# Ever boycott an artist because of thier behavior? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 1, 2009, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203 "2009-10-01T03:28:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2009, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/81 "2009-10-03T23:08:35Z")
> [@middleman](#): > > - Sean Penn/Tim Robbins- I hate that he legitimizes oppressive regimes such as Ahmadinejad or Chavez. But let’s face it. The man is talented. Mystic River. Milk. He’s too damn good. Same with smug buddy Tim Robbins. Mystic River was a chore for me, but damn were they good. I’m not going to give up Bull Durham because Tim Robbins sounds like a pompous idiot. What is oppressive about the Chavez “regime”? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2009, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/82 "2009-10-03T23:58:34Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > What is oppressive about the Chavez “regime”? 😕 ROFL! You mean besides attempting to silence all media that are critical of his administration, changing the constitution to allow him to remove judges at will, barring the Congress from meeting, ordering the military to put down protestors, rigging elections, and his support for narco-terrorists? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/83 "2009-10-04T00:02:04Z")
No, I think that’s enough to be going on with. ---
**Author:** ![Fair\_Rarity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fair_rarity/32/153_2.png) [@Fair\_Rarity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fair_Rarity)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/84 "2009-10-04T02:25:49Z")
I think no one mentioned Michael Richards. I didn’t watch Seinfeld reruns for a long time. Like a poster on page 1 said, I’m bad at this. I forget who I’m avoiding and why. I know I have a couple of out there ones, but I don’t think of them until I come across them. I try to not pay for Scientologists’ work, but I don’t avoid it altogether. I refuse to watch Woody Allen and I have actively avoided Polanski before these last few weeks. I’ll watch old things of Mel Gibson’s, but I won’t pay to see him again. I will never, ever listen to Chris Brown if I can help it. I’ll avoid shows or even entire networks if they do something I find offensive (I usually only get going about bigotry, violence, and extreme perversion.) I can separate art from artist, but it really depends on what they did, how far they went, and how much it pisses me off. To put an example nicely, I think I read that Anne Rice is now a little more controversial in her personal beliefs than before. So I might not buy her new books, but I might still read her old ones that I already own or get them from a library. I don’t know why, but I am a little more forgiving of writers than other performers. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/85 "2009-10-04T05:14:03Z")
> [@middleman](#): > > - Barbra Streisand- I have NEVER seen a Streisand film in my life. Her personality is so abrasive that she is my only true boycott. It has nothing to do with ideology or scandal. She’s just self a self-absorbed harpie that I cannot stand to support her. Given that it’s a movie by Peter Bogdanovich that stars both Barbra Streisand AND Ryan O’Neal, ferchrissake, it’s surprising to all right-thinking, or sane, people that IT’S REALLY FUNNY! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/86 "2009-10-04T05:18:27Z")
I am definitely tempted to boycott Whoopi Goldberg for her, ‘It wasn’t rape rape.’ comment. God she’s an idiot, then again I wouldn’t have to change anything because she only puts out crap anyway. Why does this woman have a career at all? She’s not funny, she’s a terrible actress and she has nothing of value to add to any discussion. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/87 "2009-10-04T05:35:45Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > I am definitely tempted to boycott Whoopi Goldberg for her, ‘It wasn’t rape rape.’ comment. God she’s an idiot, then again I wouldn’t have to change anything because she only puts out crap anyway. Why does this woman have a career at all? She’s not funny, she’s a terrible actress and she has nothing of value to add to any discussion. I remember Lewis Black talking about Whoopi because she’d written a book or something and he ended with, “Oh, Whoopi - is there anything you _can_ do?” ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/88 "2009-10-04T05:43:55Z")
> [@woodstockbirdybird](#): > > I remember Lewis Black talking about Whoopi because she’d written a book or something and he ended with, “Oh, Whoopi - is there anything you _can_ do?” I believe a comedian once described Whoopi’s success as an example of an entire nation getting together and deciding not to hurt someone’s feelings… Think about it: Whoopi has gone from making movies with Spielberg and being nominated for Oscars…to being one of four or five clucking hens on a morning talk show. That’s gotta hurt. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/89 "2009-10-04T05:46:50Z")
I kind of enjoyed _Sister Act_. ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/90 "2009-10-04T06:14:17Z")
And when I say Whoopi was nominated for Oscars, I of course meant that she had won one for Ghost! She was nominated for The Color Purple. ---
**Author:** ![Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e68b1a/32.png) [@Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abby_Emma_Sasha)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/91 "2009-10-04T07:27:42Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > I kind of enjoyed _Sister Act_. Me too! Especially Kathy Najimy and Wendy Makenna. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/92 "2009-10-04T08:01:55Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > I believe a comedian once described Whoopi’s success as an example of an entire nation getting together and deciding not to hurt someone’s feelings… > > Think about it: Whoopi has gone from making movies with Spielberg and being nominated for Oscars…to being one of four or five clucking hens on a morning talk show. That’s gotta hurt. She’s black AND jewish, so she has lots of righteous guilt and she’s not afraid to use it. The woman is a total moron. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/93 "2009-10-04T14:27:13Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > I kind of enjoyed _Sister Act_. And\* Corrina, Corrina\*… _The Color Purple_… she’s done good work. I can’t think of anyone I boycotted because of their behavior. I don’t tend to think of people as defined by their individual acts, however horrific. I could get behind a boycott if the dollars were specifically going to fund or support an organization I abhorred. For example, if the proceeds to some big blockbuster movie were going to _Focus on the Family_, I’d boycott in a heartbeat. ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2009, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203/94 "2009-10-04T15:48:34Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > :eek: > > a-HA!! _THAT_ explains the constant\* anti-psychological drugs stoopidity in Simpsons. Not really. Cartwright isn’t involved in the show’s writing, the show’s producers were (IIRC) none too pleased with her robo-calls, and the [Joy of Sect](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Joy_of_Sect) episode was, in part, a dig at Scientology. The anti-med instances you reference can more probably be explained by the fact that pointing out foibles is funnier than pointing out virtues. I can sort of see boycotting an artist’s work because of specific bad actions or speech, but disowning them merely for being affiliated with a group (especially a \*religious \*group) that you find distasteful strikes me as troubling. Historically speaking, it doesn’t exactly put you in good company, you know? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-boycott-an-artist-because-of-thier-behavior/512203.md?page=4)