Is Green Day receiving more criticism now for their views on Trump than when they released American Idiot?

[RougeRogue]

1 hour ago, kaylubd said:

I remember criticism during the AI period, particularly them being called anti-American.

Yeah cause wasn't that around the same time that the Dixie Chicks were getting in trouble for the same thing? I guess that was the insult back then: "anti-American."

1 hour ago, kaylubd said:

Still, I can understand why people want them to shut up about for a little. And I agree, sometimes you just want the music without the politics. 

Right, but I honestly think people can still have that with Green Day. They don't and have never made specific call-outs within the songs themselves. Now compare that to a band like Anti-Flag who make very very very specific call outs, even in the song titles, and I just don't understand how we're complaining.

The difference is in how involved in the band activity someone is. GDCers wanting to lighten the politics makes sense I guess because we're the ones looking at every interview, every performance. Less invested listeners have the luxury of not giving a damn and just listening to a song. But, on that point, if GDCers are having issues with the amount of politics, then you have to understand how to filter your own experience with the band. If Billie's been saying something in interviews that you don't like for a while, then ok, maybe avoid interviews? There's no point in trying to get someone you don't know and have no access to to change their behavior- control your own experience here.

[The Grohl]

2 minutes ago, RougeRogue said:

Yeah cause wasn't that around the same time that the Dixie Chicks were getting in trouble for the same thing? I guess that was the insult back then: "anti-American."

Right, but I honestly think people can still have that with Green Day. They don't and have never made specific call-outs within the songs themselves. Now compare that to a band like Anti-Flag who make very very very specific call outs, even in the song titles, and I just don't understand how we're complaining.

The difference is in how involved in the band activity someone is. GDCers wanting to lighten the politics makes sense I guess because we're the ones looking at every interview, every performance. Less invested listeners have the luxury of not giving a damn and just listening to a song. But, on that point, if GDCers are having issues with the amount of politics, then you have to understand how to filter your own experience with the band. If Billie's been saying something in interviews that you don't like for a while, then ok, maybe avoid interviews? There's no point in trying to get someone you don't know and have no access to to change their behavior- control your own experience here.

Yup, I think it was around the same time just because they said they didn't agree with Bush.

And I see what you're saying. Green Day is not all about politics, as you mentioned like Anti-Flag. And I think you bring up a good point. We get notice whenever there's a new interview, new clip etc. and since reporters can't/won't leave the Trump thing alone, we get another soundbite about it. And it can be annoying for fans who are tired of it. I think trying to limit yourself is a great idea, it's what I do if I'm trying of hearing what's going on in the news. I'm not saying Green Day should shut up with their views by any means, just that I understand why some feel that way. But the media is to blame too. Ever since the AMAs, they keep getting hit with questions about Trump even though they've made it pretty clear how they feel. And I guess they would feel it's stupid to say I'm not answering that because they feel very strongly about what's going on. 

[tomdsjames]

From someone who was a massive fan during the AI era, I think they're definitely getting more hate from Trump supporters than they did from Bush supporters.

Don't get me wrong, there was still plenty of hate aimed at them during that era, but it was more people criticising the change in style and calling them 'sellouts' for not making another Dookie.  You didn't have people saying they're not Green Day fans anymore because they're bashing Bush, whereas there seem to be a lot of Trump supporters who have fallen out with the band for bashing Trump. 

I don't think it's anything to do with social media, I still practically lived on social media during the AI era (admittedly it was MySpace and MSN rather than Facebook and Twitter 😂).  As others have already mentioned, I think it's more a case of the fact there wasn't really anyone else in the spotlight speaking against Bush, whereas there are plenty of celebrities already speaking against Trump  in the media, so his supporters feel more of a need to defend themselves maybe?

Also, as a Brit I can't really comment on this but just my opinion, it wasn't a particularly brilliant selection of candidates so I think a minority of the people bashing Green Day for being anti-Trump maybe aren't particularly happy about the choice they had to make so are trying to justify to themselves as much as anything else.

But anyway, to answer your question - yes, there is definitely more hate from Trump supporters than there was from Bush supporters.

[stories and songs]

I think it's important to note that Billie said this: "I actually feel bad for [Trump supporters], because they’re poor, working-class people who can’t get a leg up. They’re pissed off and he’s preyed on their anger. He just said, ‘You have no options, and I’m going to take care of it myself.’ I mean, that’s f–king Hitler, man!"

That's honestly, in my view, a very astute observation/comparison. But news sites that picked it up gave it this headline: "Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong: Trump is Hitler."

Facebook and Twitter culture is very much about just reading headlines and snippets, and not delving deeper to see what the story is actually about. Would that headline piss a lot of people off, maybe drive some away from the band? Of course it would. But it's not giving credit to a much more in-depth explanation.
 

