Hilarious: Just the other day I was writing about Eddie Vedder's Jesus complex, and here he goes and gives a command performance, impaling George Bush (in effigy) during a concert. (Link courtesy of Drudge.) Brilliant statement, I know, but the encore was even better. During a ramble (induced by the ravages of a drug called smug self-satisfaction) on the evils of the Bush/Iraq/Halliburton/Jew/Nazi/Defense-Contractor conspiracy, or whatever, a kid in the audience told Vedder to shut up.

"Did someone just say, 'Shut up'? I don't know if you heard about this thing called freedom of speech, man. It's worth thinking about it, because it's going away," Vedder said. "In the last year of being able to use it, we're sure as (expletive) going to use it and I'm not gonna apologize."

Golly. The last year of free speech? Who knew? Wait, is it a Jesus complex Vedder has, or a cornball, the-end-is-near, street-preacher/hustler complex? (He might have caught the latter from Howard "The Handmaid's Tale is Bush's Blueprint for Women's Rights" Dean.) Given that Pearl Jam was last relevant about the time of the Gulf War, they must think the bombing of Baghdad heralds their return from obscurity. Think Vedder was disappointed when fans began to walk out on his tirade? I don't. I think he felt smugly superior to the "idiots" who didn't care to pay good money to be lectured.