# Joan Baez banned at Walter Reed hospital **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 2, 2007, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491 "2007-05-02T16:54:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Mama\_Tiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Mama\_Tiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Tiger)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/121 "2007-05-03T06:01:05Z")
Walter Reed administration doesn’t get to pick who comes to entertain the troops. That’s done across the river in that big five-sided building. Walter Reed administration just gets to deal with all the arrangements for whoever they are told will be coming and when. I’m not Walter Reed administration, but I’m closely enough related to it to be able to assure you that that’s the way it works. I have no details about this specific case, however. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/122 "2007-05-03T06:27:59Z")
I thought it was the MWR, not the DoD proper, who arranged entertainment? ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/123 "2007-05-03T06:31:21Z")
[QUOTE=asterion] I have no idea what this means. The covers still suck. [/QUOTE] Baez was established before Dylan, but they toured together, and they were lovers, back in '64 or so. Baez was noted for doing Dylan songs, many of which never made it to an album. Take a listen to Bootleg 5, the '64 Carnegie Hall Concert. If the Byrds got back together, would you be surprised at them doing Dylan covers also? ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 9:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/124 "2007-05-03T09:16:52Z")
[QUOTE=Contrapuntal] What, exactly, is “wrong” about that song? [/QUOTE] I just meant Vietnam wasn’t the only war she sang about. (And I was actually making a joke. 😉 ) ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/125 "2007-05-03T10:19:47Z")
[QUOTE=Mr. Moto] And yet the military bent over backwards to get Henry Rollins to forward areas in Iraq and Afghanistan to perform, as well as accommodate his visits to both Walter Reed and Bethesda military hospitals. Does anyone believe that the exclusion of Joan Baez was political? [/QUOTE] While he’s not a huge fan of the war, since Henry Rollins is an avid “supporter of the troops”, I’m in wait and see mode over this question. I’m a bit confused as to why you used that as a response to my post, as I said nothing about politics. I was simply demonstrating that the military wasn’t rejecting her because her music wasn’t enjoyed by those in attendance. I’m not a big Baez fan, but I’ll listen to her worst song twenty times over hearing Newton singing “Danke Schoen.” ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/126 "2007-05-03T12:45:50Z")
[QUOTE=DMC] While he’s not a huge fan of the war, since Henry Rollins is an avid “supporter of the troops”, I’m in wait and see mode over this question. I’m a bit confused as to why you used that as a response to my post, as I said nothing about politics. I was simply demonstrating that the military wasn’t rejecting her because her music wasn’t enjoyed by those in attendance. I’m not a big Baez fan, but I’ll listen to her worst song twenty times over hearing Newton singing “Danke Schoen.” [/QUOTE] Maybe I misheard the question. Sorry. Also, **tomndebb** , Walter Reed is a U.S. Army hospital. The VA does not have any management or oversight of the place, with the possible exception of managing benefits for individual veterans who use the facility. They certainly don’t handle entertainment there. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/127 "2007-05-03T13:00:49Z")
[QUOTE=Kalhoun] I read Mellencamp’s response to that. He said she was on the bill a long time ago and they told him “She won’t fit here. Period.” (not sure if that’s an exact quote, but it’s close). [/QUOTE] Let’s be fair; you’re hearing a snippet of what was said and you’re hearing it, at best, second hand. Ever play the old telephone game in school? “She won’t fit” originally may well have been more along the lines of “Well, we’re looking for some acts the guys will like, and we don’t think Ms. Baez really fits that. Do you know if the Black Eyed Peas are available?” That makes just as much sense. As others have pointed out, today’s GIs don’t know who Joan Baez is, or, if they do, would rather have OutKast. (So would I.) I’m not saying I know this exclusion wasn’t political, but the truth is that A) We DON’T know for sure either way, B) When it comes to any governmental organization, you’re always better off betting on incompetence and administrative confusion, rather than intent, and C) The article’s headline is deliberately inflammatory and misleading. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/128 "2007-05-03T15:27:44Z")
[QUOTE=crowmanyclouds] Not quite, [Where Have All the Flowers Gone?](http://www.fortunecity.com/tinpan/parton/2/where.html#) CMC fnord! [/QUOTE] Not quite what? Your cite says exactly what I said. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/129 "2007-05-03T16:09:57Z")
Well, I really have no problem imagining that it was some 60 year old colonel–who never got over that time Joan Baez spit on him and called him a babykiller at the airport when he was new Lieutenant returning home from his first tour in Vietnam after seeing his best friend’s brains blown out during that VC dawn ambush–was the one who made the decision that Joan Baez and her kind weren’t welcome. Perfectly plausible to me. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/130 "2007-05-03T16:22:34Z")
If this is sarcasm, it eludes me. If not, reality has eluded you. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/131 "2007-05-03T17:25:15Z")
whooooosh!! ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/132 "2007-05-03T17:33:54Z")
I certainly hope so. ---
**Author:** ![Punoqllads](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d2c977/32.png) [@Punoqllads](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Punoqllads)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/133 "2007-05-03T17:38:36Z")
Well, except that Joan Baez never spit on any soldiers and never called anybody a baby killer. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/134 "2007-05-03T17:39:27Z")
That’s not how that colonel remembers it. ---
**Author:** ![Punoqllads](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d2c977/32.png) [@Punoqllads](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Punoqllads)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/135 "2007-05-03T17:53:51Z")
You’re talking about a specific person? Got his name or a reference to the event? ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/136 "2007-05-03T18:37:48Z")
I’m 25 and I love Joan Baez. ---
**Author:** ![Zeriel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/58956e/32.png) [@Zeriel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeriel)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/137 "2007-05-03T18:43:17Z")
I think the point being made is that there are a subset of Vietnam-era military officers who consider themselves to have a standing grudge against anyone even vaguely folksy from the 60s, regardless of the reality of the situation then and now. I only know one of those kinda guys personally, but hell, it’s not any less plausible than any of the other random theories floating around this thread. Why this hasn’t stalled out on a “too many damn conflicting stories, let’s wait for something solid” is anyone’s guess. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/138 "2007-05-03T19:04:30Z")
[QUOTE=Lemur866] To put things in a generational perspective, this is like the brass arranging for Bob Hope and Bing Crosby to entertain the troops in Vietnam. [/QUOTE] Which he (Bob Hope) did, according to this webpage: > **[On the Road: USO Shows - Bob Hope and American Variety | Exhibitions (Library...](https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/bobhope/uso.html)** > > Prompted by patriotism and vaudevillian wanderlust, Bob Hope toured the variety show for more than fifty years to entertain U.S. troops wherever they were stationed. (there is a photo captioned “Bob Hope U.S.O. show in Vietnam, 1968.”) ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/139 "2007-05-03T19:22:20Z")
By the way, do Army national guard members get treated at Walter Reed? This document ( [http://www.aepi.army.mil/internet/transforming-ANG-health-promotion.pdf](http://www.aepi.army.mil/internet/transforming-ANG-health-promotion.pdf) ; warning: PDF) says > [@](#): > > Twenty-six percent of the [Army National Guard] ARNG population is greater than 40 yrs old, with an average age of 33 yrs old. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2007, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491/140 "2007-05-03T19:33:30Z")
Guard members do get treated there if they are wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan. I still don’t know what that has to do with Joan Baez though. I’m nearly 40 myself, and Joan Baez was music from my parents’ generation, not mine. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joan-baez-banned-at-walter-reed-hospital/402491.md?page=8)