[T.C]

20 hours ago, kaylubd said:

 

And, really, he's not a threat for minorities? Give me a break. I really don't want to get into this again, but that's not true. I get we've made some progress over the years, but it feels like he wants to take that away. I'm supposed to feel safe when this man was recorded saying grab them by the pussy they like that? It shows other people, hey that's okay! And it's fucking bullshit. And a lot of Trump supporters have shown how they really feel about non-whites, foreigners, LBGTQ people, etc. And yeah, it's scary. I hate having to worry about my LBG especially trans friends because they are at risk to getting hurt and in trans peoples cause, killed just for being who they are. And are we forgetting Mike Pence who is pretty much anti-LGBTQ? It's a shame. People have the right to be angry, because, again, this isn't about Hilary didn't win. It's about a bigot being in office. And she was a crook. Okay, they all are! But before this, Trump pretty much proved his bigotry. 

Based on the countless assault videos ive seen, i think being a Trump supporter is less safe now than anyone else. But if any of your minority friends do get attacked, i hope the law is on their side.

Quote

Getting back to Green Day, I'm happy they're taking a stand and it would seem wrong if they didn't, especially since their roots are in punk rock. I think others bring up an interesting point about those who don't agree with the band or who supported Trump...for whatever reason...feel marginalized. Interesting viewpoint, but I'm sorry, if anyone I knew supported Trump, even if they didn't agree with all his bigotry, it still changes how I see them. Because it's like saying oh I know he said this about women and stuff, but it's not that bad right? And I don't agree with it. If that's the case, why did you go with someone who so openly thinks behavior like that is okay? Not to mention the countless other disgusting things he said about other groups. Like others said earlier, Bush was dumb. Trump is scary. 

So by voting Clinton, you condoned this?
 

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2000/jul/18/uselections2000.usa

 

No? So it's wrong to place that assumption onto Trump supporters.

 

 

[petros]

Well he also said that all trump supporters are fascists so no wonder he gets hate. And not only from trump supporters I think that's what you people don't get. I couldn't care less about trump I understand why green day are against him but the classless way they are attacking him is turning me off. 

[Christian's Inferno!]

6 minutes ago, petros said:

Well he also said that all trump supporters are fascists so no wonder he gets hate.

When did he say all his supporters are fascists? On most of his interviews, he's seemed sympathetic towards them more than anything.

[petros]

1 hour ago, MysticManiac said:

When did he say all his supporters are fascists? On most of his interviews, he's seemed sympathetic towards them more than anything.

http://www.greendaycommunity.org/topic/100271-billie-joe-interview-for-le-monde/

How do you see the future?

The people who voted for Donald Trump are all guilty or fascists. It is something deplorable. As American, I don't want my family, my group or myself to be represented by him. I'm afraid a cultural civil war is starting in my country.

[stories and songs]

^ That was a translated article, so not really an appropriate example. People who voted for him are guilty of allowing his fascist ideas to have a platform, but they're not all fascists per se, and many voted for him for completely different reasons. Given that Billie has expressed the nuances in why people would've voted for him before, I don't see why a rough translation should be taken at exactly face value. 

[petros]

4 minutes ago, stories and songs said:

^ That was a translated article, so not really an appropriate example. People who voted for him are guilty of allowing his fascist ideas to have a platform, but they're not all fascists per se, and many voted for him for completely different reasons. Given that Billie has expressed the nuances in why people would've voted for him before, I don't see why a rough translation should be taken at exactly face value. 

Les gens qui ont voté pour Donald Trump sont tous coupables ou fascistes

Use google translate or let's ask a French member here to translate it for us.

[LPbilliejr]

Dookielukie hit the nail on the head, This era of GD is bringing us a very cool album but the band's political antics are very very odd this time around. I don't always agree with GD's views or whatnot, but I had never heard them (realistically only BJA) outright throw groups of people with differing views into this basket, and directly go on rants about one guy every concert. 

[T.C]

15 minutes ago, LPbilliejr said:

Dookielukie hit the nail on the head, This era of GD is bringing us a very cool album but the band's political antics are very very odd this time around. I don't always agree with GD's views or whatnot, but I had never heard them (realistically only BJA) outright throw groups of people with differing views into this basket, and directly go on rants about one guy every concert. 

Is he literally talking about him every concert? God 

[stories and songs]

36 minutes ago, petros said:

Les gens qui ont voté pour Donald Trump sont tous coupables ou fascistes

Use google translate or let's ask a French member here to translate it for us.

Someone already translated it for us. I understand that's how it translated, but I'm just noting that a lot of things get lost in translation. That entire interview doesn't align with how he usually speaks. That's all. Maybe he called everybody who voted for Trump fascists, and I agree that's wrong. But based on every single English interview he has done, that's not how he feels. 

