lets not lose sight of the forest through the trees - people in the gulf coast are hurting, what I took from Thrasher's comments was - if you don't understand how Neil's giving back, take initiative to help there in your own way, its a much more productive use of energy than simply tearing down what he's doing.
Dan
All these rigid rules about who someone is allowed to associate with to accomplish good is BS. To the whiners: Get off your blogging asses and go down there and do it your way if you are so wonderful and noble and pure. The world is not perfect, but I trust Neil on this more than some bitter ideologue.
I think ya'll are getting impressions of Neil mixed up with his various alter egos and the songs he writes.
We only have Neil's word that his intentions are good and that Tyson's got his heart in the right place.
Faith in your fellow humans can move mountains and feed the hungry.
It's not rocket science, folks.
There are those who build and those who tear down what others build.
Sandy Horne
For Conan O'Brien's final broadcast of "The Tonight Show", Conan had Neil Young as his final musical guest.
After Neil performed, Conan closed his show with these thoughts on "cynicism":
"Really, you...Here's what all of you have done.
You've made a sad situation joyous and inspirational.
So to all the people watching I can never ever thank you enough for the kindness to me and I'll think about it for the rest of my life.
And all I ask is one thing...and this is...I'm asking this particularly of young people that watch...please do not be cynical.
I hate cynicism. For the record, it's my least favorite quality.
It doesn't lead anywhere.
Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get.
But if you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen. I'm telling you.
Amazing things will happen. (Audience claps) I'm telling you.
It's just true.
As proof, let's make something amazing happen right now."
1. Neil Young can and will do whatever he wants. Any rustie knows this. The guy supported Ronald Reagan for President for God's sake! If he came out in support of immediate global nuclear war, I wouldn't be surprised, nor would it cause me to have any problems with him. Neil can believe whatever he wants to believe, unabashedly, and I love him for it. Really, it's his music that matters.
2. As Dan (12:58) points out, Tyson Foods appears to work with 7,600 Family Farms - which would seem to me, at least at first glance, to be right up Neil's alley, considering his connection to farm-aid.
2a. That said, I'm sure we could find a lot to complain about about Tyson foods.
3. But! As Dan and Guitarcharlie and MNOTR and Thrash all point out in more eloquent and longwinded elucidations... let us not look a gift horse so far in the mouth that we lose sight of the horse itself, or be so cynical and unable to have trust in the ability of people to do good, that we condemn everything to the detriment of getting anything good accomplished by someone.
I'm not going down to the Gulf right now and helping remove the sludge or feeding the hungry. I carry a big wad of change around in my pocket and give it to homeless people who live on the streets. I'm also a hypocrite who drinks water out of plastic bottles. I try to do what I can, and sincerely want the world to be a better place, as we all do here.
So I can only applaud Neil and Tyson for their efforts right now.
And I hate giant corporations on principle.
But there's a big, big problem going on down there right now, and they need all the help they can get.
Not that I love everything Tyson does, but I don't love everything I do either.
I think there's goodness in everyone (except, maybe Dick Cheney...) and everyone deserves a chance to do good without getting dragged through the mud along the way for all the wrong they did.
By focusing so hard on the wrong we could so very easily derail any right that could possibly be done.
Dan#2 - I respect what you're saying but if you're looking for an accurate portrayal of how Tyson treats it's chickens and how it helps family farmers, I don't think Tyson's own website is going to be the best place to look! There are many other accounts out there that paint a much darker picture.
I've seen how these mechanised slaughter machines work (and how often they don't work)...pretty nightmarish in my opinion. All I'm saying is don't take their own promotional blurb for granted...
And Thrasher, being cynical maybe is not such a good quality. But there is absolutely nothing wrong with questioning anything.
That said, watch a movie called Food, Inc. and you'll never want to eat anything that comes out of a corporate food factory ever again.
I doubt, however, that Neil would work with a company that involves itself mainly in factory farms, at least knowingly.
And even if Tyson does, and the 7,600 family farms thing is bogus, we can all be pretty sure that Neil has his reasons, and that they're not nefarious, cynical or evil.
Matt Lintzenich wrote:
"If [Neil] came out in support of immediate global nuclear war, I wouldn't be surprised, nor would it cause me to have any problems with him. Neil can believe whatever he wants to believe, unabashedly, and I love him for it. Really, it's his music that matters....."
