Sunday, January 30, 2011

James Blunt's dad defends his posh son

Yesterday's Guardian picked up on James Blunt's mum saying it was unfair to pick on her son for being posh, and drafted in Blunt's dad as well.

He decided it was just like racism:

Blunt's father, also a retired army officer, told the Guardian later that his wife had contacted the BBC because "she was so fired up" about the issue and thought coverage of it had been "so one-sided".

He supported her compliants of inverse snobbery. "It's ridiculous," said Charles Blount. "The key question is not about [someone's] background; it's to do with their talent. It's like racism or anything else: people should be judged on their talent, not their background."
Yes, it's like racism. That's exactly it. Having someone say 'your upbringing has given you connections and a confidence that has made it easier for you to obtain a record contract from companies run by people who share your background' is virtually the same as an English Defence League march.


4 comments:

Robin Carmody said...

Also he confuses dislike for Cameronite music with dislike for everything done by people from a certain background, just as Noel Gallagher confused dislike for his own Blairite music with dislike for everything done by people from his own background. Just as many of us disliked Oasis because we were *pro*-working-class and did not want to see an entire culture sold out to neoliberal politics, many of us dislike Blunt all the more because we like Gabriel-era Genesis.

Robin Carmody said...

I mean, I always judge people on their talent. Travis were from non-posh backgrounds in the most socialist part of the UK, and when they were inescapable I hated their fucking guts too. Wherever Blunt had come from, he would be hated, just as someone from as antithetical a background to his as Mick Hucknall was when *he* was inescapable. That he prefigured and made possible such a venal and regressive political movement just makes it even worse.

Unknown said...

Good for you Mr & Mrs Blount, I love James, It would be hard for me not to stick up for my kids too! Why do people have to be such haters!

Anonymous said...

Props to Simon and Carmody for pointing out the fallacies in the Blunts' complaints. They seem clueless about where class and race intersect.

I can't wait to next hear the Hiltons complain that the public perception of Paris as _possibly_ having a leg up on the average joe due to her background, is "like racism".

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