[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 155 (Tuesday, December 6, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2459-E2460]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        BONO: A PERSONAL TRIBUTE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JAMES A. LEACH

                                of iowa

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 6, 2005

  Mr. LEACH. Mr. Speaker, at a time the world is crying out for 
leadership and too frequently finds it lacking in political life, I 
would like to take a moment to comment on an individual who has never 
been elected to any post but is leading in ways beyond those who have. 
He is a musician. His name is Bono.
  In the history of celebrity, no one has used his stature for greater 
social effect than this Irish songwriter and performer.
  While the nightly news centers on problems of terrorism and other 
hate-inspired acts, Bono has recognized that the greatest public 
challenge of our time is disease control, and the greatest social issue 
is the division in the world between the haves and the have-nots. He 
has worked without ideological blinders with Republicans and Democrats 
in power in America; with liberals and conservatives in Europe; and 
with religious groups around the world to raise public consciousness 
and enhance public commitments to stem the onslaught of HIV/AIDS and 
reduce indebtedness of the poorest countries in the world.
  Based on the movements that he has singularly helped lead, Bono is 
the first celebrity that merits serious consideration for the Nobel 
Peace Prize.
  At a personal level, Bono has assiduously eschewed the pomp of 
overdressing and honed an ``everyman'' appearance which masks a razor-
sharp IQ. As a songwriter, he is a poet with lyrics and as an advocate 
of political causes, he utilizes a profound observance capacity to 
articulate issues in ways which energize and uplift. He is a star 
because he does not act like one and a supernova advocate because his 
vision is so compelling.
  To understand Bono, one must look to aspects of his background, 
including in particular, a love for a sport that I also played for many 
years: rugby.

[[Page E2460]]

  Bono was a hooker. A hooker plants himself in the middle of the first 
row of a scrum, a position analogous in American football to a center. 
Hookers are generally the shorter, broad-shouldered leaders of the 
pack. They are the first to charge into a scrum. They balance 
themselves on the shoulders of their front row teammates called 
``props'' and bend in a gymnastic-like contortion attempting nimble-
footedly to kick the ball backwards with their heels as their teammates 
push forward so that their side can control the subsequent movement of 
the ball. Hookers in rugby are the center of team effort and generally 
end each game with the most noticeable badges of the struggle: welts 
and bruises on foreheads and chins.
  As a celebrity, Bono is the obverse of spoiled Hollywood prettiness. 
He is the member of the cast who succeeds because of unyielding 
determination, yet interacts with others as if he fully understands 
their plight and has received himself significant licks in life.
  I once took my daughter to a U2 concert in Washington and was 
impressed with the way Bono used an oblong walkway jutting out from the 
main stage to engage the audience. Repeatedly, he would sprint from one 
side to the other and then stop and bellow a vibrant melody with no 
evidence that he had exerted himself physically. His physical condition 
appeared closer to that of a world-class athlete than night club 
crooner.

  My wife and I have had the good fortune to welcome Bono to our home 
in Iowa City and, in turn, to visit him in his studio in Dublin. We 
were struck by his genuineness, by the collegial banter of his band and 
by the sophistication and discipline with which they produce music. 
Bono has enormous artistic talent, but his success is rooted in a work 
ethic. Practice and refinement hallmark his efforts.
  Bono speaks to a new generation of youth because he understands that 
their yearnings and dreams include a common concern for the human 
condition and a desire to tap the idealistic side of human nature.
  It is Bono's idealism and capacity to communicate that define his 
leadership. When Bono sings, people join in; when he speaks, he 
inspires people to care.
  The world is obligated to take note of this hooker with an 
international conscience.

                          ____________________