I don't know who you are Mr Lintzenich, but i do know this - you, my friend, should choose your words much more carefully. What is wrong with you?
To talk about a nuclear holocaust in such a flippant, callous manner is, by far, the worst thing i've ever read on Thrasher's Wheat.
BTW, it's HUMANITY that matters....
(AP)Redwood, Califonia:
Neil Young has decided to cancel his gulf states solo tour as a result of all the 'flap' he has received over his recent decision to partner with Tyson Foods to provide meals for those recently affected by the massive BP oil spill. Neil was qouted as saying "those chicken shit bastards can't think outside of the henhouse when it comes to helping out the needy. I'm so burned up by all this you could fry an egg on my head."
Tune-in later for more updates regarding the fowl mood Neil is in.
- Not Rotten Johnny
Anon, 12:09, it's called exaggeration to affect a point.
It was another of my lame attempts at satirical hyperbole.
Ha ha ha? I guess this is why I am not yet a successful satirist.
Though Kurt Vonnegut once made a really funny joke about nuclear war in a book called Cat's Cradle.
Everyone had a laugh and also got the important social message that he was conveying.
Maybe I'm not as funny, but I think you need to lighten up a bit.
And I think most people here can agree that humanity matters most. Which is why we should applaud Mr. Young and Tyson Foods for being charitable to the people affected by the BP disaster in their time of need.
(instead of sitting here in holier-than-thou judgement against those who are charitable, or even less helpfully nit-picking each others' choices of words...)
This has certainly become a volatile topic. I can be a bleeding heart when in comes to cruelty to animals as the next person. The question that you have to ask yourself is this: Is
feeding starving children a priority or is it condemning
a factory farm for killing chickens? Humanity,like the guy wrote,is what's important in this situation. Principles or outrage
or impotent banter doesn't fill
empty bellies. There are no athiests in fox holes...
I'm sure Neil has thought out this 3rd leg tour very carefully.
I thought he might do what Buffett did and throw a free concert that brought thousands of fans to the area and booked all the motels and hotels and bars and beaches all around, all benefiting from their hard spent cash.
For those of you wondering why the food donations are skeptical, you should realize that in this great country we live in there really are people, mostly children, who go to bed hungry every night.
This BP disaster hasn't helped that fact in the Gulf states much, so I feel, these shows, with the chicken donations and the food donations at the door ,echo what we do here in my state of Oregon every summer at our four day Blues Festival. We donate to the Oregon Food Bank.Why? Because believe it or not, there are people going under, RIGHT NOW! And most of them children.
This ugly recession and the Gulf disaster has put more people out of their homes, in shelters and food donations since the 1930's.
All walks of life can and do
donate.Even the corporations.
This no time for finger pointing.
I hear you Mr. Young.
"WALK WITH ME."
-Daniel in Portland
It's possible you're reading too much of your own cynicism and negativity into Matt's comment.
I think he was just using the most absurd example here to make a point.
Matt's a frequent contributor here so I feel like I know him from the comments he leaves. I'm sorry you missed his point and the opportunity to get to know what a really cool cat he is and why we love him!
Anyone interested in seeing how Tyson works with the 7,600 family farm chicken farmers need only look as far as the movie, Food, Inc. to see a deplorable situation.
Tyson treats the farmers as poorly as they force the farmers to treat the chickens.
The fact remains that the hungry are being fed.
How does Farm Aid reconcile its affiliation with Tyson Foods? THAT is my remaining question and concern.
bh
bh,
Are you aware of current injustices, misconduct, abusive farming practices, or unethical treatment of people and animals for which Tyson is responsible? Or are you relying on dated information that Moore used even as late as 2001.
I am aware that Tyson Food took a giant leap of faith into changing a lot of it's own policies and practices since that movie came out.
They had everything to gain by making the corrections in inequities and stopping the abuses.
They had everything to lose by doing nothing.
I think most people like Neil Young are easily reconciled to anyone open to reconciliation, forgiveness, and renewal.
We can't take personal anything Neil does. All we can do is point the obvious out like you did, but rehashing old injustices and inequities is counterproductive and waste of time.
And time has been our most precious natural resource...
