Barbra Streisand is a great singer, but she lacks class.
Like most performers, Streisand thinks her fans care about her politics, so she took the opportunity to snipe at President Bush at a recent concert at Madison Square Garden, a concert where standard admission tickets went for $240, plus taxes and fees.
During her show, La Babs employed a bad Bush impersonator to sing a duet with her, all the while lambasting the real administration's policies.
When a concertgoer yelled out, asking if this was a fundraiser, Streisand lost her cool (a relative term since she's pretty icy to begin with) and yelled "Shut the f--- up!"
Her spokesperson claimed the "heckler" was a right-wing plant, because a similar fan protest occurred at a show in Philadelphia.
Yeah, must be, because God knows all Streisand fans are huge fans of her politics, and not her music. Must be, because no one in his right mind (no pun intended) would question his hero with the blond hair and microphone.
Just like "FOX News Sunday" host Chris Wallace must be a "monkey" for daring to ask former President Clinton why he didn't do more to stop Al Qaeda during his administration -- a legitimate question from any journalist, particularly following the ABC miniseries "The Path to 911," which asked the same questions -- this guy in Streisand's audience must be a "heckler" and a "right-wing plant."
"Shut the f--- up!"
Isn't that something Streisand and her ilk would like anybody who doesn't agree with them to do, especially if their detractors have a public platform?
Bill O'Reilly's "Culture Warrior" is on the bestseller list, an honor that's old hat to him by now, and nary a word from the "mainstream" press. No reviews. No stories.
"Shut the f--- up!," huh?
What will Streisand do when her fans demand their money back because they were offended by her classless remark? Will she hand out refunds? How about when offended fans cancel their orders for upcoming performances?
Here's an idea: She can go to the Hollywood damage control playbook, claim she's an alcoholic and enter rehab.
"It was the booze yelling at that right-wing plant," her spokesperson can say, following the lead of Mel (I Really Love the Jews) Gibson and Mark (It Wasn't the Boys, It Was the Booze) Foley.
Puh-leez! "Shut the f--- up!" You want an instant Obliviot, just add alcohol. Believe me, these guys were exactly what the booze brought out in them way before they took their first sip.
Now, will Hollywood and the far left back Babs on this? I think not. Even music critics with nary a political bone to pick and famous gossip columnists like Liz Smith were flabbergasted at Streisand's skit and subsequent outburst.
Even her biggest fans would rather she just sing.
And that, my friends, is what most people think. Just act. Just sing. Just dance. Save your politics for those fundraisers. Don't take advantage of your stage for your political beliefs. Don't offend the almighty dollar, because the love of music is non-partisan. The love of a great performer is non-partisan.
And legitimate questions that you don't like do not a "right wing plant" make.
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