Why you can't be apolitical: Ed Sheeran and the billionaire problem

Ed Sheeran said he doesn't do politics. Then Macklemore said Free Palestine on stage in New Jersey — and the tour exploded.

I am not an Ed Sheeran fan so I thought I wouldn't have any meaningful thoughts on his recent self-inflicted wounds. But the more I looked at the players — yes, Sheeran, Pink, and Macklemore, but more importantly the billionaire stadium owner and us, the audience, I realised this incident has something to tell us about our current media and cultural moment.

Cards on the table: I think Sheeran is a coward. I think he is fundamentally mistaken in the idea that he even can be apolitical. But I also don't think ultimately he's the bad guy here... The problem, as it so often is these days, is that the actual bad guy is beyond the reach of our anger or consequences. That's what we need to spend more of our energy on. Because boycotting Ed Sheeran may feel nice to some... but if what you actually want is a Free Palestine, it doesn't achieve much. Taxing or curtailing Robert Kraft and his ilk might.

In this video: the timeline of events, the bigger picture, and why I'm frustrated with a a lot of people whom I presumably agree with!