Peter Katsis statement: "All this over a pin?" - Morrissey Official FB (24 May, 2019)

"All this over a pin?

Everyone always wants to jump to conclusions.

Morrissey has never been affiliated with any political party in the past. Morrissey has never voted in his life, and is not a member of any political party.

Morrissey opposes racism, hatred and press censorship. Morrissey believes in free speech and free expression and opposes totalitarian regimes. Morrissey has only ever met two political figures - Ken Livingstone and Tony Blair.

Morrissey currently wears lapel pins of James Baldwin, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Aretha Franklin, Oscar Wilde.

Morrissey is quite used to smear campaigns from the UK press. It is nothing new for us.

Thanks to the fans the CS record is currently # 2 at HMV today. And thanks to Merseyrail for all the extra press today!

A great holiday weekend to all. - PK."

Regards,
FWD.

---

Related item:

• Morrissey "California Son" posters removed from Liverpool train stations - May 23, 2019

 

[AztecCamera]

I reckon thanks Pete. You have a nice Memorial Day weekend too m8 in nn nn nn n nn nnn n n n it. The California Son is not only proud of his home state, but he is a true Patriot. I reckon now I know what Pete and The California Son were talking about when they were surfing Redondo last week in nn nnn n nn nn n din't n n n chipper curry c*** tit wacker n nnn nn it.

 

[Anonymous]

I don't think that Ms Waters is any different from the current president of the US.

Trump is your argument that Waters is not a racist? Own goal, methinks?

 

[mywar]

Your quote "But hey man, it's just a pin. I guess a swastika is just an ancient Buddhist symbol as well right. I'll always have a place for Moz in my heart, but he's either completely lost the plot, or is trying too hard to stay relevant despite his career being on a serious downward spiral, both in terms of quality and public interest." You very much implied they were by comparing the For Britain pin tothe Nazi swatstika. So if that's what you believe i would like you to make your case

It's not always easy to tell if anti-Islam groups are opponents of Islam as a religion or against muslims based on ethnicity – neither for the casual observer or these groups' actual supporters, it seems. AMW wants to stop immigration from muslim majority countries. She wants to deport ones that are already there (and again, the only useful way of figuring out who the "muslims" are, would be based on nationality, I would think). She hints at white genocide conspiracy theory type thinking, though always being careful to use words like "western" instead of "white" – which is classic extreme right dogwhistle, deliberate or not, and terms like "western culture" don't always make a lot of sense unless you're really talking about race. So are FB racist? Clearly not overtly, but then again hardly any modern white nationalist/fascist organisations are. They know that would be political suicide. So they find a way of speaking to their base without really saying anything "bad" or overtly racist. I honestly don't know. I'd be willing to give them the benefit of the doubt, and assume they just genuinely oppose Islam, which is a legitimate point of view. But either way they're way too far to the right for my tastes. Morrissey supporting them doesn't fit in very well with my perceived image of him, but that's nobody's problem but mine, and life certainly goes on.

 

[E Scott]

I'm sick of this again and again Morrissey misunderstood and victim of the press bollocks.

 

[Nikita]

"Just a pin" representing a group that Nigel Farage thinks are a bit too racist.

Since when Farage’s opinion matters?

 

[Anonymous]

So, Morrissey said ... "With voice extended to breaking point, I call for the prosperity of free speech; the eradication of totalitarian control; I call for diversity of opinion; I call for the total abolition of the abattoir; I call for peace, above all; I call for civil society."

While I have issues with 4 of the statements (in essence wordspeak) it is "I call for civil society" that gives greater cause for concern at this time.

Those within this forum who believe themselves to be his most adoring fans have been anything like civil. I understand he has no control over what they say in his name but these wholly uncivil statements have been made in direct association of his support of For Britain.

Since his endorsement of For Britain his supporters have thus far plumbed the depths in order to provide justification for .....

Racism
Islamaphobia
White supremacy
Holocaust denial
Mysnoginy
Murder
Paedophilia

The language used by these 'fans' has been full of hate and provocative.

Rather than a glib statement such as the one above, how about a statement that expressly asks his fans not to engage in racist rhetoric and make a direct call for peace amongst his fan base?

How about some detail added to the above statement outlining what he believes e.g. free speech to be and what he considers totalitarian control to be.

I normal circumstances I would argue that Morrissey is not responsible for the words, actions and/or deeds of his fans. However, these are not normal times. His endorsement of For Britain has allowed a radicalised alt-right group within this forum to believe they have a level of superiority over others and that they are making these statements in Morrissey's name whether he likes it or not.

