At 41, Bono is at an age when many rock musicians start exploiting bygone successes to keep feeding at the trough of fame. But with Bono, its more than a rock n roll career. Behind the black leather togs and wraparound shades, there has always been an earnest social crusader. Embarrassingly earnest? Perhaps. But, oddly, thats part of his charm. In a business where people sell their souls for success, he has constantly risked celebrity-cause cliché -- and he knows it. "The only thing worse than a rock star," he told the starry-eyed Harvard grads, "is a rock star with a conscience. Ive seen great minds and prolific imaginations disappear up their own ass, strung out on their own self-importance. Im one of them."
http://www.salon.com/people/bc/2001/10/02/bono/index.html?CP=RDF&DN=310
