While I enjoy Bruce Springsteen's music, I think his opinion on the Dixie Chicks backlash is way off base.
The Boss says "The Dixie Chicks have taken a big hit lately for exercising their basic right to express themselves. To me, they're terrific American artists expressing American values by using their American right to free speech. For them to be banished wholesale from radio stations, and even entire radio networks, for speaking out is un-American."
What he is saying here is that each and every American has a right to express their opinion, based on their right to free speech. But what he fails to realize is that all of those stations that have banned the Chicks are also expressing their right to free speech.
Springsteen goes on to say, "The pressure coming from the government and big business to enforce conformity of thought concerning the war and politics goes against everything that this country is about - namely freedom. Right now, we are supposedly fighting to create freedom in Iraq, at the same time that some are trying to intimidate and punish people for using that same freedom here at home. "
Personally, I am tired of hearing artists and actors spout off about the war in Iraq (and anything else in general). Most of these people are shut off from reality that they have absolutely no idea what they are talking about. They simply look at the situation and say, "War is bad." They failed to look at it and say "Saddam Hussein is bad."
I want singers to sing, actors to act and politicians to decide the the actions of our nation. If we don't like what those politicians do, then we have the option to vote them out of office next term.