Immediate Release
June 7, 2005

Karl Buechner Defends Straight Edge on Fox News' At Large with Geraldo
Rivera



On Sunday, June 5th, former Earth Crisis singer and current singer for
Freya Karl Buechner went live on At Large with Geraldo Rivera to provide
the perspective of a lifelong Straight Edger in a discussion over the
recent classification of Straight Edge as a gang in Reno, NV. On board
for this segment was the father of a youth murdered in Salt Lake City in
1998 (for which two Straight Edge men were convicted) and a police
officer from Reno and Geraldo Rivera. In a brief segment, Buechner
defended Straight Edge as a positive choice, maintaining that the
mainstream media only visits the topic when something negative happens,
failing to cover the issues with an even hand. While his remarks were
well-received on the television segment, it was less than ten minutes
long, with four guests to hear from. Such a short segment on an
inflammatory topic raises more questions than it answers. Here is a
statement from Karl Buechner regarding the Straight Edge movement and
the events in Nevada and Utah.



A Statement from Karl Buechner:

"On Sunday night, Fox News broadcasted a story on violent incidents
involving Straight Edge youth in Utah and Nevada. I was one of the
guests in the discussion. In Salt Lake City two Straight Edgers were
sent to prison for the murder of a teen they killed in a fight. In
Reno, the police arrested Straight Edgers for beating kids with bats,
and they have classified Straight Edge as a gang. The screen was split
four ways: with Geraldo, the father of the murdered teen, a police
officer from Reno and me. In my interview I said Straight Edge has
existed for 25 years, there are tens of thousands of believers who are
law abiding, productive people who live clean lives and that the
movement is worldwide. I went on to say that it was disappointing to me
that the media only seems to come around with the cameras in the rare
event that something negative happens, meaning that these violent
incidents are basically a footnote to the overall Straight Edge story.
As to this particular sad story, I maintained that beating someone up
over an issue of disrespect is throwing your entire life away - it's a
tragic end on both sides. After four years of high school you will never
see these people again.



From the onset the idea was pushed that the fights happened because the
Straight Edge kids attacked drinkers or smokers and I am very doubtful
that it was the reason. Straight Edge is now classified as a gang in
the states of Utah and Nevada as a result of these incidents. The police
officer agreed with me that 90% of all Straight Edge people are peaceful
and law abiding.



In my past experience, when journalists have taken the time to explore
this subject in depth, the resulting coverage has been very even handed.
When a film crew from CNN did a story on my former band Earth Crisis and
the Straight Edge scene, they were with us for three days and that
documentary came out crystal clear. The same for my interviews on MTV's
anti-alcohol special "Smashed", ABC News and 48 Hours. It is important
to point out in fairness to the Geraldo program that the topic was only
covered for 5-6 minutes. I think it deserves a closer look.



Straight Edge is defined as a lifetime commitment to abstain from
alcohol, tobacco, drugs and promiscuity. It has changed thousands of
lives for the better, steering young people clear of many of society's
problems."



For more information on Straight Edge, including articles and
interviews, visit XSisterhoodX at http://xsisterhoodx.com/xxx/articles/



For More information on Karl Buechner, visit www.freya315.com
<http://www.freya315.com/> and www.victoryrecords.com
<http://www.victoryrecords.com/>



News Resources:

Reno Gazette Journal report dated 5/30/2005
http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2005/05/30/100693.php

Salt Lake City Weekly report dated 5/1/2003
www.slweekly.com//editorial/2003/city_2003-05-01.cfm
<http://www.slweekly.com/editorial/2003/city_2003-05-01.cfm>

yeah my friend kelly/sisterhood.com was interviewed by someone from Geraldo/Fox about being on the show. She apparently wasn't hard/interesting enough to be accepted.

Fuck that dude.

Fuck that retard. I hope he gets jumped by a bunch of pussies with nothing better to do.

I take back any negative things I've said about Karl/EC in the past, he's got my respect for standing up against the media and doing a good job at it.

Tons of gangs who drink and are on drugs attack anyone and that's never listed as the reason why.

that article in a short sentence.

Stupid bored kids, need a hobby, my pussy hurts.

Also, Geraldo is a fucking dipshit.

saw that live it was awesome, caught it by accident going thru the channels. he starts screaming at Karl.

hes soooo 'gritty'
he reminds me of robert downy jr's charectar in NBK.

he reminds me of a straightedge homo

I meant Geraldo....but ok.

Anyone have this video that can be downloaded?

Karl:It's everyone's fault but us poor straight edge kids (by the way I'm 47)!!!! Straight edge is all about taking personal responsibility!!!

the simple fact of the matter is that as long as you dont smoke crack or shoot heroin or some stupid shit like that, and dont drink till you pass out and put on a rubber before you fuck some hatchet faced hose hound, you will be fine!

the one thing i dont get about karl and all his peace and healthy lifestyle talk is that his band earth crisis used to have some of the most vicious hardcore shows around, how is kids getting gang beat for not being sxe at your show promoting peace and unity?

people are still straight edge

Did anyone else ever see that picture of Karl when he was 15 or so and had bad teeth and was all crusty? Well, I suppose all crusties have bad teeth but...

I'm not sure I ever actually had a point here.

VIDEO:
http://www.siczine.com/geraldo2.avi

bump

Fuck yeahhh!
I'll drink to that!

more like gay edge, that dumb fag!

a couple beers never hurt anyone

honestly, earth crisis is one of my favorite bands to listen to when I'm drunk... them and blitz.

Why is it that we can send thousands and thousands and thousands of troops to Iraq and Afghanastan and they catch bullets, but we send Geraldo Rivera over there and NOT ONE FUCKING bullet can hit this guy?

I'm not straight edge, and I think Karl did a horrible job defending their cause. He seemed like such a pussy up there and very ill prepared. He also looked annoyed, especially when Geraldo kept fucking up the name of his band. But at what point do you say enough is enough and defend yourself and what you believe in. You're getting lectured by Geraldo Rivera of all people and all you can do is roll your eyes and talk about your band's DVD?

Maybe he was nervous, I don't know. I can't say I wouldn't be if it were me in his position, but he's sitting there representing thousands of people that share his beliefs and I just don't think he succeeded in changing any viewers mind. For the most part, people that sit around watching Fox news probably aren't going to know anything about this "movement" or whatever you want to call it. They're leaving that segment with a very negative perception.

I respect Karl for having the balls to get up there and do it, but I just think he could have represented everything better without seeming like such a pushover...