Cat Stevens caused plane to divert

[Steven J. Gross]

The story is new- but a plane bound to an Eastern city was diverted to Bangor, Maine when a name showed up on a terrorist list- turned out it was Cat Stevens!!! (CNN)
http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/09/21/plane.diverted.ap/index.html

 

[Dave]

Wow! This is definitely a "Good A&M Artist, Gone Bad"!! Well, glad nothing "worse" has happened...!

Dave

 

[Steven J. Gross]

Is this the end with UNI/A&M?
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...art_li_9/104-6673381-6867924?v=glance&s=music

 

[Steven J. Gross]

Wow! This is definitely a "Good A&M Artist, Gone Bad"!! Well, glad nothing "worse" has happened...!

Dave

I guess he is not trustable in the US. There must be a reason. Highly disturbing.
Also, if he is on a watch list, isn't the idea not to let the person ON THE PLANE? Glad it wasn't someone more sinister. I gotta boycott this dude- sorry!

 

[Mr Bill]

Is this the end with UNI/A&M?

More likely an indy label licensing job for an artist Uni no longer cares to actively represent. Can you imagine the extra costs invlolved if your tour plane got diverted at least once between every stop on a world tour?

--Mr Bill
noting that Yusef Islam = Evil Traitor -- heheheheheee!

 

[Mr Bill]

I gotta boycott this dude- sorry!

I suppose a "beheading" would be an appropriate tit for tat?

--Mr Bill

 

[Steven J. Gross]

I gotta boycott this dude- sorry!

I suppose a "beheading" would be an appropriate tit for tat?

--Mr Bill

I think that "Cat" has turned "Rat"- Rat Stevens ?
I think something besides religion is up with him- he is getting weirder.
What an utter waste of talent.

 

[seashorepiano]

It's a shame that some people like him go this road. Let's hope that he's not implicated in any destructive enterprises... it's unfortunate that he's let all his fans down.

 

[Steven J. Gross]

I cannot see exactly what he stands for, on the one hand- he gives up pop music and berates it- but keeps taking profits- then he does concerts to raise monies using his old stuff- what gives?

 

[LPJim]

Stevens got in hot water several years ago shortly after his conversion to the Muslim faith. He was quoted in the press as approving of the death threats against Author Salmon Rushdie, who wrote an unflattering book about Ayatolah Khomeini.
Stevens has denied this, saying he's a man of peace; but the authorities aren't taking any chances.
JB

 

[Dave]

Stevens was quoted in the press as approving of the death threats against Author Salmon Rushdie. But he has denied this, saying he's "a man of peace".
JB

...He WAS a "Man Of Peace"! This kind of a Terrorist Act seems INEXCUSABLE, coming from a man who wrote and sang us songs like "Wild World" and "Peace Train"!

No matter...! I still enjoy hearing and PLAYING the songs, guitar chords and the music of "The Good Guy", "Cat"...!! :cat:

Dave

 

[Steven J. Gross]

No matter...! I still enjoy hearing and PLAYING the songs, guitar chords and the music of "The Good Guy", "Cat"...!! :cat:

Dave

I agree, but the safest way to listen to Cat is to buy 2nd hand on Ebay, saving us money and hopefully not giving our money to the bad guys.

 

[Dave]

The safest way to listen to Cat is to buy 2nd hand on eBay, saving us money and hopefully not giving our money to the bad guys.

Heh...! I give my money to my Used Record Haunts for Cat Stevens' stuff...!

Dave

 

[Steven J. Gross]

Heh...! I give my money to my Used Record Haunts for Cat Stevens' stuff...!

Dave

That's always a good thing!

 

[DAN BOLTON]

I only had one Cat Stevens album, and I forget the name...I remember the song 18TH AVENUE, about getting to the airport just in time...


Dan

 

[jimac51]

The album listed on Amazon is on Eagle-Rock Records and was recorded in 1976 in Virginia. Eagle Entertainment is made up of some people who ran Castle Communications till 1997. They have an odd lot of material that seemed to have fallen through the cracks(e.g.-audio versions Judy Garland's TV show,a 1980 Beach Boys concert from Knebworth)and include such A&M related artists as Nazareth(a number of titles),Sounds of Blackness,Humble Pie and Spooky Tooth. They also have the "classic albums" DVD series that used to be on VH1. The Cat Stevens material has evidently been available on DVD with commentary by Islam and it includes the animated "Teaser & the Firecat/Moonshadow" material and a promo film from the "Father & Son" days-the format listed is DVD9(?). Mac

 

[PJ]

Well I would be worried if by association ...I was denied entry to a country ....

