It seems to me to have been a classic shooting of oneself in the foot for the development agencies to use U2’s moving their publishing royalties to Netherlands as an opportunity to get tax dodging into the sphere of public debate. “Bono will be happy to take the hit for the greater cause” was the response I got to the papers dragging Bono’s ethical character through the press. What good copy it was to be able to find some kind of scandal against a man who has attempted to rebel against rock music by not being up for the usual hedonistic tabloid headlines. The press loved it and to be able to lambast the justice campaigner as a hypocrite caused much glee from those opinion writers who love to stir it up on a half truth. Rather than Bono taking a hit so that the big business tax dodger could be exposed, what it actually did was to allow the public, who are uneasy with Bono’s challenge “would you deny for others/what you demand for yourself,” to finally have reason to ignore his campaigning and all the work of the very development organisations who thought it a good idea to use Bono to raise the issue!
When evangelicals theologised social justice into obscurity for most of the twentieth century, - “the heresy of the century” John Stott suggests – it was perhaps not so much about theological soundness (obviously not if it was heresy!) but a lack of desire to pay the cost. The truth is if we can confine Christian behaviour to the gnats of smoking, drinking and saying the odd swear word then we can ignore the giant elephants of 2,500,000,000 people going without sanitation and 900,000,000 people being denied clean water. When the Theological Gustapo could damn Walter Rauschenbusch, coiner of the phrase “Social Gospel,” by a few dubious theological opinions they could then ignore the entirety of his prophetic challenge; the Biblical mandate that goes beyond charity collections and development projects to revolution, repentance and reformation of world systems and lifestyles. Bin him in his entirety; no need for the costly repentance he called for.
And so with Bono. It is hard to find fault with someone who wants to give education, health, water and justice to those who don’t have it. Go on try! Yet, so many have told Bono off for caring; “Forget helping poor people Bono, go and write a hit single better than Get On Your Boots.” They can’t really believe that but if they can delude themselves then they don’t have to deal with the costly repentance he asks for. Even better if Development Organisations dismiss him as a tax dodger! Brilliant! Now, how can I get back to my selfish overindulgence without that Dublin fella making me feel there might be another way to live! As a strategy to get tax evasion on the discussion list, very expensive; “Force quit, remove to trash!”
well said
Posted by: Paul | 30/04/2009 at 09:46 PM