Johnny Marr vs David Cameron

Last year's Alexandra Palace gig Morrissey said 'David Cameron, stop killing stags', but it didn't make a headline. :(
Probably a good thing. That would have just come across as Morrissey being the usual animal rights one tracked mind obsessive rather than any left/right politicial statement.
 
Johnny Marr just tweeted this message on his official Twitter page:

"David Cameron, stop saying that you like The Smiths, no you don't. I forbid you to like it."

http://twitter.com/#!/Johnny_Marr

very odd choice of phrase - "I forbid you to like it"
I haven't got a problem with Cameron liking the Smiths. he's a genuine fan. so much so he even went to a Morrissey concert in 2006, travelling there by bike - brilliant!
I'd never vote for the Conservatives but Cameron isn't half the buffoon that Brown was. he's also arguably more left wing than Blair (which, admittedly, isn't saying much).
 
very odd choice of phrase - "I forbid you to like it"
I haven't got a problem with Cameron liking the Smiths. he's a genuine fan. so much so he even went to a Morrissey concert in 2006, travelling there by bike - brilliant!
I'd never vote for the Conservatives but Cameron isn't half the buffoon that Brown was. he's also arguably more left wing than Blair (which, admittedly, isn't saying much).

As opposed to.. us maybe? Them?
 
As opposed to.. us maybe? Them?

Yeah, I suppose if he'd said 'us' it would've implied that The Smiths were an ongoing concern. Heaven forbid that JM would want to give that impression!
If he'd been talking about The Smiths' music then 'it' would've seemed a natural choice, but not when referring to the actual band.
 
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Of cause all mps and that lot can like The Smiths...but they're not considered a fan as they are everything The Smiths are against! It's like if churchill had joined the nazi's...it would never happen!

I hope Johnny continues to stick up for The Smiths, I'm glad he's actually doing it and talking about The Smiths more in recent years.

Sorry, but that's just wrong. Who decides who gets to be a fan? This proprietary atitude to fandom is ridiculous, and also very unlikeable. Quite frankly, it is also as opposed to "what the Smiths stand for" as anything I can imagine. "In order to classify yourself as this, you have to think, speak, act and dress in this specific way"? Oh yeah, that's very Morrissey-like.....

As far as I'm concerned, if Pol Pot had called himself a Smiths fan, he would have been one.

It's like if churchill had joined the nazi's...it would never happen!

No, it is not remotely like Churchill had joined the nazis. That's exactly what it is NOT like, because the Smiths is not a movement, you don't join them and it is not a predefined thing that inescapably commits you to certain positions. And in any case it is beyond ridiculous to suggest that the difference between churchill and the nazis is in any way analogous to Cameron and the Smiths, come on - join the real world. Here's the analogy: As if Churchill had liked Wagner. Which, exactly like Cameron liking Morrissey, is no big deal.

Johnny Marr, and before him Paul Weller, seems to be under the extraordinary impression that they own their art, and can decide what it means, to who. Which is of course not the case. It is perfectly possible and legitimate to not care one iota what the Smiths "stand for" (whatever that is) - or to not agree with it - and still be a fan. It's not a club. For my part, I don't much care for Morrissey's vegetarianism (though I respect it), and frankly think that most of the things he has to say about politics and current affairs are ignorant to the point of being embarassingly silly, none of which bothers me or has ever made me even consider whether that is an obstacle to fervently admiring his music and lyrics. And let's face it, we are in any case most of us into it primarily for the music and the lyrics, not for what the Smiths "stand for". Jesus Christ, it's not Amnesty International we're talking about here.....

cheers
 
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Marr's latest Tweet is "Nick Clegg, hand over your iPod...".

I think Johnny has just discovered what a fantastic publicity tool the Internet can be :lbf:
 
Marr's latest Tweet is "Nick Clegg, hand over your iPod...".

I think Johnny has just discovered what a fantastic publicity tool the Internet can be :lbf:

Indeed...

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P.
 
While I don't agree that Johnny Marr (or anyone from the band) would get to decide who is a fan and who isn't, I can see where he's coming from.

