Only a soldier knows the truth about whats really going on over there.

PEACE
Dios quiera!

my sweetie is. he's not ther right now(THANK GOD!), but when he came back from his tour, he was never quite the same

Germany's Osnabrueck Orchestra just played Beethoven and Elgar to sold-out audiences and an overwhelmingly positive reception in Tehran. The story was covered on NPR and in many newspapers - playing in Iran is a big story. I read some interviews with young audience members who loved it, and are hungry for more live music - Jazz, Pop, all of it.

I'm still skeptical of this story, but I'd like to think that Morrissey is bold enough to do something like this, and talented enough to inspire audiences who have never seen or heard him before. I'd also like to think that the inspiration would be mutual.

The political news is awful, and I think it will get worse. Of course the situation is dangerous, but I think it is worth the risk. If Chris de Burg can do it, so can Moz.

I would worry terribly, though.

Don't believe the hype! My father lives in Tehran, everything is perfectly fine, everyday life as usual. People dont hear any war drums beating, and the nuclear thing is blown out of proportion.

Thank your American media for being easily swayed.

mmmmmmmmmmmmm...falafel!

Sure, Bush is a Draconian fuckin' fasict, and Blair is indeed his pegboy. Of course, the American media is a dishonest, self intersted joke. But Iran is hard a beacon of light. America, for all her problems, of which there are many, is still a place where you can go see a performance by a genius like Morrissey. Iran should be out of the question for Morrissey based solely on being a human rights violating theocracy. Mozzer is to intelligent of a man to make such impulsive political statements. Especially in regard in villifying Canada whem we live in a world with places like Dafur.

Moz claims the be sooooo into human rights and stuff, then he would tour a place like Iran.

say what you will about will about the 'fascism' of the Bush admin, but the government of Islamic Republic of Iran are the real fascists, and the real people who do not know the meaning of seperation of church and state and are the real threaqt to basic human civil liberties.

I wonder if he will dare to act waiffy in the land of mullahs, after all, it was Ahmadenijad himself who said they do not have this "phenomenon" called homosexuality.

ps- I for one think our Navy should have blown those Iranian boats out of the water for fucking with them over the weekend.... but then again I'm a hatemonger..... and a capitalist.

oh, horror of horrors!!!!

I will say that Mozzer better tour Israel last or use his multiple passports, as most islamic countries will not let you in if you have been to Israel, and if they do, dont be suprised if youre treated to some added unwarranted attention.

if he's got a fanbase there, good for him... he should tear it up.

who should be watching his back is W, not Mozzer.

The countries Morrissey is intending to visit are so different from each other that I can´t make my mind up in general about the "Middle East".

I find it easy to imagine him in Israel & I think it would be great if he played there.

I´ve never been to any of the other countries Merck Mercuriadis has mentioned, so I can only base my opinion on what I´ve read or heard, but what I´ve read about Iran makes me wonder how serious I can take the suggestion that Morrissey wants to play there:
I read an article once about a German group of theatre actors who went to Tehran to show their play there. It was censored a lot & every day the actors where actually afraid of letting a word slip that they weren´t allowed to use.
I also read an article about pop-concerts in Tehran: the people in the audience weren´t allowed to get up from their chairs or to even move with the music while they were sitting & watching the show. There were armed people making sure that those rules were obeyed.

I just can´t see Morrissey in front of an audience that´s not allowed to move & that´s controlled with rifles & I can´t see Morrissey agreeing to be censored & to refrain from saying anything that hasn´t been approved of before.

Also, I can´t really imagine Iran giving him the permission (thinking of the rumours of him being gay) & as much as it pains me to say so, I wonder what Morrissey´s motivation is & if he´s really serious about wanting to go there - or if he just says so, not expecting to be accepted. Apologies if I´m being unjust.

Anyway, IF he is serious & IF he can control his ego enough to go to Iran & refrain from saying anything that would put him/his band or his audience in danger - why not? I´m sure he´d be appreciated. & whereas it wouldn´t help the Iranian people if Western artists boycotted their country, it might give them joy to get access to some art/music that they´re not used to. :-)

I hope Al Qaida are Morrissey Fans, too...
Than will be his touring in the middle east safer...

He is talking about touring places that promote terrorism, do not allow equal rights for men and women (let alone homosexuals.) Places with established totalitarian governments that harshly promote censorship and blatantly ignore the civil rights of their citizens.
I think it is very contradictory that Morrissey will not play Canada because of a "seal hunt" that most of the Canadian citizens disagree with, but is looking forward to performing in Tehran where people are treated much much worse than the poor seals in the north.

I hope Morrissey gets blown up,that'll show him.

...which means what the hell. Just because they have a couple of nutsos running the countries (specifically you Queen Reina) doesn't mean the people should be shunned.

How many possible Morrissey fans can there be in Iran? He can't even sell out Madison Square Garden for christ's sake!

But, hey if he believes it warrants a tour for him to play to 12 Iranian fans and a few of the die-hards who will follow him where ever he goes then go ahead.

I know Morrissey loves to tour, but I find myself feeling indifferent where touring is concerned. I look forward to hearing of new record releases and TV appearances, the most. Yamaha

How about:

Good idea. The Middle east is a danger zone right now.

The only reason he would want to play there is to get his name in the papers again.
If he was really interested in selling tickets to people that want to see him, he'd come back to Canada. If he has a fan base left here?
Maybe he should stay home, and parachute into a few shows, or ride in on a jetpack. Probably safer.

I see numerous posts rationalizing, or outright debating the contradictions in Morrissey's political interests, yet it seems that many people cannot accept the blatantly obvious.

Morrissey ends up being contradictory because he often speaks without having thought through the possible counterpoints. More importantly, he uses what little he knows about politics as an aesthetic device. He's not a logician, or a philosopher. He's a romantic pop music lover, who, in reality, is not well educated. Only recently has he taken an interest in the world outside of his immediate environment, and he's off to a terrible start.

He's aware, and sensitive enough to know when to quip, and to know how to align himself with things that seem politically rebellious, but very little of it is based in proper reasoning, or a deep interest in pursuing truth. Seeking the truth requires work, and sometimes it leads a person to an unfashionable conclusion. Morrissey wouldn't have it.

The man believes that he saw a UFO, a ghost, and is in all likelihood a lazy Catholic, so none of this should come as a surprise. At heart, he's a young girl trapped inside a man's body. Permanent adolescents. Wealth has merely established that permanence.

He reminds me of a freshman in College who wants to seem much more intelligent than he or she actually is, without engaging in the mental drudgery that comes with debate. The good ones know what the popular underground view is, and they don't waiver from that. The poor ones seek to tour the Middle East, yet boycott Canada because they deem them soft on seal hunting.

If he wants to simply write pop songs, and be loved for that, then wonderful. However, the minute that he starts opening his mouth about issues that involve more than just a daffy love for animals, he better know what he's talking about.

He should do what he feels is best, but I'd worry constantly about him...

Don't ask... don't tell. He'll be fine.

I guess that there are no seals in the Middle East.

VS.

...will I go to a Morrissey Gig or buy a recording if he does Iran. Probably much the same action if he does Israel.

He should get a grip and stop these rumours.

http://www.iran-e-azad.org/stoning/

http://www.antiwar.com/orig/cook.php?articleid=940 7

Lookig forward to the Roundhouse gigs though - just off for my train now :-)