DISTURBED's DAN DONEGAN: 'When Are We Gonna Come Together And Just Stop This Insanity?'

DISTURBED's Dan Donegan has weighed in on last weekend's attempt on former U.S. president Donald Trump's life, pointing out the dangers of unchecked division in the country and noting that the incident serves as a sobering reminder that political discourse can often descend into vitriol. The 55-year-old musician, who lives in a southwest Chicago suburb, took to his Instagram Live on Monday (July 15) to say (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Crazy times this week with the assassination attempt. I don't really like to speak out and get too political, but it's just crazy times, as it's been for a number of years now.

"There used to be a day and age to where we would go to the polls and we would vote for the candidate that we choose and keep it to ourselves," he continued. "And half the country, or nearly half the country, wouldn't get the results that they want, but you cross your fingers and you hope for the best, 'cause all we want is things to thrive and to leave a good place for our children and future grandkids and hope for the best. And no matter what party you vote, this is just ridiculous, to think that this is some kind of solution and answer by trying to take out a former president."

Donegan, who in the past had shared posts on his personal Facebook page that amplified Republican talking points and that were derogatory to Democrats, added: "The media, as we all know, is a lot to blame for that, for their own agendas. Them and late-night shows that were meant to entertain us push their agendas and are no longer funny anymore. And they are part of the problem of causing this division between us. And social media. This right here — Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, all of it, TikTok, it's caused so much separation around the world, but especially in this country, so much division because now we have this platform to voice our opinions and to disagree and to fight over it, when in the past we would just vote and hope for the best. And now everybody comes on here and when you don't get what you want, people throw a temper tantrum and we sit here and we attack each other. And it's been going on for way too long.

"When are we gonna unite? When are we gonna come together and just stop this insanity? It's just fucking nuts," Dan said.

"No matter who you voted for or what party you stand behind, at the end of the day, former president Trump is a father and a grandfather and someone who loves this country. And I wouldn't wish that on anybody — [current U.S. president Joe] Biden, [former U.S. president Barack] Obama, anybody — just because we have disagreements.

"If you want change, or if you want the same, go to the polls. That's all you can do. And I'm just tired of seeing it all go on these platforms and people just continuing to attack each other and create more division. It's just a sad, sad world that we live in.

"But that's all I'm gonna do," Donegan concluded. "That's all my rant. I wouldn't even say it's a rant. It's just tough times."

A year ago, Donegan was asked by Planet Rock if the title of DISTURBED's latest album, "Divisive", is an observation or it is a statement of intent that he and his bandmates are trying to be divisive. He said at the time: "I usually am maybe more cryptic in my answers 'cause I like to leave it up for your own interpretation on how you view it. But, yeah, it's just the divisive nature of just the state of the world and the industry and how things have been going on in America especially. It's been quite crazy, if you've seen. So it's been a rough go. And I think… I don't know what the hell happened. We're so divided, now more than ever. You go on social media and everybody's there… It's, like, you wake up in the morning ready to start… Who can I attack today? We focus so much on our differences and the things that we dislike or disagree on or hate. And it's just kind of… When's it gonna be over? It's just like one big temper tantrum from everyone."

The person who shot at Donald Trump during a campaign rally was identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, a 20-year-old registered Republican who also donated $15 to liberal campaign group ActBlue in 2021. A former classmate of Crooks later said told Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper that Thomas was "definitely" conservative. Crooks's father was a registered libertarian and his mother was a Democrat.

"Divisive" came out in November 2022. The LP was recorded earlier that year with producer Drew Fulk (MOTIONLESS IN WHITE, LIL PEEP, HIGHLY SUSPECT) in Nashville, Tennessee.