For weeks now, though it seems like months, I have sat and watched an entire community of people, mind you, who are supposed to have unity with one another, systematically take apart one of their very own: legendary former PANTERA vocalist, Philip H. Anselmo.
Everyone is up in arms, demanding further action on his part to show that he truly “gets” what he did was wrong, including Scott Ian of ANTHRAX and so many more. DOWN, Anselmo’s other band project now suffers, having had concerts cancelled in the wake of the fiasco. Anselmo has apologized not once for his apparent racist actions, but twice… yet still, the media and his peers keep their attack against “The Kid” marching forward.
Unless you have been living under a rock, Anselmo made a Nazi-like gesture when saying goodbye to the crowd at the latest installment of Dimebash that was then followed by the vocalist screaming what appeared to be the words: “White Power”, though he would later attempt to use an explanation that everyone else was in on “a joke backstage” where he and Dimebag’s old lady, Rita, were allegedly throwing back a bottle of white wine with many other famous people in the rock world, including Doug Pinnick of KING’S X fame, who happens to be a black man.
At this point, whether or not it was a joke or not… Anselmo no doubt made an absolutely foolish move there out on the stage. However, I think it’s truly disgraceful that people like Robb Flynn of MACHINE HEAD took the opportunity to make this more of a “PR Blitz” about himself than anything Philip H. Anselmo ever did when he posted a video rant stating he will never listen or play PANTERA music again. Sweet! What a nice thing to say right after Dimebag’s celebration. The little fella has a record for posting “super ego maniac” videos all the time, mostly about totally dramatic shit where he is crying about being sick on tour. Wait a minute. Is this Metal or is it BUTT METAL? Since when is it cool for dudes with long hair to complain all the time like they are on a constant menstruation cycle?
And then there’s the biggest scumbag in the rock/metal media using all of this matter to blow up the page views on his site for advertising $$$… with no care in the world who this inflammatory content is going to hurt in the long run. Nope, Bori of Blabbermouth could care less. The idea that this sort of thing can continue to cause a tear socially between black and whites is good for business. Google the words “click baiting” and you will learn all you need to know about how this guy operates. Keep in mind, page views equal advertising dollars. So let’s just keep posting daily “inflammtory racial content” as if there not enough carnage going on in our streets at this very moment, mainly thanks to non stop racial profiling done by cops. How many more unarmed young black men need to get shot dead and broadcast on TV while you’re eating dinner before you get that this is a very delicate subject with the ‘riots’ that have happened in the past between blacks vs. whites. Bottom line, in my opinion this is not a subject that should be exploited over and over and over.
Then you have all the “out of the woodwork” musicians posting a “slam against Anselmo” every day in hopes that they will extend their 15 minutes of fame. Enough is enough! Sit the hell back down and shut up! It’s apparent your band cannot attain it’s own publicity because you suck so bad, and now all of you are trying to benefit from the matter, again, with no care in the world, who it may endanger later on.
Shame on all of you. God is watching every one of your moves. And you can pass judgement against a man all you want, but be ready when the time comes for our father to decide your fate! How about instead of kicking a man while he is down, you instead try to find any ounce of compassion located in your deep, dark soul to give “The KID” a break once and for all.
Who really lost out in the end from all of this? How about Dimebag Darrell, the cat everyone was supposed to be honoring that night in the first place? Remember him? He got shot dead on the stage after the media pulled the same exact stunt “exploiting the Pantera band feud” that ultimately led to Darrell Abbott being shot dead on the stage by a pissed off fan!
In the end, let’s get back to what we are all into together: the music! Mistakes will be made in life, so the story goes… but nobody is better than the man or woman standing next to them because of their skin color. Let’s start showing a little more compassion and a lot less anger. There is no need for the spread of any more “hate” in the metal community, toward Anselmo himself or some young black kid that wants to be a fan of PANTERA music too!
BROTHERHOOD (noun) 1 : the state of being a brother. 2: an association, society, or community of people linked by a common interest.
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