The U.S. vs. John Lennon

As alot of you already know, even though I'm a huge Beatle's fan, I've never really been a huge fan of John Lennon's character. Of all the things I've watched and read about the group, it's never been a secret that he cheated endlessly on his first wife, negelected his first son, criticized a country he was not a part of yet lived in, was addicted to heroin, was an alcoholic for years, and has made numerous statements negatively attacking the other members of the group. I've always been a fan of his music, never the less. But, unexpectadly, my opinion of the late music icon has changed...

Eric and I went to the Bethel Cinema the other night. The place was really small, but it had a cafe that enhanced my life with their butternut squash ravioli. I went to see this documentary with interest because it had to do with the side of Lennon that I didn't really know much about: his political involvment of the early 1970's.

I always thought John was a jerk for being a British citizen, who was incredibly outspoken about changing the United States government. I still think it was a little bit ridiculous, and that his message was far too utopian and idealistic. "Give Peace a Chance", "Imagine" and his and Yoko's 11 international citied billboard: "War is Over" seemed to me to be a naieve, lazy and simplistic way of speaking his mind about the US. But after seeing the film, and I don't think it was biased at all, considering there was all kinds of people interviewed, from former Senator George McGovern, who was a Lennon supporter, to members of the Nixon administration who are against him (and sadly still for Nixon), I really think he did more positive things for our country in the 70's than I thought. And, I suppose, to sum it up, I never really knew much about the Nixon administration, hah.

I never heard of the John Sinclair story. He was the leader of the White Panther Party, who was jailed in 1969 after selling two joints to undercover narcotics officers. In 1971 his case received international attention when John Lennon performed at a benefit concert on his behalf. Instantly, after Lennon's song for John, completely insulting the authorities who locked him up, Sinclair's ABSURD 10 year sentence was unexpectadly turned around, and he was let free. That's some power.

I guess I just didn't realized how much him and Yoko really tried to physically get out and do positive things. Whether I agree with his exact words and statements is irrelevant... he once stated on an television interview that he didn't care what people thought of him, and that he's famous, and he's going to be on the cover of the newspaper; it might as well have the word "peace" on it. That point really hit me, because I really really really really hate seeing excessively weathly celebrities who waste their time and money on themselves; and who make the paper and the tabloids with their anorexia, divorce case, lavish spending, and millions of other trivial reasons. And what's worse is we all feed the attention to those kinds of things. I do admire that John took his wealth and time and worked hard to do something positive, tried to make a difference, and encouraged people to stick up for what they believed.

The film gives an accurate portrayl of John's life in the US, his struggles with Immigration, the FBI, and the Nixon administration. It's just an interesting little sliver of history, and hey, it's all about one of pop music's greatest legends!

Comments

[Yoko Ono]

I'm a bitch.

[John Lennon]

I couldnt help but notice u mentioning divorce cases up above....isnt a certain Paul gojng through his divorce all over the tabloids?

[Me]

U would say that....

[Me]

by the way...he always says "no comment" on it and always asks for respect from the media to leave it alone. he doesnt mind interviewing when hes doing something positive,though, smartasssssss