It's not all for the nookie

Taking the moral high road for perhaps the first time, Fred Durst, the frontman of Limp Bizkit, sat down with MTV News and said that in the wake of the Attack on America he is a changed man.\nGone are the days of petty beef with Eminem, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails and Christina, the girl for whom it was all for the Nookie. \nNow is the time when Durst has finally realized that his petty wars with other artists and ex-girlfriends mean nothing in the eyes of a country at war.\nHumbled by the death of many in a war that has only just begun, Durst has seen the bigger picture and put differences with many artists behind. In his interview with MTV, he said that he hopes other artists would do the same.\nNever a fan of Durst or the music of Limp Bizkit, the road that Durst has chosen to take in this situation although an obvious one to me, is a good one. He has chosen to join forces with many musicians, put his shady past behind him and pay tribute to the strength of America and the sorrow of those who have lost love ones.\nDurst is producing one of the three versions of the remake of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On;" a tribute initially planned to benefit AIDS research that now will split proceeds with the United Way fund established for September 11th.\nInstead of staying in his confined star-studded world where he talks a lot of trash and has album release parties at the Playboy Mansion, Durst has realized that he is just another person. Amid a war of hate, he has realized that there is no more room for jealousy or hate of other artists over past trash talking battles that seem to escalate for no reason at all.\nDurst stands as an example for the other artists who still sit in their isolated palaces and fume about bad press or lyrics of artists that might have dissed them. There is no time for hate over music in the hearts of Durst or of any other artist or American.\nDurst represents to me what I have felt since the tragedy of Sept. 11. Before that date, I got furious over losing two points on a quiz. I was more worried about my relationship with my current crush than with any form of terrorism that since the bombing of the trade center I often forgot existed.\nLost in my world of my Tiffany's jewelry and North Face jackets, I led my minor college life thinking that needing a manicure or to somehow pull an "A" in a class I didn't do any work for was the biggest challenge of the week.\nNow, like Durst, I have seen the bigger picture. President George W. Bush called up 2,000 more reserves yesterday. Fort Bragg, an army base in my home state of North Carolina, has been put on alert and soon everyone there will join the war effort. Mothers are saying goodbye to children they may never see again. In the past week mothers have already had to say goodbye to children they didn't even get a chance to say last words to. \nThis is the big picture. So when you go to the bars and drink yourself numb, remember that your boyfriend cheating on you, the test you failed yesterday or the fight you just had with your best friend are not the problems in your life or in this country. All of these trivial daily blemishes only scratch the surface of a world of war that our nation is diving into headfirst.