[T.C]

52 minutes ago, petros said:

http://www.greendaycommunity.org/topic/100271-billie-joe-interview-for-le-monde/

How do you see the future?

The people who voted for Donald Trump are all guilty or fascists. It is something deplorable. As American, I don't want my family, my group or myself to be represented by him. I'm afraid a cultural civil war is starting in my country.

That is disgusting and repulsive....But to be fair he takes a different stance here

‘[They] want a change, and they’re maybe somehow desensitised by all the racist rhetoric. I actually don’t think a lot of them are racist people…hopefully something drastic will happen in the future where [Trump] is not in Office anymore,’ he added.

Read more: http://metro.co.uk/2016/11/12/i-fking-hate-him-green-days-billie-joe-armstrong-launches-another-scathing-attack-on-donald-trump-6253557/#ixzz4WgyIv292

[Hermione]

40 minutes ago, petros said:

Les gens qui ont voté pour Donald Trump sont tous coupables ou fascistes

Use google translate or let's ask a French member here to translate it for us.

I know we've discussed this before but "guilty or fascists" doesn't mean "all fascists".  People who voted for him are guilty of bringing him to power, a simple fact. While those who share Trump's fascist views can be called fascist. If he wanted to say they were all fascists he would have said that, he specifically chose to clarify that some are only guilty of bringing him to power.

28 minutes ago, LPbilliejr said:

Dookielukie hit the nail on the head, This era of GD is bringing us a very cool album but the band's political antics are very very odd this time around. I don't always agree with GD's views or whatnot, but I had never heard them (realistically only BJA) outright throw groups of people with differing views into this basket, and directly go on rants about one guy every concert. 

He went on rants about Bush at concerts. And if by "people with differing views" you mean people who share the bigoted views spouted by Trump then Billie criticising them is hardly new or surprising. If you mean all people who voted for Trump then I don't believe he's done that, he's recognised that many people voted for him for reasons other than bigotry.

[stories and songs]

1 minute ago, Hermione said:

And if by "people with differing views" you mean people who share the bigoted views spouted by Trump then Billie criticising them is hardly new or surprising.

I've learned that I don't need to respect "differing views" if someone is hateful, or you know, just an asshole. 

[The Grohl]

3 hours ago, T.C said:

Based on the countless assault videos ive seen, i think being a Trump supporter is less safe now than anyone else. But if any of your minority friends do get attacked, i hope the law is on their side.

So by voting Clinton, you condoned this?
 

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2000/jul/18/uselections2000.usa

 

No? So it's wrong to place that assumption onto Trump supporters.

 

 

As I said none of them are angels. All the candidates are crooked, but to me, Hillary was the better of two evils at least to keep a known and proven bigot out of office. And sorry, no, being a Trump supporter is not less safe than being trans, gay, latino, black, outspoken, etc. I understand they are being attacked and I don't think violence against them is the answer, but everyone doesn't see it that way. 

And I'm not assuming all Trump supporters are racist, whatever. I said, in my eyes, it changes how I see them. To me, it seems like they're saying this behavior is okay and that's just not right, especially as someone who is a minority and a part of the LGBTQ community. We can agree to disagree there. 

[T.C]

17 minutes ago, kaylubd said:

As I said none of them are angels. All the candidates are crooked, but to me, Hillary was the better of two evils at least to keep a known and proven bigot out of office. And sorry, no, being a Trump supporter is not less safe than being trans, gay, latino, black, outspoken, etc. I understand they are being attacked and I don't think violence against them is the answer, but everyone doesn't see it that way. 

And I'm not assuming all Trump supporters are racist, whatever. I said, in my eyes, it changes how I see them. To me, it seems like they're saying this behavior is okay and that's just not right, especially as someone who is a minority and a part of the LGBTQ community. We can agree to disagree there. 

And I'm saying that I see where you're coming from, and your fears are understandable. But like I said you obviously do not condone those vile actions by Clinton that I just posted above right? The candidates do not represent the voter entirely 100%. You voting Clinton shouldn't mean that you believe those actions of hers are acceptable, and the same should apply to a Trump supporter. And let's be clear, Hillary is a 'known and proven' bigot too, which comes from what I posted above.  It needs to be noted that Trump won states that Obama previously won. So the notion that all his voters condone him 100% is far fetched.

And again i am terribly sorry if you are feeling fearful right now. I wish you the best of luck. 

[The Grohl]

11 minutes ago, T.C said:

And I'm saying that I see where you're coming from, and your fears are understandable. But like I said you obviously do not condone those vile actions by Clinton that I just posted above right? The candidates do not represent the voter entirely 100%. You voting Clinton shouldn't mean that you believe those actions of hers are acceptable, and the same should apply to a Trump supporter. It needs to be noted that he won states that Obama previously won. So the notion that all his voters condone him 100% is far fetched.

