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BARBRA STEISAND on stage at the Kodak Theatre 28 Sept:<br><br>"We have the facts on our side, the truth on our side," Streisand declared in an Alan and<br>Marilyn Bergman-penned monologue, which include a rework of THE WAY WE WERE. <br><br>"I find George Bush and Dick Cheney frightening," Streisand continued. "Donald Rumsfeld and<br>John Ashcroft frightening... I find bringing the country to the brink of war unilaterally five<br>weeks before an election questionable - and very, very frightening..." <br><br>Streisand told the crowd: "You know, really good artists have a way of being relevant in their<br>time… but great artists are relevant at anytime. So, in the words of William Shakespeare,<br>'Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic<br>fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it<br>narrows the mind…And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with<br>hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the<br>citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded with patriotism, will offer up<br>all of their rights unto the leader, and gladly so.How do I know? For this is what I have<br>done.And I am Caesar.'" <br><br>Streisand explained to the audience: "Imagine that was written over 400 years ago… It's amazing<br>how history without consciousness is destined to repeat itself. So…from the words of William<br>Shakespeare to the words of Irving Berlin…" <br><br>But on the morning after the night before, Streisand has been caught up in a Shakespeare<br>internet hoax. <br><br>"Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic<br>fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword..." <br><br>The passage may have fit the scene and storyline, but no record of this quote has been found<br>prior to its appearance on the internet [in e-mails] last year. <br><br>The quote is NOT FOUND, IN ANY FORM, IN THE COMPLETE WORKS OF SHAKESPEARE, OXFORD EDITION, AT<br>BARTLEBY.COM. <br><br>Streisand plans to address the mess in a 'truth alert' on her Web site, barbrastreisand.com,<br>later Tuesday. Drudge Report, 1 Oct 2002
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