Don't Mess With The Messiah
I love Barbra Streisand. This is no secret. I respect Barbra and consider her a messiah. 
Who else would be unabashed enough to tell someone at Madison Square Garden, in front of thousands of people no less, to "Shut the fuck up". Yes, Barbra Streisand told a heckler at her NYC concert "Shut the fuck up would you? Shut up if you can't take a joke!" I even have bootlegged video of part of it:
You know watching that clip I feel a sense of pride and representation. Barbra speaks for all of us when she uttered that statement. Symbolically she was telling the nay-sayers and assholes of the world off. That's my kind of person. I would have done the same damn thing had I been in her Manolo's.
Now I know there are MANY people out there that despise her (try a few million) and view this as yet another outrageous and egocentric display and I can see how from one point of view they feel that way. Only a person who is very self-confident and of great hubris would utter such a scathing expletive filled command to some stranger in a place such as Madison Square Garden. Though why you'd pay $1000 to go see her just for the sake of heckling is beyond me. But that's another rant entirely...
I have often been asked "Why do you like her? What is so great about her?" Well I'll tell you, aside for the fact that she is an immensely gifted singer, I like Barbra because she is a fighter, a person of great spirituality and strength who knows what she wants and gets it. Barbra struggled against adversity and judgment as a young person and through her perseverance and talent rose to a place of glory and achievement, and after all these years is still an iconic powerhouse. Why the younger generation of Gay men have abandoned her is beyond me.
I also like Barbra Streisand because I can relate to her on a very core level; we are both very much alike. Both of us are dreamers and visionaries who have extremely high standards, a passion for our art, and strong personalities. We speak our minds freely and sometimes take on issues that are unpopular and don't care what others think about us as a result. People in positions of authority and in society constantly question and challenge us and yet we keep on fighting and finding a way around adversity and setbacks.
Yes, we can both be bitches and "divas" but keep in mind that it is the bitches and the divas, the Alpha personalities of the world, that make things happen and get stuff done. And yes we both get caught up in our own egos at times, but whenever you overcome situations of difficultly and prove others wrong there is a certain amount of pride that is manifested. When you really think about it that is a very human quality, just look at all the athletes and other celebrities that are famous just because they're famous who have huge out-of-control egos and behave badly all the time. At least Barbra keeps the ego displays and bad behavior limited to situational circumstances.