What's the purpose of us knowing that David Cameron (or anyone in his profession) likes The Smiths? What's the purpose of politicians trying to portray some sense of "authenticity" (fake or real)?

Don't they want to become likable, hence votable? Isn't this a big marketing ploy to attract voters or at least create sympathy?

I don't care whether or not Cameron likes The Smiths - that would never interfere with my vote. Nor should it. I don't care what he eats, what socks he wears, or which brand of toothpaste he likes. Do you ask your surgeon if s/he likes ABBA?

So yes, politicians and journalists could best refrain from all this persona-politics theatre - it hasn't made their policies better for the rest of us.

You could have hoped Johnny might have said it differently, and that he would say the same thing for all politicians.
 
very odd choice of phrase - "I forbid you to like it"
I haven't got a problem with Cameron liking the Smiths. he's a genuine fan. so much so he even went to a Morrissey concert in 2006, travelling there by bike - brilliant!
I'd never vote for the Conservatives but Cameron isn't half the buffoon that Brown was. he's also arguably more left wing than Blair (which, admittedly, isn't saying much).

Cameron didn't get Wembley Arena by bike, he was caught for a fare dodging.

http://www.morrissey-solo.com/articles/06/12/11/1757224.shtml
 
And I've discovered how extraordinarily thick he is

I think his previous Tweet pretty much answers this one. Does no-one have a sense of humour anymore? He wasn't serious.
 
Do you ask your surgeon if s/he likes ABBA?

.

I'd be more comfortable going under the knife if my surgeon was a Morrissey fan. Stupid, likely, but here's my reasoning: 1. By sharing an interest, I've become more of a person and less of a disease or case, so the surgeon might take a little extra care. It also establishes a relationship and evolutionarily we are hard wired to pull for the survival of our relatives. 2. He/she has shown a flicker of intelligence in liking Morrissey; hopefully that extends to surgery knowledge as well. I mean, if he said his favourite artist was Justin Bieber, id be a bit terrified. And you don't have to be smart to be a doctor - believe me.

Now this doesn't mean I'd be unhappy with a surgeon who wasn't a fan; just given equal qualifications I'd pick the fan, or finding out accidentally they were a fan would give a bit of comfort.

And I just had a client tonight tell me he was happy to have me care for his dog because I was a Morrissey fan
 
news just in - apparently Cameron has responded. can't remember the exact quote but it's along the lines of:
"I forbid Johnny Marr from voting Conservative. I never cared for the guitarist. It was Morrissey's genius singing and lyrics which made the Smiths and, if you don't believe me, just listen to any of the god-awful rubbish Marr's produced ever since. And don't get me started on the 'Healers' for f***'s sake - 'Healers' I ask you? There's an oxymoron if ever I heard one!".
 
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I'd be more comfortable going under the knife if my surgeon was a Morrissey fan. Stupid, likely, but here's my reasoning: 1. By sharing an interest, I've become more of a person and less of a disease or case, so the surgeon might take a little extra care. It also establishes a relationship and evolutionarily we are hard wired to pull for the survival of our relatives.

Ok if that makes you feel more comfortable, but that doesn't necessarily makes the surgeon perform better. The "relatives first" evolutionist precept seems to be based on the observation that people tend to want to preserve/defend their genetic pool. A shared interest is miles away from that, though. And "interest" could be shared for very different reasons.

2. He/she has shown a flicker of intelligence in liking Morrissey; hopefully that extends to surgery knowledge as well. I mean, if he said his favourite artist was Justin Bieber, id be a bit terrified. And you don't have to be smart to be a doctor - believe me.

Well, it's not clear to me that liking Morrissey is a sign of intelligence. Nor that liking The Smiths is a sign of good surgery technique.

But indeed, it may very well comfort you - yet it doesn't mean anything for the skill level of your surgeon. I know a few surgeons who have rather weird tastes and who aren't very likable personas - but as surgeons they're absolutely daring and skillful.

Again, it could very well comfort some people knowing that Cameron likes The Smiths. The point is that this is irrelevant to his function/position and we can only hope that this "comfy feeling" doesn't give him their vote.
 
Oh no, now I'll have to jump off a bridge. And to think that just half an hour ago, there was so much to live for.
 
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