Morrissey stands by Norway comments

Ever-controversial musician Morrissey is once again being controversial, this time for saying that the recent terrorist attacks in Norway, which killed 76 people, aren’t as bad as what fast food companies do.

At a recent concert in Warsaw, Poland, the former Smiths frontman reportedly said, “We all live in a murderous world, as the events in Norway have shown, with 97 sic dead.” He then added: “Though that is nothing compared to what happens in McDonald’s and Kentucky Fried expletive every day.” The vegan and animal rights activist then segued into a performance of “Meat is Murder.

Comedian Dan Atkinson tweeted, “Congratulations to Morrissey. It takes an exceptional brand of tosspot to capitalise on mass murder to further the cause of chickens.” Another Twitter user wrote, “Maybe Morrissey would like to repeat what he said about the attacks in Norway to the friends and families of the victims.

Before starting his track Meat Is Murder, the former The Smiths star told the crowd, "We all live in a murderous world, as the events in Norway have shown... Though that is nothing compared to what happens in McDonald's and Kentucky Fried S**t every day."

Morrissey has faced heavy criticism for voicing his controversial opinions, but he remains unapologetic and has instead issued a statement in a bid to explain his words in more detail.

The statement reads, "The comment I made onstage at Warsaw could be further explained this way: Millions of beings are routinely murdered every single day in order to fund profits for McDonalds and KFCruelty, but because these murders are protected by laws, we are asked to feel indifferent about the killings, and to not even dare question them.

"If you quite rightly feel horrified at the Norway killings, then it surely naturally follows that you feel horror at the murder of ANY innocent being. You cannot ignore animal suffering simply because animals 'are not us'."

And he blames the press for sensationalising the Norwegian tragedy and giving the suspect, Anders Behring Breivik, the attention he was craving.

Morrissey adds, "The recent killings in Norway were horrific. As usual in such cases, the media give the killer exactly what he wants: worldwide fame. We aren't told the names of the people who were killed - almost as if they are not considered to be important enough, yet the media frenzy to turn the killer into a Jack The Ripper star is.... repulsive. He should be un-named, not photographed, and quietly led away.

Morrissey compares Norway massacre to KFC

Morrissey has reportedly compared the recent massacre of 76 people in Norway by the Christian extremist Anders Behring Breivik to the slaughter of animals for fast food chains.

"We all live in a murderous world, as the events in Norway have shown," the singer told an audience in Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, according to the Daily Mirror. "Though that is nothing compared to what happens in McDonald's and Kentucky Fried s--- every day."

Photos: Random Notes

The former Smiths frontman's comments have led to a harsh backlash, with angry responses turning up on fan sites and Twitter.

This is only the latest in a long series of harsh statements against animal cruelty from the outspoken vegetarian.

Norway holds first funerals for victims

On Sunday, Morrissey was on stage in Warsaw, Poland, and went off on a rant about how meat is murder. “We all live in a murderous world, as the events in Norway have shown,” he reportedly told the crowd. “Though that is nothing compared to what happens in McDonald’s and Kentucky Fried S— every day.”

He’s spent the last few days getting lambasted online, with people rightfully angry about his trivialization of a human tragedy. While animal rights is a too-often ignored issue all over the world, and one that Morrissey is clearly passionate about, the Moz should really be more shrewd about where, when, and how his political statements come out.

In response, Morrissey submitted a response to a fan site. “The comment I made onstage at Warsaw could be further explained this way: Millions of beings are routinely murdered every single day in order to fund profits for McDonalds and KFCruelty, but because these murders are protected by laws, we are asked to feel indifferent about the killings, and to not even dare question them,” he wrote. “If you quite rightly feel horrified at the Norway killings, then it surely naturally follows that you feel horror at the murder of ANY innocent being. You cannot ignore animal suffering simply because animals ‘are not us.’”

Of course, this is hardly the first time Morrissey has gotten in trouble. He recently called England’s royal family “scroungers” just before the royal wedding, and he also may or may not have gone on a rant about immigrants a few years back. It’s good to be passionate about something, but maybe Morrissey should just stick to weeping about being the last of the famous international playboys.

Amy Winehouse's 2007 Movie Awards

The family of Amy Winehouse "has been left bereft" by her death on Saturday.

The Winehouses, including mother Janis, her father Mitch and her brother Alex, released a statement Sunday.

"Our family has been left bereft by the loss of Amy, a wonderful daughter, sister, niece. She leaves a gaping hole in our lives," the statement reads. "We are coming together to remember her and we would appreciate some privacy and space at this terrible time."

