TEHRAN, Iran - Hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has banned all Western music from Iran's state radio and TV stations. Not because it is offensive to Muslims, but just because "A lot of it's crap."World leaders were quick to condemn the action and nearly as quick to pass similar laws through their own respective parliaments. There are significant differences though in the approaches followed.
In the U.S, President George Bush has signed a bill pushed through by his republican colleagues to outlaw any music he doesn't currently have on his iPod, leaving the entire Sesame Street back catalogue and one song by Garth Brookes, "Oh, Barbara" unscathed.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair has banned all music in which his guitar playing does not feature. Facing the prospect of having to endlessly repeat the eleven tracks from the debut album put out by his old band "Ugly Rumours", Radio1, Radio2 and Capital FM have shut down with immediate effect. Virgin will remain open according to Richard Branson:
"Eleven tracks? That's five more tracks than we normally play every day.", said the Virgin Boss pictured above, "I think it may be time to expand the Virgin radio operations. Now watch me fly, 'vrrrmmmmm'."
French President Jacque Chirac has instituted a new law stating that 95% of all music on radio stations must be French... although this restriction has been in place for the last twenty years anyway. Representatives from other nations stated they would not retaliate with a similar action against French music because they don't play any of it anyway, except for that "Sexy Boy" song by Air and that song by Plastic Bertrand, and he's Belgian, and at least they make good chocolate and beer. Something that can not be said for the French.
