Libya has fallen into a state of civil war, with reports emerging that it's leader, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi has ordered his loyalists to kill demonstrators on sight, who want him out of power.
That Qaddafi would order such attacks comes as a surprise to nobody. But the thought that some American entertainers have performed for the dictator's family in recent years is drawing loud criticism from many.
A New York Times article says singer Mariah Carey was paid $1 million dollars to perform four songs at a 2009 New Year's Eve party in St Barts for Qaddafi's son, Seif al-Islam.
More recently Usher and Beyonce have been paid hefty sums to perform for the family.
Howie Klein, former president of Reprise Records told Rolling Stone the thought of entertainers performing for "criminals" makes him sick.
"When I saw Beyoncé and Usher and whoever else was out partying with these Libyan criminals … these are people who have stolen tens of billions of dollars from their nation. What they all have in common is they're all kleptocracies – they've got a family stealing all the money. And for very, very wealthy American and British pop stars to take part in this kind of thing makes me want to puke," he said
So the question is where should entertainers draw the line? Should they have a moral responsibility to not take a paycheck from the Qaddafi's or others like them?
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