And again i am terribly sorry if you are feeling fearful right now. I wish you the best of luck. 

Fair enough. I get what you're saying. And yeah, I understand not all Trump supporters support the nonsense he spouts. It's just hard to see the other reasons they would vote for him and not think of that bigotry bullshit. Right now everyone is still fearful and angry and who knows if it's going to cool down between Trump supporters who aren't bigots and non-Trump supporters. I would like to think that there are ones out there who don't support his stupid rhetoric, but it's hard not to have that in the back of your mind. And I'm not saying that's right of me at all, but it's something I just can't help. And thank you for the well wishes. I hope you stay safe too.

[LPbilliejr]

1 hour ago, Hermione said:

I know we've discussed this before but "guilty or fascists" doesn't mean "all fascists".  People who voted for him are guilty of bringing him to power, a simple fact. While those who share Trump's fascist views can be called fascist. If he wanted to say they were all fascists he would have said that, he specifically chose to clarify that some are only guilty of bringing him to power.

He went on rants about Bush at concerts. And if by "people with differing views" you mean people who share the bigoted views spouted by Trump then Billie criticising them is hardly new or surprising. If you mean all people who voted for Trump then I don't believe he's done that, he's recognised that many people voted for him for reasons other than bigotry.

The fact you think Trump is a fascist and use no evidence will be the reason I don't play into your ill thought out reply.

if, on the other hand you do want to see some fascism going on, look at the so called protests turning into riots because someone who has dissenting viewpoints was elected. Oh the irony showcased by these extremists (and if you can't figure it out, I'm referring to the people assaulting Trump supporters and the others who are vandalizing property)

[Billie Joes Eyelids]

49 minutes ago, LPbilliejr said:

The fact you think Trump is a fascist and use no evidence will be the reason I don't play into your ill thought out reply.

if, on the other hand you do want to see some fascism going on, look at the so called protests turning into riots because someone who has dissenting viewpoints was elected. Oh the irony showcased by these extremists (and if you can't figure it out, I'm referring to the people assaulting Trump supporters and the others who are vandalizing property)

Just how many protests turned into riots? There were literally millions of people in peaceful protest on the day of the marches. I saw no video of violence on that day. There was video of some idiot anarchists being violent the day before, but how does that reflect on the peaceful protestors? You're not being fair at all. You're probably taking about a percentage that is so minuscule in the scheme of things. So you're saying that people peacefully marching are whining? Mind you, marching to remind a serial adulterer who thinks its ok to grab their pussies that they need to be respected and heard? Oh not to mention that he wants to defund Planned Parenthood, which is the only access to preventive gynecological care for many low-income women. That's not whining. That's fucking our right.

[stories and songs]

@LPbilliejr No one should need to write an essay about why they feel a certain way about Trump in a thread about Green Day's political views and how it impacts their audience. I could give you plenty of reasons why I feel the same way @Hermione does, but I don't think this is the place for that. 

Anyway, while they may be receiving more criticism for their stance on Trump, what I appreciate most about them is that they don't give a flying fuck if it loses them fans or not. If their fans have a problem with them promoting the no sexism/no racism/no homophobia ideals and trying to call out someone who encourages some of the ugliest parts of humanity, good for them. They're standing up for what they think is right, as any Bay Area punk band would.

[Dakke]

Yes, because social media. The internet pre-Facebook and Twitter (2006 onward) was vastly less used as the primary new medium for many people. The stream of viral reactions has become an unrelenting inundation. 

[Cunt]

1 hour ago, neverdone2000 said:

Just how many protests turned into riots? There were literally millions of people in peaceful protest on the day of the marches. I saw no video of violence on that day. There was video of some idiot anarchists being violent the day before, but how does that reflect on the peaceful protestors? You're not being fair at all. You're probably taking about a percentage that is so minuscule in the scheme of things. So you're saying that people peacefully marching are whining? Mind you, marching to remind a serial adulterer who thinks its ok to grab their pussies that they need to be respected and heard? Oh not to mention that he wants to defund Planned Parenthood, which is the only access to preventive gynecological care for many low-income women. That's not whining. That's fucking our right.

You don't get out of the house much do you? I can count several times that protests have become riots of the past few months or even years. Never was it people protesting a "progressive" cause it was always against "conservative" causes. Of course we have to turn to the fact that killing babies is ok. Who cares right? It's just about what's more convenient for them. FUN FACT! Did you know that Around hair of the women that have already had an abortion have another? So it just has to do with the fact that people are idiots and hell I don't know.....maybe use a condom? Take a fucking day after pill for god sakes.  What you're doing right now is whining. No it's not a right it's actually murder. I'm afraid the "clump of cells" feels its spinal cord being snapped and in fact twitches when it happens. 

[Hero_Of_The_Hour]

I'm actually reading this thread just so I can decide who I officially hate on here...