Dire Straits, "Money for Nothing", and 'Faggot'...

Hot on the heels of NewSouth Books and the censoring of a Mark Twain classic, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, there is this story out of Canada that seemingly takes 2011 standards of vilification and applies them retroactively to 1985.

The word in question is 'faggot'. There is little doubting that the term is one that is derogatory. It is designed to offend, it is designed to hurt the individual that it is aimed at, and in many places it is now included as language that vilifies a certain group of individuals in the community. In 1985, the word was derogatory but it was used much more freely and perhaps to some degree was considered acceptable.

Interestingly, the song is a Dire Straits classic. In fact, it is a song that has received numerous awards, including a Grammy. Should the fact that the song was released more than 25 years ago  mean that it must be subject to a different standard in terms of the language used? Furthermore, does the fact that the song has been played hundreds of thousands of times throughout the world on radio and television in the most far-flung of locales mean that it is exempt from current applicable standards of the Canadian human rights laws and regulations?

I am not advocating a return to a time when vilifying people was tolerated much more than it is now. I do not use the word and I follow certain protocols when children use it in my classroom in unacceptable ways. However, I am wondering out loud as to whether this kind of revisionism and retroactive application is misplaced.  Nevertheless, this is a case of "sooner or later" as it was only a matter of time before someone lodged a complaint. The word 'faggot' violates the human rights standards that apply in Canada. So, the Broadcast Standards Council, who has authority over these matters, has decided that the word must be censored out of the song.

The line that will have to be edited is ''That little faggot with the earring and the make-up''. Money for Nothing is a song off the 1985 Brothers in Arms album. Mark Knopfler, the lead singer of Dire Straits has commented sparingly on the song. He has said that he wrote it after visiting a hardware store in New York.



I wonder what is next for the censors?

Pink -- The Grammys...

Pink always puts on a good show. A ticket to the Grammys just to see Pink perform would have been worth its weight in gold, at least to me.

Enjoy the photos of the Grammys performance (nice tattoos).

Lady Gaga -- The Grammys

I have never really been able to work out Lady Gaga's outfits. However, one has to agree she is never short on the making a scene front. If you asked me to name a Lady Gaga song or album, then I would have to look it up. I am not a "fan" in the music sense of the word. Yet, to be honest I have not listened to any of her music that I recall.

However, she is one of those artists that you just cannot miss. And, I think it is the 'excellent' wardrobe choices that she makes for award shows, arriving at airports, or just strolling the streets, that keeps her in the public eye. More power to her for being true to herself!

Is this a barely does the trick outfit, or what?

Throwing It All Away -- Amy Winehouse

This is truly sad. It is sad to watch someone self-destruct and throw away an incredible talent. Yet, it must also be a warning to others that no matter how good you think you might be and how strong you think you are, ultimately drugs control you. Do not kid yourself that you can control the drugs.

Amy Winehouse is a perfect example of this. She is a prodigious talent and has been recognized as such with numerous awards for her singing and song writing. Yet, at 24 years of age she has emphysema. Emphysema is an incurable disease and Winehouse has allegedly developed it as a direct result of her well-known and widely publicised crack cocaine habit. This is kind of like the double whammy in the sense that probably the worst way to dabble in cocaine is to smoke it!

Her doctors have told her that "if she goes back to smoking drugs it won't just ruin her voice, it will kill her," according to her father as quoted in the Sunday Mirror. Apparently, her fainting spell and her inability to breathe properly might just have saved her from more serious damage. Not that emphysema is not serious enough, but if she is able to change her habits then doctors have offered a much more positive picture. The question is can she change her self-destructive habits. If a person ever needed a serious wake-up call then this would be it!

Winehouse is scheduled to play and Glastonbury next week and there is also a singing date for Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday. I actually like her music and listen to her often. So, for selfish reasons I would like to see her beat her addictions so that she can make a few more albums and I can enjoy her soulful tunes for a little while longer.

Here's to a speedy recovery! The picture is from Getty Images.