XOXOXOX,
Mother Nature on the Run
@ bh & MNOTR - thanks for thoughts.
here's some more food for thoughts from Matt on rust : Message: Neil teaming with Tyson
its a good cause, let it go
So much has been so eloquently said I'll never come close—but really, people, before the current economic crisis there were children in this area going to bed hungry. Every night. And as for the hateful comment about skinny people, body size is deceptive—only one of the physiological consequences of malnutrition. The long-term effects of cheap food consumption—simple carbohydrates are cheap—begin early and can be life-long ... even after eating habits have been changed. Ask any observant teacher who's been in front of a class—she can tell you which children don't eat right.
I mean, come on people, we tell pregnant women to supplement their B vitamin intake to foster normal fetal neurological development, then forget how important nutrition is to minds that have left the uterus for this environment? Why do we have school lunch programs? Nutrition matters. Quality matters. But that's an economic issue too ... and there are many people in this country who do not have the resources which afford opportunities to choose wisely.
I don't know what world you live in, but I grew up in this area. The summers of my childhood were spent on my maternal grandparent’s farm: my favorite way to spend the morning was riding with my grandfather to deliver his milk. I have churned butter—and I have family who STILL farm (personal and small). I also have family who raise chickens for Tyson. Hate if you must—but everyone who's struggled to make a decent living in that area knows getting a Tyson contract means you will actually get to live above the poverty level—in a state that's been in the 'Top Ten' of THAT list for ... well, as long as I can remember. But what about raising chickens for Tyson? For my extended family, it was a business decision—one made by a man who’d watched his own children languish on the meager sustenance he could provide by working a factory job AND farming the muck of red clay so abundant here ... but I digress ... Wanna criticize? Put on the hungry shoes. Better yet, put them on your child. No? Then do something to make a difference. And here's the twist--in SOMEONE ELSE'S life.
It gives you less time to point fingers at those who ARE doing something. And if you find you STILL have time to blast others who are trying to make a difference, then take legitimate action toward change—let Tyson's know directly you disapprove of their practices. Pursue legal action. (That means you'll have to do more than quote dated material tho' ...) Better yet, go to work in the areas where Tyson plants are, where Tyson farmers live, to change THEIR lives—and the lives of their children. I know those people and I guarantee you, those parents are like most—they want better things for their children. Those plants are there for a reason you know ... I understand that even more, now that I know about the Tyson-Farm Aid connection ....
Finally, I wonder which of you could bear the scrutiny you seem to think appropriate for others. Are you perfect? Are all your friends? Associates? Have you ever done something for reasons you didn't care to explain to the world, ever wished you could simply help without taking a tongue-lashing for it? Or have you, perchance, ever baked a cake—without eggs? Not the same as one with eggs—so do you forego the eggs because the lives of egg-producing chickens is less humane than that of chickens allowed to live free and produce eggs at will? Hmmm. No chickens in the wild? No chickens out there en masse, defending themselves against predators, foraging for food, building up those wings so they can soar to new heights, take their rightful place with the hawk, falcon, eagle? No ideal chicken state?
(cont)
This comment has been removed by the author.
Don’t misunderstand me—I’m not ignoring issues—I have problems with hormones and antibiotics being introduced into the food chain, I don’t think any creature should be abused, and I don’t like the fact that what we routinely do to food in order to make mass quantities conveniently available to a disparate and distant populace often destroys nutritive value—I’m just being inflammatory …
Sorry. That really wasn't my point—my point is that it is, at times, necessary to do things in a particular way because that provides what is needed. Sure, it would be great if 1,000,000 pounds of fresh, organic protein were made available to the area—but Tyson stepped up. And while you, personally, might throw their chicken back at them, you don't have the right to take it from a hungry child to throw at them.
Live what you believe. Be who you want to be. Let others do the same. Help them every chance you get. That's how we make the world a better place.
I saw a great T-shirt the other day.
It said....
Whatever you
think you are.
BE THAT!
Just some food...for thought.
Whenever people join together to do good for others, it's an honorable and noble thing.
When idealism and ideology gets in the way, the path toward good deeds gets impassable.
In times of crisis should those with differences (real or perceived) turn away from rolling up their sleeves together...and not serve the greater good?
-Archives Guy
MNOTR, thanks for the words of appreciation. I appreciate it!
