5. Morrissey
Former Smiths front man Morrissey is no stranger to controversial comments. He has been outspoken over the years about numerous causes, most notably including his view on politics and animal rights. If he did it in a clever, well thought out way it wouldn't be a problem. Unfortunately he does so while being as unlikeable as possible, making the masses increasingly unlikely to get behind his cause. Morrissey was recently back in the news for accusing meat eaters of being just as bad as pedophiles because both involve rape, violence and murder. This was a typically over the top comparison that most sane people on the planet would struggle to agree with. He added that meat eaters would have been Nazi sympathizers during the war because anyone who believes in an abattoir would have supported Auschwitz. And that's what he does. He makes ridiculous observations that are so over the top that they can barely be discussed without everyone involved sounding idiotic. He goes for the most offensive, hyperbolic statements imaginable to maximize attention and outrage. It's gotten to the point where barely anyone takes him seriously anymore and each new crazy claim is greeted with a barrage of eye rolls. What about his fans? Are we to believe that Morrissey thinks all of his fans don't eat meat? And then by his logic does that mean he's okay with having people in his fan base who are pedophiles and Nazi sympathizers? It's all nonsensical extremism with minimal logic applied. Morrissey is also a huge follower of PETA who themselves over the years have come across as hugely hypocritical. They themselves are a bigger story for another day but if you want to learn more about them, there is a great episode of "Penn and Teller's Bull***" that centers around them. A few years ago, when Anders Breivik massacred an island full of innocent people in Norway, Morrissey inserted himself in the story for no reason and claimed the murders were "nothing compared to what happens in McDonalds and KFC every day." In 2009 at Coachella he left the stage during his performance simply because he SMELLED meat in the air. This was at a festival that he surely knew ahead of time would be selling such products. So much for the people who paid to see him. Despite all his nonsense he still maintains a strong fan base proving that if he would just shut up and sing then his music is good enough to get him by. The Smiths will go down as one of the most influential bands ever but Morrissey himself might just go down as one of the most pompous, contrary attention seekers of all time. There are many ways to fight your causes than just being controversial for the sake of it. Morrissey is clearly smart enough to bring a well thought out debate to the table rather than just throwing hyperbole at the wall and seeing what sticks. Despite this, I'm sure when his novel is released in the near future he'll come out with another statement comparing people who don't read books to people who shoot up their school.