The body of the influential "Rehab" singer, who struggled for years with addiction, was found at her London home on Saturday. The death is still officially "unexplained," according to London police. An examination of the body to determine the cause of death isn't scheduled until Monday at the earliest, according to reports.

Sadly, the song "Rehab" was all too real for the rising Brit star, who began canceling shows during her ascent up the charts. Her team cited "health issues," while rumors of substance abuse problems became inescapable. Still, Winehouse quickly became a fan favorite, and her performance at the Movie Awards proved to be a big draw.

After showing up late for her rehearsal, which took place the night before the live show, the British singer rendezvoused off to Las Vegas for a party with photographer David LaChapelle. MTV protested, but still Winehouse made way for the Strip less than 12 hours before she was needed back in California to perform. Things shouldn't have come as much of a surprise considering the numerous bumps MTV experienced when taping her for another show, "45th at Night," earlier that year.

"Just about every song, she stopped. She walked offstage," Garrett English, MTV executive in charge of production at the time, said. "It was difficult for her to work all the way through the set. Knowing that she was going to be on the Movie Awards in a true live environment was a little bit concerning."

"We had to let her go, stay in touch and hope for the best," MTV talent executive Robin Katz said.

The show's producers didn't hear from Winehouse's camp until an hour before showtime, when they received a text that confirmed the singer had returned from Sin City and was heading to the Gibson Amphitheater in Universal City, California, where the ceremony was taking place.

Despite the scare, once Amy took the stage, she performed as only Amy could. She hit her mark, and the star-studded crowd loved it.

"It was an epic performance of 'Rehab,' " Mark Burnett, the awards show's executive producer, said. "Edgy, as Amy always is, and it really fits the vibe of MTV."

Amy Winehouse was found dead Saturday at the age of 27, and despite all of her troubles, she still remained a favorite among fans and music contemporaries alike.

Amy Winehouse: "I'll be dead in a ditch, on fire

Amy Winehouse, the British singer who found worldwide fame with a smoky, hip-hop-inflected take on retro soul, yet became a tabloid fixture as her problems with drugs and alcohol brought about a strikingly public career collapse, was found dead on Saturday in her home in London. She was 27.

The cause was not immediately known. The London police said they had been called to an address in Camden Square in northern London on Saturday afternoon and found a 27-year-old woman, and pronounced her dead at the scene. The police did not identify the body, but the London Ambulance Service said it was that of Winehouse, the Associated Press reported.

The police said that they were investigating the circumstances of the death, but that "at this early stage it is being treated as unexplained."

Instantly recognizable from the heavy makeup and high beehive hairdo she borrowed from the Ronettes, Winehouse became one of the most acclaimed young singers of the 2000s, selling millions of albums, winning five Grammy Awards and kicking off the British trend of retro soul and R&B that continues today.

Yet from the moment she arrived on the international pop scene in 2007, Winehouse had an image that seemed almost defiantly self-destructive. In songs like "You Know I’m No Good," she sang alcohol-soaked regrets of failed romances, and for many listeners the lyrics to the song "Rehab" — which won her three of the five Grammys she received in 2008 — crystallized her public persona. "They tried to make me go to rehab," she sang, "I said, ‘No, no, no.’"

Those songs were from her second album, "Back to Black," which was released in Britain in late 2006 and in the United States in 2007. Her first, "Frank," had established her as a budding star in Britain. But "Back in Black," recorded with the producers Mark Ronson and Salaam Remi, made her an international sensation, with a darkly stylish update on the sound of classic 1960s R&B that was admired by critics and the public alike.

You've said you admire Dean Martin. He got to the point where people expected a certain image, so when he wasn't drinking, he had to have colored water in his glass.

No, it was the opposite -- the other way around. He started out with colored water, and then in the end he did start drinking like that."

Do you ever feel like you'll let people down if they expect this raconteur who's wild and you don't deliver?

A: "No. If someone goes 'Amy, let me buy you tequila,' and I'm like 'No, no, I'm not drinking,' if they ask why, I always say that I'm on antibiotics. Because I'm ashamed to just go, 'You know, I'm just not drinking.' I have to say that I'm on a course of medication, because I feel ashamed (about abstaining)."

The label went with another single before "Rehab," and I wondered if it's because they were nervous because Americans are conflicted with our attitudes about consumption.

I don't know. Everyone knows that there's certain things that aren't good for you, but there's a fine line between enjoying yourself and being completely healthy. Or do you know what I mean? You can only be healthy to a point, where you're not having fun anymore. Does that make sense?"

Q: With the first album ("Frank"), you said you were in a defensive mode when you wrote that, more so than the second album ("Back to Black"). The second album, you wanted to write about consuming love and not be in that defensive posture. Do I have that right?