Last night on BBC TV show ....another refusee to USA ....an academic personally appointed for his talents by top US University was explaining that after two years -still has not received any explaination as to why he was barred ....one possible reason ....his grandfather was considered an extermist ....

Now come on ....just because someone has a few black sheep or undesirables in their family ....and who does not .... ....should innocents be barred in this way ....this just causes more rersentment , embarrasment & problems ....

Peter

 

[Steven J. Gross]

Now come on ....just because someone has a few black sheep or undesirables in their family ....and who does not .... ....should innocents be barred in this way ....this just causes more rersentment , embarrasment & problems ....

Peter

Stevens has been flagged by US Homeland Security. I will put my trust in them.

 

[alpertfan]

I don't agree with his religious views, but I don't think anybody has the right to persecute him. The government hasn't released any of the information it claims it has, so who are we to judge?

 

[Captain Bacardi]

Here's the response from the former Cat:

Cat Stevens Calls U.S. Deportation 'Ridiculous'

LONDON (Reuters) - Yusuf Islam, the pop star formerly known as Cat Stevens, returned to Britain Thursday after his deportation from the United States over "potential" terrorism links sparked a diplomatic row.

"The whole thing is totally ridiculous," Islam, 57, said on arrival at London's Heathrow airport. "Half of me wants to smile, half of me wants to growl."

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw raised the issue with Secretary of State Colin Powell in person at the United Nations. Straw "expressed concern that this action should not have been taken," a Foreign Office spokesman said.

Powell told reporters: "Our Homeland Security Department and intelligence agencies found some information concerning his activities that they felt under our law required him to be placed on a watch list and therefore denied him entry."

Islam, who changed his name after converting to the Muslim faith in the 1970s, was traveling with his daughter on a United Airlines flight Tuesday from London to Washington when American officials diverted it 600 miles to Bangor, Maine.

"It's crazy," Islam said as he was mobbed by reporters at Heathrow. "Everybody knows me from my charitable work and now there have to be explanations, but I'm glad to be home."

Asked if he felt victimised, he added: "Absolutely. But you know, for God's sake, people make mistakes. I just hope they have made a big mistake.

"I wasn't handcuffed or anything like that. They treated me very well," he added. "A lot of security officers are very pleased because they got my autograph."

"ADDITIONAL INFORMATION"

U.S. Homeland Security spokesman Brian Doyle said on Wednesday that Islam was deported after his name turned up on U.S. "no fly" lists.

"Why is he on the watch lists? Because of his activities that could be potentially linked to terrorism. The intelligence community has come into possession of additional information that further raises our concern," Doyle said.

A law enforcement official said the United States had information that the singer, who last visited the United States in May, had donated money to the militant Islamic group Hamas.

Powell said Washington had no criminal case against him. "But it is the procedure that we have been using to know who is coming into our country, know their backgrounds and interests, and see whether we believe it is appropriate for them to come in."

A leading Arab-American group, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, has written to President Bush and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge asking them to explain why Islam was barred.

UK Muslim leaders were outraged. "The United States is shutting down its house, building walls around itself," said Anas Altikriti, spokesman for the Muslim Association of Britain.

Inayat Bunglawala, spokesman for the Muslim Council of Britain, said the saga will make Muslims "wonder who else, which other moderate educationalists or community leaders are on these U.S. watch lists."

Islam was denied entry to Israel in 2000 after authorities there accused him of supporting Hamas. He denied it and said his charitable donations were for humanitarian causes.

Among charities he has supported are children affected by war in Bosnia and Iraq as well as victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks against America, which he condemned.

Born Steven Demeter Georgiou in July 1947 to a Swedish mother and a Greek Cypriot father, he changed his name to Cat Stevens when he entered the music world.

He had a string of hits in the early 1970s including "Peace Train," "Moonshadow,," "Morning has Broken," and "Wild World" before converting to Islam in 1977.



Capt. Bacardi

 

[Captain Bacardi]

Stevens has been flagged by US Homeland Security. I will put my trust in them.

Why am I reminded of the phrase "there's a sucker born every minute"? There was a neat Behind The Music segment on VH-1 about Stevens some time ago where he explained what had happened in the past, especially the Rushdie fiasco. He had just converted to the Muslim faith at the time and was rather naive in going along with what had been said. He realized he was wrong and had said so many times, but no one wants to hear it. Since then he's been wrongly accused of contributing money to the Hamas terrorists and other goofy ideas like that. He happens to be a Muslim with money and that supposedly makes him dangerous. Paranoia at best.


Capt. Bacardi

 

[Steven J. Gross]

You have no faith in the US Government? That's paranoid!

 

[Rudy]

This has gone far too political. Thread closed.