I'd like him to say he doesn't support the views of this group. Naive of me? Absolutely. However, it would be civil of him.

 

[Anonymous]

And who else defends himself with the old “free speech” badge? Tommy Robinson, who Moz has sympathies with. It misses the whole point. Nobody is denying anyone their freedom of expression. Quite the opposite, people are using that freedom all the time in opposing political opinions and affiliations. If you stand up and make political statements, if you ask people to support a political party with their vote, then you must be accountable, if only by way of criticism.

Morrissey is allowed his opinions. I’ve not heard anyone deny this right. He’s also allowed to be criticised, and rightly so I say. And that is the point, “I say”. His camp don’t like that aspect of Free Speech. Isn’t that strange?

Morrissey would do himself a service by switching his eye away from the “print media”. His fans, myself included, didn’t decide not to buy tickets to last summers UK tour because of the print media. We did so because he used his right of expression on his own website, and asked us to vote for a racist, anti Islam political party. We voted with our feet and walked away.

 

[Anonymous]

I guess he should have asked your opinion first. You nonentity dick head. If only we all could have been as successful as you no doubt are. I think you should be retired too, in fact day by day, ppl hate you more and more - even your family. (from same source as your (facts). Twat.

"Just a pin" representing a group that Nigel Farage thinks are a bit too racist. Same old story from the right – they're allowed to use their freedom of speech as much as they like, but if anyone reacts, they're either trying to stifle free speech or being hysterical. But hey man, it's just a pin. I guess a swastika is just an ancient Buddhist symbol as well right. I'll always have a place for Moz in my heart, but he's either completely lost the plot, or is trying too hard to stay relevant despite his career being on a serious downward spiral, both in terms of quality and public interest. He needs to just retire, I don't see him putting out another quality record past 60 (though I'd love to be surprised), and the amount of people willing to pay to see him live are dwindling daily.

 

[ordinaryboy86]

That guy “Brian “ is an idiot. If anyone read the article about “ subspecies” part, Moz was saying that he felt the Chinese treated “ANIMALS AS A SUBSPECIES” not the people- for gods sake get it right. And yes, Hitlers agenda was definitely way to the left, far left. The media and public/ ex fans can be just dumb.

“Absolutely horrific. You can’t help but feel that the Chinese are a subspecies.” That was the exact quote.

 

[mywar]

I guess he should have asked your opinion first. You nonentity dick head. If only we all could have been as successful as you no doubt are. I think you should be retired too, in fact day by day, ppl hate you more and more - even your family. (from same source as your (facts). Twat.

Not sure what I did to you, but whatever it was, I’m sorry.

 

[Pablo Honey]

Trump is your argument that Waters is not a racist? Own goal, methinks?

How is he a racist? By looking after his country and its people first? If you think that his deportation stats are making him a racist what does it make Obama? He'd deported more migrants than any other president in the US history.

 

[Nikita]

And who else defends himself with the old “free speech” badge? Tommy Robinson, who Moz has sympathies with. It misses the whole point. Nobody is denying anyone their freedom of expression. Quite the opposite, people are using that freedom all the time in opposing political opinions and affiliations. If you stand up and make political statements, if you ask people to support a political party with their vote, then you must be accountable, if only by way of criticism.

Morrissey is allowed his opinions. I’ve not heard anyone deny this right. He’s also allowed to be criticised, and rightly so I say. And that is the point, “I say”. His camp don’t like that aspect of Free Speech. Isn’t that strange?

Morrissey would do himself a service by switching his eye away from the “print media”. His fans, myself included, didn’t decide not to buy tickets to last summers UK tour because of the print media. We did so because he used his right of expression on his own website, and asked us to vote for a racist, anti Islam political party. We voted with our feet and walked away.

Nobody thinks freedom of speech means no right to criticize, but if if you believe that a poster from an artist should be removed because of what he said, well, it is not criticizing but more likely a way to forbid to express an opinion in the future.

 

[The Truth]

Justifying bigotry. Nice.

I won't go over the old links, but if he did his homework, he'd be horrified he even began to type that paragraph.

And to all those saying Morrissey had softened and mollified following that statement yesterday - how daft do you look now?

And smear campaigns? Last I heard that said it was Nigel Farage after the press had uncovered his funding source. It's either true or it isn't. Smear means nothing.

Shameful attempt at justifying hate and bigotry.

When you say "it's either true or it isn't," what are you talking about?

 

[Anonymous]

Justifying bigotry. Nice.

