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Crow preaches peace, Osbournes poke fun at ex-couple Britney and Justin<br><br>By BETH HARRIS<br><br>LOS ANGELES, AP - 14 Jan - Sheryl Crow, an activist for recording artists' rights, brought her own message against a possible war with Iraq to Monday night's American Music Awards.<br><br>Crow accepted her award for pop-rock female artist wearing a white T-shirt emblazoned with the message "war is not the answer" in black sequins. She had the V-neck shirt specially made.<br><br>"I just think there's a really vital, sweeping peace movement out there that's not getting covered in the press, so I just kind of try to do my part," she said backstage.<br><br>"I think war is based in greed and there are huge karmic retributions that will follow. I think war is never the answer to solving any problems. The best way to solve problems is to not have enemies."<br><br>___<br><br>MTV's outrageous Osbournes singled out ex-sweethearts Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake for some laughs during the opening moments of the show.<br><br>"I'm going to have to take him, Britney. He's all mine," Sharon Osbourne said as her son Jack walked into the audience to plop on Spears' lap while her daughter Kelly sat on Timberlake's lap.<br><br>Spears and Timberlake, who were sitting apart, played along and laughed. The pair ended their high-profile romance last year.<br><br>Rocker Ozzy Osbourne and his family, stars of the MTV reality series "The Osbournes," were hosts of the awards show, broadcast on ABC from Los Angeles' Shrine Auditorium. They kept network censors busy with their plentiful use of four-letter words.<br><br>Later in the show, Timberlake presented an award with Sharon Osbourne and her dog, and at Osbourne's encouragement, Timberlake bent down and kissed the pooch.<br><br>Crow wasn't a fan of the opening banter.<br><br>"My private life would never be part of the opening act," she said backstage. <b off></b>
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