Yeah, it's a lot less defensive. And it's very all or nothing. When I did the first album, I was smoking loads of weed, and I had that whole mentality of 'you don't know me, I don't need you, you don't love me, fuck you.' And when I wrote the second album, I was listening to a lot of pure '60s music, a lot of jukebox stuff -- and I was drinking a lot, which is a lot more of a depressive substance than weed.

"So my mentality flipped from 'Yeah, I don't need you, I'm gonna smoke a joint, I don't care' to listening to the jukebox and (sadly) standing with a drink.

Håkan Hellström

Håkan Hellström, (born 2 April 1974) is a Swedish musician. He got his Swedish breakthrough in the year 2000 with the song "Känn ingen sorg för mig Göteborg" ("Don't feel sorry for me, Gothenburg"). In 2005, Hellström released his fourth album, Nåt gammalt, nåt nytt, nåt lånat, nåt blått (literally: Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue), which is a collection of old material that never made it onto any of his albums, a few new songs and covers.

In 2006, following the birth of his son, he announced that he would take a break from touring and recording. Despite this, he still performed occasional gigs. Since then he has released his fifth album För sent för Edelweiss (Too Late for Edelweiss). His sixth and most recent album is the critically acclaimed 2 steg från Paradise, released on October 13, 2010.

Hellström played drums in the Swedish indie pop band Broder Daniel between 1988 and 1994, then briefly for Swedish alternative rock band Honey Is Cool. In 1997 he rejoined Broder Daniel to play the bass, until 2003 when he left the band again to focus completely on his solo career. Although sometimes accused for consistently singing out of tune, he has over time grown to be popular with all ages due to his enthusiasm, scene energy and interpretations of old popular favourites live.

Känn ingen sorg för mig Göteborg (Feel no sorrow for me, Gothenburg) (2000) (Platinum)

Det är så jag säger det (That is how I say it) (2002) (Platinum)

Ett kolikbarns bekännelser (Confessions of a colic-child) (2005) (Gold)

Nåt gammalt, nåt nytt, nåt lånat, nåt blått (Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue) (2005) (Gold)

För sent för Edelweiss (Too late for Edelweiss) (2008) (Gold)

Två steg från paradise (Two steps from paradise) (2010) (Platinum)

Accusations of plagiarism

Hellström has repeatedly been criticized for plagiarism. In 2002, Swedish tabloid Aftonbladet ran an article bringing attention to the similarities between his song "När jag ser framåt" and the piece Pie Jesu from Andrew Lloyd Webber's Requiem. "När jag ser framåt" was the second track of the single "Kom igen Lena.

Cinema of Norway

Not until fairly recently has the Norwegian cinema received international recognition, but as early as 1951 a documentary film of the Kon-Tiki expedition won an Oscar Academy Award. In 1959, Arne Skouen's Nine Lives was nominated, but failed to win. Another notable film is Flåklypa Grand Prix (English: Pinchcliffe Grand Prix), an animated feature film directed by Ivo Caprino. The film was released in 1975 and is based on characters from Norwegian cartoonist Kjell Aukrust. It is the most widely seen Norwegian film of all time.

There was however a real breakthrough in 1987 with Nils Gaup's Pathfinder which told the story of the Sami. It was nominated for an Oscar and was a huge international success. Berit Nesheim's The Other Side of Sunday was also nominated for an Oscar in 1997.

Since the 1990s, the film industry has thrived with up to 20 feature films each year. Particular successes were Kristin Lavransdatter, The Telegraphist and Gurin with the Foxtail. Knut Erik Jensen was among the more successful new directors together with Erik Skjoldbjærg remembered for Insomnia.

In late 2008, the movie Max Manus opened at Norwegian theatres. The movie was a WW2 drama, telling the story of the Norwegian resistance hero Max Manus who led many successful sabotage operations against the German occupation. The movie became the highest grossing Norwegian movie ever.

Martin sweeps ghosts, Norway aside

Eight years after his last shot in Salt Lake City slid far enough for silver and Norway celebrated that last half an inch for all the gold it was worth and more, the tables turned on Sunday and it was Martin at the top of his game -- and the podium.

Fittingly, the Edmonton skip delivered the last rock this time too, a hit-and-stick in the 10th that ran Norway's Thomas Ulsrud out of rocks and the ghost of Salt Lake City out of the picture.

"When that rock was going to make contact, that's about as good a feeling as you get," said Martin.

"All the hard work, it all comes to fruition. We wanted to get one step higher on the podium because the other stuff was done. It's surreal. I said it to the guys as we were walking out to the podium, it's like walking through a dream. It's amazing. I guess as the hours pass it will become more real but it's hard to believe."