Good quote from Archives guy there - when idealism gets in the way of progress. It's true, sometimes we can be blinded by our own well-intentioned idealism.
And I'll just say this: Doing good shouldn't be viewed in the framework of doing bad. That is, feeding the hungry is a good thing - why criticize anyone for feeding the hungry?
None of us is perfect, and frankly it's good to see a corporation actually make a gesture toward doing something right for a change.
Cynicism will get us nowhere. I mean, man, we should all be dropping what we're doing and just going down there to help out. That's the purpose of being alive. To help each other.
If we're not helping out, then we should stop criticizing those who are, from behind our glass walls.
Archives Guy - What a lot of people are curious about I think isn't the current charitable act, but how close Neil and Tyson actually are. Are the differences between them, as you say, real or perceived? And if the latter, how have they been able to maintain such a friendship with such apparently different views? How does this affect Farm Aid? Does the success of Farm Aid hinge on the apparent financial and personal involvement of one of there biggest 'enemies'? There must surely have been some compromise somewhere. I think these issues are what people are really curious about - nobody is dismissing the act of charity itself.
Why would anyone think that it is valid and proper to pry into the private lives, relationships and friendships of these people?
Why do they owe any of us in the public any sort of explanation?
As AG tried to explain this is about people joining together to do good. Shouldn't that be enough?
Maybe some of you grousing and creating division could better channel your energies with positive and supportive action.
Donate or find a constructive way to help those in the Gulf area...just like Neil and Tyson are doing.
I'l return here when this blog goes back to discussing music.
Here's an idea....
What if CSNY did two FREE concerts
on a weekend sometime soon in the Gulf?
Can you imagine the "bread" (bad pun) brought into that area?
Then Neil could do "Vampire Blues" and Stills could do "Buyin' Time" and this band's rep (to me anyway) would be more than golden, especially to those who would benefit from it.
I'd still love 'em if it doesn't happen.
There's a lot of us dreamers out here I guess.
"...Imagine all the people...."
To the poster two above: what do you mean, what right? A) Neil is a celebrity and anything like this publicly announced is going to attract attention good and bad, it would be hugely naive to think otherwise. Imagine what it's like when a 'real celebrity' does something in the public eye!
B) more importantly, this has links indirectly in many ways to farm aid, where many people have made large donations of time and money. A cause which they strongly believe in, represented by Neil. It's only natural that they're taking an interest, surely to goodness? It became our business when we were asked for help.
Wow, y'know, I hate to stir the pot, but ONCE AGAIN the formula is apparent in this thread.
The most arrogant, holier-than-thou, uberjudgemental and cynical comments are coming from someone who won't even identify him/herself.
I'm sorry, but that's just gross. You can hide behind your anonymity and pretend to be anything you want, Mr. "I'm so perfect and you're wrong about everything," environmentalist.
It's one thing to care about the environment and do what you can to help make the world a better place.
But it's another thing altogether to go lording around like Mr. Top Dog Do-No-Wrong Know-it-All, flinging about in a stuck-up, frenzied, narcissistic superiority complex, all the while hiding in complete anonymity and refusing to acknowledge the validity of anyone else's opinion.
IMO, this anonymous character isn't even what he says he is. I could anonymously pretend to be an astronaut and it would carry all the weight of pure nothingness, which is exactly the way Arrogant Anonymous Man comes off.
If you mean specifically my comment above, then that's a bit strong. It's been my only direct contribution on the topic and I certainly don't claim to be any mega serious environmentalist myself. Just saying that there shouldn't be any problem with people looking into this, that's all. Stay calm!
No, not yours, guy above me, I'm talking somewhere in the middle of this thread. A few really arrogant comments by someone who proclaims him/herself as the greatest thing that happened to the environment since sliced bread and proceeds to trash Neil for associating with Mr. Tyson.
No problem, IMO, inquiring into the potential schism / conflict of interest this poses for Farm Aid, such as your query to AG.
What I'm amazed at, though, is that people who claim to be lifelong Neil Young fanatics aren't totally nonplussed by this.
We are talking about an artist who at every step morphs and befuddles his fanbase. From his musical directions to his political flip-flops, to his stances on things...
It just seems to me that for someone to come in here lording about with a huge attitude problem and narcissistic superiority complex, and claim to be mortally wounded by the actions of someone who historically can't be predicted...
