Queen always does the same mistake - they (especially Brian) are trying to explain why they did this or that! Sun City, Rome show etc. - and explanations always are terrible! "You can dance and sing in the day I die" - it's something what I'd preffer not hear at all... I'm not sure if Roger nor Brian sung and danced when Freddie's dead!
Do what you want to and have to do because of your contracts and don't explain it!
1st, I agree that when Freddie died, or in the analogies of when Princess Diana died, or IF Queen Elizabeth had ever died, I truly don't think that Brian & Roger would have continued to hold the concert. If anything, because of their own grief (yes..when it applies to Brian & Roger...I realize they had no personal feelings for The Pope unlike Freddie or Diana..but that is irrelevant),they should have cancelled out of respect for other people's grief.
2nd. I still think no matter what, that Sun City was while I am sure not done out of anything other than sheer lack of common sense...it caused ---YEARS--- of repercussions that Brian & Roger & Queen have to constantly go on the defensive of, do damage control, explain themselves, re-explain themselves over & over, do charity work as a sign of their apology, etc. etc. yes it did hurt their career. I cannot believe that they learned NOTHING from that experience.
This is Not even a case of that the Queen fans with tickets to the Rome concert thought it was fine to continue to hold the concert in Rome, that MANY of us Queenzoners think it was fine, that many people around the world think it was fine. Well alot of people thought Sun City was fine...but alot of people did NOT think it was fine, and took exception to it and have used it to scapegoat and tear Queen down to THIS DAY.
It's a matter of GOOD COMMON SENSE and GOOD PUBLIC RELATIONS, GOOD PERSONAL JUDGEMENT, and GOOD BUSINESS SENSE, like it or not, even if they lost alot of money on cancelling the gig...to cancel the gig and reschedule it later. Brian & Roger have now set themselves up and opened themselves up to another can of worms where ANYONE with an agenda to blacklist or attack them...now has plenty of artillery...
How could they place themselves in so vulnerable a position?
Also, I TOTALLY agree that the Pope did alot of good especially this Pope.
However the Pope did alot of BAD things too, I agree his "Forgiveness and absolvement" of the pedophile criminal priests worldwide, his condemnation of gays (and therefore Freddie's sexual orientation), his condemnation of birth control, his condemnation of women as priests, his cndemnation of same sex marriages, and ESPECIALLY his condemnation of the use of condoms which would have helped stall the spread of AIDS and therefore SAVE MILLIONS of lives worldwide...was Lucicrous, insidious, and out of the dark ages.
But The Vatican, is as alot of you know and said, a city unto itself, and The Pope is it's ACTUAL PRESIDENT/LEADER. If Brian & Roger had been scheduled to play in any nation in the world the week that that nation's leader died, they also probably would have cancelled.
I....am Jewish.--- I TOTALLY disagree with ALOT of what the Pope stands for and did. But...I understand to RESPECT other religions' and nations' cultures.
Brian & Roger can hate the Pope for all I care. It would NOT have been hypocritical to cancel the concert. It would have shown the world...that they learned from Sun City...and showed RESPECT for the views of others, whether or not Brian & Roger do, or do NOT agree with or observe those views...but playing the concert showed total disrespect and a TOTAL lack of good judgement on their part.
I am VERY concerned that again, ANYONE with an Agenda to attack them, now has plenty of reason to twist this and use this against them...