SAG: Don't blacklist anti-war actors

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SAG: Don't blacklist anti-war actors

Post by Big-O Mark »

SAG: Don't blacklist anti-war actors

Tuesday, March 4, 2003

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- The entertainment industry must not blacklist people who speak out against war with Iraq, the Screen Actors Guild said.

"Some have recently suggested that well-known individuals who express 'unacceptable' views should be punished by losing their right to work," the union said in a statement posted Monday on its Web site.

"Even a hint of the blacklist must never again be tolerated in this nation," the statement added.

The reference was to the Hollywood blacklist of the 1950s, when actors and writers suspected of harboring pro-Communist sentiments were barred from working.

"During this shameful period, our own industry prostrated itself before smear campaigns and witch hunters rather than standing on the principles articulated in the nation's fundamental documents," the statement said.

Martin Sheen recently said top executives at NBC had "let it be known they're very uncomfortable" with his outspoken opposition to war with Iraq.

Sheen, who plays the president on the "The West Wing," said the network fears his position will hurt the show. An NBC spokeswoman responded that network executives have expressed no such concerns.

In a lawsuit filed last month, actor Sean Penn accused producer Steve Bing of reneging on an agreement to pay him $10 million to star in a proposed movie called "Why Men Shouldn't Marry" after Penn said he was against war with Iraq. Bing denied the allegation in a countersuit, saying Penn pulled out of the project.
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Post by Axilla »

From my friend on another forum:
...there are other people who I feel are motivated by something other than a desire for peace. I think these people see a political destination and "peace" is their vehicle. 4 people come to mind immediately as good examples - Tom Daschle, Robert Byrd, Kerry, and Michael Moore.

The first 3 are politicians and are all on record supporting military action against Iraq. In fact, at least one of them is on record as saying, 'there was no other alternative than to use force'. This support was issued in the clearest terms - WHEN a Democrat was president. The support vanished under a Republican president.

The 4th, Michael Moore, is the person who made his "anti-war" speech at the Oscars. I put anti-war in quotation marks because I do not believe it was an anti-war speech. I believe it was a political speech. Had Mr. Moore been a true "anti-war" believer, I believe his protest would have focused on the war. Instead, he included opinions regarding the last election.

Of course, it was his right to say whatever he wanted. But, I believe his message, "peace" if indeed that's what he intended it be, would have been much better received had he not diluted it with politics. And, I do NOT think his political commentary was merely an outburst of his feelings at that moment. By all accounts, he is a smart man and I believe he said what he meant to say.. I believe his comments simply reflected his agenda and that agenda was "Anti-Bush" NOT "Anti-War".

And that I feel is the real agenda of many of the "anti-war" protesters.

Not that there's anything wrong with being anti-Bush, I just wish some of it wasn't disguised as "anti-war". In my opinion, that hurts our soldiers for political gain and that is sad.
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Post by Anthony »

I do not believe people have any right to talk about things on a award show other then what the awards have to do with. If they want to do it on their own free time that's fine, but not when I'm watching for some other reason.

I hear enough about the war when I don't (don't get me wrong I have read the paper, news magazines, and watched the news a long time before the war, but the coverage is through the roof) want to hear about it. I would like to sometimes pretend nothing is wrong with the world.... Don't I have that right still?
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