...well, that just seems ridiculous. And his attitude problem is indicative of someone who's just a grade-A you-know-what.
I'm all about finding out more about this whole Tyson relationship. I'm very interested in it, but I just think we shouldn't go around making ASSUMPTIONS and pretending to be mortally wounded about it until we actually KNOW something about what we're talking about. And then, even if it turns out to be totally hypocritical and nefarious, how can you pretend to be surprised at someone who famously supported Ronald Reagan and made a whole slew of weird right-wing comments back in the 80's.
The guy is a befuddler. Personally, I love him for it. IMO, it's a part of being a Neil Young fan. Either you accept him for his propensity to change, morph and confound, or... well... where've you been since the 70's??
That's been my point the entire time.
Matt
Oh okay, sorry I got the wrong idea!
I've got a question or two...
In fiction, who would Neil be
closest to?
The Pied Piper of Hamlin?
Robin Hood?
Doc?
I'm sure the people that are affected by the spill are short on money to fill their cars up, too - Maybe Neil can partner with BP to do something about that?
Anon, that comment made no sense at all in the context of this story, or anything meaningful or logical whatsoever. Sorry. You'll have to try again.
Did you read NYTimes? Because of all the negativity, thrasherswheat may be shutting down. Please don't do this!! I read thrasherswheat at least three times a week to see what Neil is up to. Please do not shut your doors. And the rest of you, please be respectful in your comments. You may not agree with everything Neil does, but who agrees with everything you do?
Hey there,
im from the Netherlands and all the Tyson Food issues are not familliar to me, and it will not be. Please Thrash come back and go further with yr great great great news site. Dont bother about the reactions. Me myself dont read them often. This is not the reason i visit the site. Go further and one tip... dont read the reactions too... than you wont be dissapointed either... Here in Holland we have political ppl too with bad views who get all the attention in the newspapers. I dont like it but its the consequention of a free country!
Please got further, what you have reached with the site does mean a lot to all the Neil Young lovers. Take a nice holiday and come back!!
It makes perfect sense, Matt.
Tyson & BP are both huge, exploitive, and irresponsible corporations that represent the exact opposite of what Neil has stood up for over the years.
If he's willing to compromise on his position against factory farming, why not petroleum too?
While we're at it, I'm sure we could find a defense contractor to help out.
Neil already has access to a huge charity apparatus that could easily be mobilized to help residents of the Gulf area - Gulf Aid, anyone? - as well as connections with family farmers all over the country.
I can't believe there wasn't a better way to accomplish the same goals than by partnering with Tyson.
And if this site is actually considering shutting down because people are calling Neil out on this glaring contradiction, I would respectfully ask why you bothered to have a comments section in the first place if you weren't interested in hearing what people have to say.
Neil has taken many positions that I didn't understand - Reagan? - and that has never once affected my appreciation of his music in the 30+ years I've been listening to him.
This is just one more of those instances.
I don't find it at all shocking that he is a regular human being, with all of the contradictions & imperfections that implies, and neither should you, nor should it surprise or bother you that many of his fans disagree with the means he has chosen to reach the end in this case.
He is a passionate man with passionate beliefs who makes passionate art that stirs up passionate responses, and, as such, it's inevitable that not everyone is going to come down on his side all the time.
I agree that this seems out of sync with NY's anti-factory farming stance. But if Mr. Tyson and Neil are friends, it's probably because Tyson likes NY's music, not because they met on a Greyhound bus somewhere. Why reject a rich guy running a legal business who wants to give to a cause? Probably a U.S. company like Tyson's is more likely to respond to public opinion on how it treats animals than one in China or the third world. But are people really going hungry on the Gulf Coast? Maybe they spent their welfare money on smokes.
Okay, Anonymous Guy # 457, I am not going to argue it any further after this, as I've stated my position ad nauseum now.
No, it's not the same. BP caused the problems in the Gulf, not Tyson Foods.
The owner of Tyson Foods has decided to make a large donation to help the people affected by those problems.
Many Neil Young fans are acting like children fighting in a sandbox instead of supporting the relief effort.
And it's ludicrous for you to be offended by Neil Young's actions or to say that it's out of character for him when you don't know HALF or even a QUARTER of what goes into the relationship he has with Mr. Tyson.
