Christopher Hitchens on Tipper Gore and Henry Kissinger – News Review Part 9 (1988)
May 12th, 2010 | by admin |
March 14, 1988
Mary Elizabeth Gore (née Aitcheson) (born August 19, 1948), commonly known as Tipper Gore, is an author, photographer, former Second Lady of the United States, and the wife of Al Gore. She is also well known for her active role in the Parents Music Resource Center and voicing strong opinions for the labelling of record covers of releases featuring profane language, especially in the heavy metal and rap genres.
The Center for Defense Information (CDI), founded in 1972 by retired U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Gene La Rocque, states that it is dedicated to strengthening national and international security through: international cooperation; reduced reliance on unilateral military power to resolve conflict; reduced reliance on nuclear weapons; a transformed and reformed U.S. military establishment; and prudent oversight of defense programs. Currently operating under the aegis of the World Security Institute. It is composed of academics and high-ranking retired U.S. military officers who conduct critical analyses of U.S. defense and security policy.
The CDI regularly publishes the “Defense Monitor.”
After the 2008 U.S. elections, it released “Americas Defense Meltdown: Pentagon Reform for President Obama and the New Congress”, a collection of briefing papers by a dozen defense intellectuals and retired military officers.
Gore is the author of a number of books including:
* Raising PG Kids in an X-Rated Society, 1987
* Picture This: A Visual Diary, 1996
* From the Bottom of Our Hearts, 2002 (introduction)
* Joined at the Heart: The Transformation of the American Family, 2002 (with Al Gore)
* The Spirit of Family, 2002 (with Al Gore)
In 1985, she co-founded the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC) with Susan Baker, wife of then United States Secretary of the Treasury James Baker, because Tipper heard her then 11-year-old daughter playing “Darling Nikki” by Prince. According to an article by NPR, Gore went “before Congress to urge warning labels for records marketed to children.” A number of individuals including Dee Snider of Twisted Sister, Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys, John Denver, Joey Ramone and Frank Zappa criticized the group, arguing that it was a form of censorship. In response, NPR further stated that according to Gore, she “wasn’t out to censor the objectionable material” and quoted her as stating that she is “a strong believer in the First Amendment” who is calling for greater “consumer information in the marketplace.”
Gore resigned from the group in 1992 when she became Second Lady. As Second Lady, Gore was one of 150 photographers for 24 Hours in Cyberspace which took place online on 8 February 1996. It was “the largest one-day online event” up to that date, headed by photographer Rick Smolan.
She was actively involved in her husband’s presidential campaign in 2000, making numerous campaign stops nationwide such as at Chicago’s Taste of Polonia over Labor Day Weekend where she appeared along with Hadassah Lieberman and Dick Cheney.
In 2002, Tipper was urged by her supporters to run for the vacant U.S. Senate seat her husband once held in Tennessee, which was being vacated by Fred Thompson. However, she declined.
In 2003, Gore spoke at the “Erasing the Stigma Awards” about her experience with depression after her son, Al Gore III was hit by a car when he was a young child.
Duration : 0:2:37
[youtube fmvRZ73AFPs]