Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.
Hey, wanna know what I think about the possibility of war in Iraq? No? Well, me, neither. Any time I mention anything even remotely political on AICN, it gets radically misinterpreted. People seem to lump Harry and I into the same group, and that’s a mistake. In fact, calling me a liberal would be a mistake, just like calling me a conservative would be a mistake. I’ve always tried to tread lightly about my political and religious beliefs on these pages, only mentioning things when they directly came to bear on how I interpreted a piece of art I was discussing.
On the other hand, I am interested in hearing what people like David Cross, Bob Odenkirk, Sarah Silverman, Patton Oswalt, David Koechner (who stood in my apartment, slack-jawed in horror as he watched someone play GRAND THEFT AUTO: VICE CITY earlier tonight) and Scott Aukerman have to say about the war, and that’s why I hope I’m going to be at next Sunday’s COMICS FOR PEACE concert. No matter what my own feelings are, I’m sure there’s going to be a lot to laugh about and a fair amount to think about when you put a group of people like this together.
Here’s the details I was sent:
COMICS FOR PEACE
An anti-war comedy show to benefit Not in Our Name
Sunday, February 23rd, 2003
8:00 PM at The Roxy Theatre on Sunset
Featuring:
DAVID CROSS
BOB ODENKIRK
SARAH SILVERMAN
PATTON OSWALT
JERRY MINOR
DAVID KOECHNER
BRIAN POSEHN
and SPECIAL MUSICAL GUESTS!
plus MORE!
CLICK HERE for tickets & information!!
Comics for Peace was conceived by a group of creative friends to protest the impending U.S. war on Iraq. We set out to gather like-minded people to exercise our freedom of speech for a night of comedy and music. The response was overwhelming. The performers are thrilled with this chance to voice their opinions through artistic expression including stand-up, sketch, music and video. Comedy throughout history has been a powerful tool to get people thinking and talking about serious issues.
Featured performers: Bob Odenkirk & David Cross (Mr. Show), Sarah Silverman (The Larry Sanders Show, Crank Yankers), Patton Oswalt (King Of Queens), David Koechner (SNL, Curb Your Enthusiasm), Jerry Minor (SNL, Mr. Show), Brian Posehn (Just Shoot Me, Mr. Show) plus a special musical guest to be announced.
All proceeds from the event will benefit the Not in Our Name Los Angeles office. NION has been working to organize anti-war rallies across the country and educate the public on ways to get involved. The NION Statement of Conscience shares the politics and vision of the Not In Our Name Project and has been signed by an extraordinary list of public intellectuals and artists including (just to mention a few) Mos Def, John Edgar Wideman, Barbara Kingsolver, Ossie Davis, Noam Chomsky, Eve Ensler, Tony Kushner, Edward Said, Gloria Steinem, Alice Walker and
Howard Zinn. New signatories are being added everyday, and there are
plans to spread word of this statement throughout the US and the world - to make clear that many of the most beloved and respected artists and
intellectuals in this country condemn the policies of this government as not simply mistaken but immoral, illegitimate and illegal - and they will resist them.
Last week, Patton Oswalt was on Jimmy Kimmel’s show to talk about the experience of being booed offstage in Pittsburgh the previous weekend for doing some Bush material. That blows my mind. Have we really gotten to the point in this country where just discussing opposing viewpoints means that we have to name-call and become enraged? Is partisanship that violent now? These are some great comics, some of the best working right now, and I’m willing to bet it’s going to be a memorable evening. If I am lucky enough to attend, I’ll do a write-up for you guys afterwards, and I look forward to continuing this conversation then.
"Moriarty" out.