Plus it only goes against half of what Neil has stood for over the years. Neil has also stood both FOR and AGAINST Capitalism, Republicans, etc.
One thing that can't be denied, is that Shakey has a propensity to confound and confuse with his zig-zagging actions.
And you, just like Anonymous Guy number 455, unless you are the same guy, which is impossible to tell because you hide under a cloak of anonymity to spew your smug, self-righteous armchair anger, pretend to know what you're talking about when really you do not.
I don't know either. I'm just glad that my musical hero is out there trying his hardest to do good things for the world, and I'm certainly not going to condemn him for it.
The fact that some people don't want to go through the registration process here to comment doesn't discount their opinions.
I also wasn't aware that we were supposed to submit a list of our qualifications & accomplishments before posting either.
Believe it or not, you can actually disagree with Neil's actions AND help the people affected by the spill - The two aren't mutually exclusive.
The oil spill is just the latest assault on the area's waters.
Run-off from factory farms & plants - many of which either work for or are operated by Tyson - have been polluting the rivers in the area - which flow directly into The Gulf - for years.
You're entitled to your opinion, whoever you are. But I still maintain that until (and if ever) we know more, it just seems futile to criticize.
I totally feel you on the factory farming thing. I watched Food, Inc. and it turned my stomach. Those corporations do some really creepy and horrific things, and personally I'd love nothing better than to see them all go as financially bankrupt as they are morally.
You and I probably agree on more than we disagree. I just think that condemning Neil Young for doing what he thinks is the right thing and trying to help people who are starving is a useless, negative endeavor, and that showing him a little support and waiting until more details emerge about his relationship with Mr. Tyson might be more reasonable.
Otherwise, complaining about it amounts to bitching about his relationship with someone when you don't know 10% of what that relationship entails or why it exists in the first place.
I mean, Neil has always been an enigmatic fellow who is hard to pin down, but there's got to be a good reason for a co-sponsor of Farm Aid to have a longstanding existing relationship with the owner of Tyson Foods.
It can't be so schizophrenic as to be completely hypocritical. There must be a reason, and until we know that reason, complaining about it just seems ludicrous to me.
Again, you're entitled to your opinion, and sorry if I flew off the handle... but I just think all the complaining is an unproductive and ridiculous waste of time.
And the only reason I complain about the anonymous thing is that I have no idea what prior comments you left, so it's hard to have an ongoing discussion with potentially one or ten people who all blend together. Even if you just signed off with an arbitrary handle of some kind it would make it easier.
According to this article:
http://www.seattlepi.com/pop/191114_farmaid17.html
Willie Nelson also has a good friend at Tyson Foods too.
Hey look. here's a photo of Willie Nelson playing at the Tyson Foods Employee Party in Springdale, Arkansas...
http://stillisstillmoving.com/willienelson/willie-nelson-and-family-at-tyson-foods-party/
So, what is the connection between Farm Aid and Tyson Foods?
Looks like Don Tyson "helped bankroll three Farm Aid concerts for his friend ... Willie Nelson."
Glory me, I wonder why nobody even bothered to do a couple easy google searches before getting all in a huff?
Do two wrongs make aright? Is some cruelty and perhaps three barbaric practices acceptable for the greater good?
Guantanemo springs to mind? Was shooting 4 people dead in Ohio acceptable for the greater good of society and 'peace'. Is ignoring Tibet's plight at the hands of the Chinese alright?
Ok, there are far more folks starving and suffering from atrocious 'inhuman' conditions than those in the Gulf region, lots of places in Africa for example.
I think we are all hypocrites most of the time, and actually quite self righteous about our pets hates.
But, many of the apologists for Tyson and the Tyson / Young partnership choose blindness over light, ignorance over knowledge. This is the worst kind of hypocrisy because it is an attempt to intellectualize a way around an issue, to manage the actual truth into and 'acceptable rationale of the truth' Good old Stalin / Tung / Hitler etc.
What is truth? Is it different from your personal truth? (Like an Ostrich - if you avert your eyes it doesn't exist!
Mr Young makes his own truth and it is up to him how he rationalizes his decisions. It is up to use to choose our own way.... based on our own conscience and the analysis of information at our disposal.
