Launch article

["L. Bird" <pkeets@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Here's a really good representation of Roger's statements on this.  It looks 
like some of the press is willing to present this issue, which is great.  
I'd love to see more of it.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/launch/20030709/en_launch/214073


Roger Daltrey Rips British Authorities Over Pete Townshend Case
Wed Jul 9, 8:00 AM ET

LAUNCH Radio Networks

Roger Daltrey has blasted British authorities for the way they dealt with 
Pete Townshend and his child pornography arrest in January. Daltrey told the 
U.K. newspaper the Daily Telegraph that his Who bandmate "didn't deserve to 
be treated like a criminal because that's the last thing he is...There was a 
huge breach of his civil liberties, and I don't think we should sit back and 
watch that kind of thing happen without fighting it."

Townshend admitted to using his credit card to visit a child porn website. 
He claimed it was for research for his upcoming autobiography, which will 
detail his own sexual abuse as a child. Townshend was arrested but never 
officially charged with a crime, and after a lengthy investigation, he was 
placed on the British sex offenders registry, where his name will stay for 
five years.

Daltrey said that police examined 14 computers belonging to Townshend and 
found nothing on them, causing him to ask, "What are we becoming? The 
f--king Taliban? Pete's an artist and may have been naive, but he did 
nothing wrong and told the truth from the start. But he was treated as 
though he was guilty of the worst crimes and crucified without a trial by 
people with no accountability. It's a f--king disgrace. Everything they did 
to him was appalling."

Daltrey added, "If [Townshend] had told a pack of lies, they wouldn't have 
come after him. But he didn't hide anything and paid a price for being 
honest. He has a long history of working to help abused people, and has 
spent a lot of time thinking about the problem. That's just a fact. But 
nobody wanted to listen to his explanation, and now--too late--they find 
he's guilty of doing nothing."

While Daltrey is upset with the authorities, he's also unhappy with the 
reaction from the population at large. "If this was the '60s, more people 
would see this witch hunt for what it is and start a protest," he said. 
"It's not just about Pete. It's about having some control over our lives and 
not letting the police do whatever they want...Not many people think for 
themselves now. They're like wallpaper. Well, they'd better wake up and 
think about what happened to Pete, because that wasn't the end of anything. 
It was the beginning of a witch hunt and nobody's safe."

Daltrey also talked about the death last June of bassist John Entwistle. He 
said it really wasn't a surprise to him: "John hadn't looked healthy for a 
long time. I'm a big believer in alternative medicine and healthy living, 
and I can tell when someone looks ill. I saw it in John's pallor and his 
eyes. He lived hard and he took risks. Whenever I saw him in the last few 
years, I always made a habit of giving him a big hug before I left him. I 
was never sure I'd see him again."

However, Daltrey salutes the way Entwistle went out, in bed with a stripper. 
He said, "Ask any man what he would prefer--to live to a ripe old age and 
die alone or to go out shagging your b-lls off with strippers in Vegas? Come 
on, let's be honest. It's not a death that any man should be ashamed of."

On a happier note, Daltrey told the paper that he and Townshend will start 
work on a new album soon, which will be followed by a tour. "We're not going 
to give up now," he said. "As long as Pete's there on guitar, and I'm there 
to sing the lead, you're going to have the Who. The sound is still there. 
And in my opinion, Pete's getting better as the years go by. Nothing is 
going to stop us, not the government or the press or anybody. We're going to 
keep playing until we drop dead."

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