I won't go over the old links, but if he did his homework, he'd be horrified he even began to type that paragraph.

And to all those saying Morrissey had softened and mollified following that statement yesterday - how daft do you look now?

And smear campaigns? Last I heard that said it was Nigel Farage after the press had uncovered his funding source. It's either true or it isn't. Smear means nothing.

Shameful attempt at justifying hate and bigotry.

The diary of Peter Finan
Wake up 5am
First thing to do is to check Facebook page of artist I "hate"
See statement
Type response immediately

Jesus mate , you really need to get a life.
We get you hate him ; nothing he says now will change your view. Just walk away and spend some time with your family. I know you feel guilty that you ignored when you were a full on fan boy , but pushing the hate on Moz continually makes you look like a possessed jilted ex lover

 

[mywar]

Nobody thinks freedom of speech means no right to criticize, but if if you believe that a poster from an artist should be removed because of what he said, well, it is not criticizing but more likely a way to forbid to express an opinion in the future.

Choosing not to advertise for someone is also well within the realms of free speech. Freedom of speech != a guaranteed platform.

 

[Anonymous]

Skinny - how would you like it if you were removed from this website because your views are offensive to Moz fans? I'm guessing you would be pretty pissed off. And rightly so. It's good to have people like you around. Disagreement and people having different opinions is what makes the world go round. We live on the brink of censorship. Are Merseyrail now going to start vetting the political opinions of pop stars before they decide whether they can advertise their latest album?

 

[ordinaryboy86]

Nobody thinks freedom of speech means no right to criticize, but if if you believe that a poster from an artist should be removed because of what he said, well, it is not criticizing but more likely a way to forbid to express an opinion in the future.

It’s not about what he said, it’s about what he now represents and is representing. He’s the face of fascism, he’s the face of campaigns that are fundamentally racist.

 

[Anonymous]

It’s not about what he said, it’s about what he now represents and is representing. He’s the face of fascism, he’s the face of campaigns that are fundamentally racist.

In your head only. You think he's the face of fascism. I don't. I disagree with your opinion. Are you now the arbiter of what is 'true'? Are you going to ban people based on your opinion? That's the essence of fascism isn't it?

 

[The Truth]

You missed the point. I was shinning light on the other posters hypocrisy on implying Nationalists commit violence and hate in broad strokes while decrying criticism of Islam as racism. That being said, Islam is far more guilty of promoting that behavior than the concept of Nationalism

You either need to slow down and read these things before hitting "post reply" or just stick to calling people "gamma."
You're trying to write something here that is a bit complicated in structure and I respect the effort but I find your meaning very unclear. It might help you to work on the second sentence because the light you're "shinning" is a bit faint. Also, you don't need to capitalize "Nationalists" unless you're talking about a specific group of them.
Ironically this reminds me of teaching ESL but I'd like to help you so the sentence, "I was shinning light on the other posters hypocrisy on implying Nationalists commit violence and hate in broad strokes while decrying criticism of Islam as racism," might better be written as "I was shining light on the other poster's hypocrisy.They implied that nationalists commit violence and hate...
Where does the "in broad strokes" part fit in here? Are they implying this in broad strokes or are they implying the nationalists hate in broad strokes? Is the "broad strokes" part adding to your point or like "That being said" is it just added on because you think it sounds intelligent?
That sentence is really a mess the more I look at it. You're saying the person is a hypocrite. This seems to be based on their implication that nationalists commit violence, while at the same time decrying criticism of Islam as racist.
So they believe nationalists commit violence.
They believe criticism of Islam is racist.
I'm not sure how these two beliefs would be hypocritical.
You seem to realize this yourself when you add that "Islam is more guilty of promoting" where you seem to want to contrast Islam with nationalism as to which is more guilty of promoting "that behavior" which you don't really specify. But instead you sabotage yourself again with unnecessary words that you think sound intelligent when you say "the concept of nationalism," instead of just "nationalism." The "concept of nationalism" is "nationalism."
See you really want to say that Islam is responsible for more violence than nationalism but you can't bring yourself to say that nationalism is responsible for violence.
And that, ironically, is hypocrisy, on your part.
You're trying to dress up your views so they will appear more acceptable in the context of this forum, but in other contexts, in other forums, where "nationalism" is "Nationalism" you'd be able to speak more freely and probably more clearly.

 

[Anonymous]

It’s not about what he said, it’s about what he now represents and is representing. He’s the face of fascism, he’s the face of campaigns that are fundamentally racist.

What absolute garbage...your a right nasty piece of work!