"I have to come clean; Ive broken a lot of laws, and the ones I havent Ive certainly thought about. I have sinned in thought, word, and deed. God forgive me. Actually God forgave me, but why would you? Im here getting a doctorate, getting respectable, getting in the good graces of the powers that be, I hope it sends you students a powerful message: Crime does pay."
Paul David Hewson, known by the nickname Bono, is an Irish singer-songwriter and activist. He is a founding member, the lead vocalist, and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Bono is known for his impassioned vocal style as well as his grandiose songwriting and performance style. His lyrics frequently include social and political themes, and religious imagery inspired by his Christian faith.
"We could defend ourselves. But even though some of us became pretty good at violence ourselves, others didnt. They got the shit kicked out of em. I thought that was kind of normal. I can remember incredible street battles. I remember one madster with an iron bar, just trying to bring it down on my skull as hard as he possibly could, and holding up a dustbin lid, which saved my life. Teenage kids have no sense of mortality — yours or theirs."
"Dont get me too excited because I use four letter words when I get excited. Id just like to say to the parents, your children are safe, your country is safe, the FCC has taught me a lesson and the only four letter word Im going to use today is P-E-N-N. Come to think of it Bono is a four-letter word. The whole business of obscenity — I dont think theres anything certainly more unseemly than the sight of a rock star in academic robes. Its a bit like when people put their King Charles spaniels in little tartan sweats and hats. Its not natural, and it doesnt make the dog any smarter."
"These goals — clean water for all; school for every child; medicine for the afflicted, an end to extreme and senseless poverty — these are not just any goals; they are the Millennium Development goals, which this country supports. And they are more than that. They are the Beatitudes for a Globalised World."
"You have made people listen. You have made people care, and you have taught us that whether we are poor or prosperous, we have only one world to share. You have taught young people that they do have the power to change the world."
"Well, here we are, the Irish in America. The Irish have been coming to America for years, going back to the great famine when the Irish were on the run from starvation and a British Government that couldnt care less. Right up to today, you know, there are more Irish immigrants here in America today than ever — some illegal, some legal. A lot of them are just running from high unemployment, some run from the Troubles in Northern Ireland, from the hatred of the H Blocks, torture. Others from wild acts of terrorism like we had today in a town called Enniskillen, where eleven people lie dead, and many more injured, on a Sunday Bloody Sunday."
"I think that politicians are attracted at first by the celebrity but once they meet him, they find that he is outstandingly capable."