That the resume is full. That there is Olympic gold to accompany Salt Lake silver as well as the world and Brier titles. And the look on his face, heck, all their smiling mugs, was complete and total satisfaction at a job perfectly done. They went 11-0, an Olympic record. They handled the weight of expectation as easy as they did their draw weight.

They revelled in the wacky atmosphere, respected their opponents and kept on driving to the podium, a destination that was four years in the making for lead Ben Hebert, second Marc Kennedy and third John Morris, double that for Martin.

And Paal Trulsen, the man whose 2002 win gave Martin a ghost and a goal to chase for those eight years, couldn't be happier for his longtime friend and foe. Now the Norwegian coach, Trulsen hugged Martin in the aftermath of the Edmonton team's 6-3 victory at Vancouver Olympic Centre.

"He deserves a rest. He deserves this gold. I think he is really relieved now," said Trulsen. "To be a curling player in Canada is completely different than a curling player in Norway. He's a big star here and he really deserves his spot in the history of curling, I think. He has been up there for 15, 20 years, now he's got his gold and I'm happy for him."

It wasn't all about Martin, no more than the game could have been won without the rest of the team. Morris was unconscious, throwing a trio of big-weight doubles and a ridiculous triple in the fourth end. Norway wore the clown pants but Morris made the circus shots look routine.

"John was on fire," said Martin, who followed that act with clutch shotmaking of his own in the second half of the match. And the heavy movers at the front, Kennedy and Hebert, were the rock-solid performers we have grown accustomed to seeing, hunched over and brushing like mad fools. The lead was 3-0 at the break and when Martin made a freeze in seven to give him a chance for two, it was already academic.

There was no drama left after the ninth end, Canada coming home up three with the locals singing the national anthem.

"Could you have pictured a better script, especially for Kevin?" marvelled Kennedy. "On his home soil, going unbeaten, against Norway and Sweden in the semi? It's like a fairytale, unbelievable. It's just a lot of joy and a lot of relief. And you get tingles, jitters up the spine. The one thought that goes through my mind is, I don't think it gets better than this. Up three coming home, home crowd, the Olympic Games, and they're singing the anthem -- it just doesn't get any better. I don't know how I'm going to top this. I might have to retire."

Ulsrud joked that he wished Martin would do the same. And if the old bear had only been hanging around to avenge Salt Lake City, he might have made plans to exit stage left with this gold. But he had long ago filed 2002 away into a corner of his mind where it would keep company with the accomplishment of silver and a host of championships. It was not a standalone failure at the heart of his curling career, it was unfinished business on the periphery. It has been dealt with and he can keep going.

"I know how much this means to him and it had nothing to do with 2002 or any Olympics he's been to," said Hebert.

"He just wanted to win this one to fill his resume as probably the best curler of all time and he played like it all week."

Martin went 85 per cent for the tourney, just 78 per cent on the day. Norway's numbers mirrored Canada's throughout but the biggest shots were all made by the home side at the right time. Morris, in particular, played like a man possessed.

"Sometimes Johnny gets that look in his eye where he misses no shots," said Hebert. "Fourth end, when he made that triple, I knew he was fired up. When he gets that look in his eye he's probably the second best player in the world. You get them both on one team it's a pretty good little weapon."

But they were determined to play every angle even before they hit the ice.

They have always taken care of the details, committed themselves to excellence, so Morris delivered an impassioned pregame speech just as he had done before the Olympic trials final against Glenn Howard.

"I just said the word of the day today is relentless. We're going to be relentless out there. Let's play a good aggressive Canadian curling game that we know how to play.

"Let's not think of the gold medal or anything at the end of the road. Let's think of what we've got to do to make the next shot.

"All four of us, we've played enough big games that we felt comfortable and confident in big game situations and today they just showed again they're big game players."

Eight years ago Martin lost the big game to Trulsen. He had the winning stone in his hands and sent it too far down the ice. He doesn't need another crack at it any more.

Source:vancouversun.com/

A1 represent Norway at Eurovision?

Reunited boyband A1 are bidding to represent Norway in next year's Eurovision Song Contest. The Brit award-winning pop act are favourites to represent Norway, who host this year's show after Alexander Rybak's Fairytale stormed to victory earlier this year. 

A11 have always had a Nordic connection through band member Christian Ingebrigtsen who was born in the Norweigan capital Oslo. The boys acheived chart success in 2000 with two No 1s Take On Me and Same Old Brand New You. 

Theyy announced their comeback last month with the launch of their latest single Take You Home. The band will take part in the Melodi Grand Prix in February 2010, the national finals to the Eurovision Song Contest, where they will find out if their bid for Euro glory was successful. Sourc: virginmedia.com/