Not A Brando In The Bunch

This New York Times story from Monday tells us about the latest individuals honored by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts last Sunday at our nation’s capital, and this Washington Post article more of less “dishes” on the gossipy tidbits for consumption by our entertainment media about the party that followed.

The five individuals honored by the Kennedy Center this year were pianist and conductor Leon Fleisher, singer Diana Ross, musician Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys, actor/author/comedian Steve Martin (I guess that’s close enough) and filmmaker Martin Scorsese. The ceremony was recorded as usual and will be broadcast on CBS on December 26th.

Congratulations are due to all of these people for this recognition, representing a lifetime’s achievement in the artistic enterprise in which they’ve excelled. And under normal circumstances, I would just leave it at that and not say another word.

But these are hardly “normal circumstances” in this country. And when I say that, I’m referring to the Iraq war, as you might have guessed.

And my question is this; did it ever occur to any of these people to decline the award as a means of protesting the war?

Now I know this award is presented by the Center and not officially from our government, but I can recall a time in this country when awards were rejected by celebrities out of principle (or pique at times, I’ll admit – Sacheen Littlefeather is pictured here, the person who declined the Best Actor Oscar on behalf of Marlon Brando in 1973 as a protest on behalf of native Americans). And the Academy Awards, for example, weren’t even presented officially by the President of the United States, as these were.

But Dubya did present them, following a White House dinner reception.

And everyone accepted.

So nice, right?

Well, guess what (rose-colored glasses alert: here comes a liberal rant)...

All of these people are artists, and that means that they’re supposed to craft something that elevates the sometimes beautiful but frequently wretched thing known as “the human condition.” And in the process, I believe that they’re supposed to contribute something that brings joy where there is sorrow, hope where there is despair, and truth where there is a lie.

Truth where there is a lie.

And the Iraq war, for every moment that it has existed and continues to exist, remains the greatest lie of our age. “Ramped up” for lies, started for lies, waged for lies, sacrificed for lies, prolonged for lies, and accepted for lies (and who knows, one day it may be, at long last – and may we all live to see it, however it happens – ended for lies).

And if that is not worth protesting, then I don’t know what is.

Now I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t have the right to tell any of these five people what to do. I know at least some of them endured brutal hardship to rise to their present prominence; I’m not familiar with all of their stories, but I’m sure that’s true across the board (I won’t be so ridiculous as to even contemplate telling the director of “Mean Streets,” “Taxi Driver,” “Raging Bull,” “Goodfellas” and “The Departed” how important it is to resist the temptation of evil and do good through your work).

But I just wish one of them had chosen to act in the way I’m suggesting here. It would have cut through the flotsam of the typical entertainment pabulum consumed by much of this country and the world and stirred consciences to act that, I’m sure, will now remain somnambulant.

And that is sad.

(By the way, I remembered later that another good reason to protest would have been the damage to the Constitution, which is a close second behind the war as far as I'm concerned.)