The 'why is NY doing this' discussion is less critical than the 'why do I do this'. Do not follow, lead, and lead as much as you can. Maybe NY can help you like his music helps me but I cannot expect him to be my personal jesus!
Back to my original point now: If cruelty is acceptable for the greater good, perhaps we could bring back slavery and servitude to reduce the jobless etc.
What is that line 'a politician through a businessman's eyes?
Do you want an end to suffering or just an end to suffering you can see?
HUMBUG!
27th Aug the Whole World is waiting for.............
Planet Mars will be the brightest in the night sky starting August. It will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye. This will cultivate on Aug. 27 when Mars comes within 34.65M miles off earth. Be sure to watch the sky on Aug. 27 12:30 am. It will look like the earth has 2 moons.
The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287.
Share this with your friends as
NO ONE ALIVE TODAY
will ever see it again.
The Mars thing is bogus.
Philip,
We all have our ways of seeing things, and while I personally agree with your premise that the critical question is, "Why do I do this?"...
...I would point out that couching this in high-falutin' idealism reducing Neil's efforts to do what he feels as right into something lesser than the "big picture" of feeding "every starving person in the world" makes very little sense.
The best we, as individuals, can do (and here, I am not talking collectively, because as a collective we are capable of much more - I am discussing the individual), is what we are physically and financially capable of doing, would you not agree?
So if Neil Young has the financial and physical ability to put together a tour through the Gulf States, raise awareness, raise food for food pantries, and have one of his friends donate a whole crapload of food to feed those starving people down there, so that people who previously had no food to eat now have food to eat...
then how is this a bad thing? <--
please answer that question.
Perhaps "in the context" of some "greater wrong", that is that out of the 6.5 billion folks in the world, a much greater number are starving than those in the Gulf, Neil's efforts can be seen as less than the capabilities of the collective whole of humanity (which is capable of anything) - but it seems to me that by reducing his individual effort into something insignificant, you are, basically, pissing on the people in the gulf and saying why bother.
Plus, there are no two wrongs happening here. Just a number of rights. The "wrongs" people are talking about (oftentimes out their asses, I might add) have ABSOLUTELY NO RELATION WHATSOEVER, IN REALITY, to this singular act and its repercussions.
That is logical reality as applied to THIS SITUATION, not any other.
So, and I mean this with all respect for your points (that there are much greater ills contextually, and lots of wrongs, and two wrongs don't make a right, etc.), but abstracting things the way you are, IMO, helps nothing, and conveys nothing, and only serves to devalue what one person is doing to try to help people in this world.
I'm starting to think we'll need to start a petition to bring back TW not unlike the TFA petition. I don't know about you but having TW down, and the thought that Thrasher would consider not running this site, is pretty depressing. It also means that cynicism won out. Neil commented on the issues at TW in NY Times and acknowledged all the good Thrasher and Thrashette have done for fans. The question is how can the greater TW community deal with this recent twist of events? Thasher we miss ya big time!!!
Oops, that last comment was by me.
Dan
"In addition, Neil - Young has officially responded to the fans of his site "Thrasher's Wheat" above some of the negative evaluation of his fans, Some of these comments on Neil - Young's tour ticket prices, some are about his charity work, and some is not about him in recent years with the Crazy Horse the band (Crazy Horse) cooperation. On "Thrasher's Wheat" discussion site for those fans, Neil - Yang wrote in his official website: "This is the Internet's most respectable website, let me take this opportunity to thank for what you have been I and my concern about doing. anything negative side, maybe it will make you feel tired, you can choose to say goodbye to him. Whether you choose to continue or suspend entirely up to you. "(KFC MAN)
Thrasher, dude - you're hot, man. First NYTimes, then referenced in Rolling Stone article about new album, and now - China as translated by google in the article above. (Who's this Neil Yang, anyway?)
So come on home. Obviously the whole world is watching.
Love
Pinto(or Flounder)
Matthew, please be careful how many times you comment on one thread (as above)..the "johnathan police" will be on to you and brand you as a regular!! lol
luv doc
p.s. Hey Johnathan they're only words..(between the lines of rage) lol.Incite me baby.!
@Sam,
Hunger in the Gulf Coast attributable to smokes? In some cases perhaps--but not conscious choices made by children for themselves ...
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