Man, i've been feeling so guilty about not posting in my journal lately. I keep thinking of it and wanting to say something when i have a free moment, but then that free moment never happens or else i can't think of what to say. I'm keeping an eye on the news lately (or rather, David Letterman) to see how things are shaping up with the election down south (or rather, how it's being presented to the public). I love the CBC. Marc has to cut down on his election exposure... he says that when he starts thinking about it, he has trouble sleeping.
What I really take delight in is how David Letterman makes fun of each candidate. With Kerry, it's always a bunch of words they've spliced together to make some ridiculous sentence, or they make fun of him drinking a glass of water, or something pretty benign and not at all serious... then followed by something about Bush in which they show something he's said in public, unedited, just naturally ridiculous... just straight out of the horse's mouth. The contrast is striking, i love the way, night after night, they wordlessly point out this obvious difference.
I've also heard a few debates going on among musicians about whether or not to involve the political discussion in their interactions with their audience, whether it be on or offstage. Some musicians are obviously very comfortable with discussing politics and some even feel it's their duty as a public figure to increase political awareness and involvement. Then I've heard others strongly protest that they feel it's wrong to use their stage as a soapbox. Maybe they feel that people are bombarded enough with political discussion and propaganda elsewhere in their lives and why should they be hit with it in their entertainment too?
While i may not write every song about a political subject, I personally can see the benefit of music as a means for cultural change. There's already so much media / entertainment out there that is based on distracting the general public. (It's either that, or trying to invoke fear). Some of the most influential music in the last 50 years (or more) came out of a passion to incite cultural or political change. To say that music is should only be created for carefree entertainment is to buy into the messages that we're being bombarded with day after day. Don't think, just consume. Be too scared to act. Distract, distract, distract.
What I really take delight in is how David Letterman makes fun of each candidate. With Kerry, it's always a bunch of words they've spliced together to make some ridiculous sentence, or they make fun of him drinking a glass of water, or something pretty benign and not at all serious... then followed by something about Bush in which they show something he's said in public, unedited, just naturally ridiculous... just straight out of the horse's mouth. The contrast is striking, i love the way, night after night, they wordlessly point out this obvious difference.
I've also heard a few debates going on among musicians about whether or not to involve the political discussion in their interactions with their audience, whether it be on or offstage. Some musicians are obviously very comfortable with discussing politics and some even feel it's their duty as a public figure to increase political awareness and involvement. Then I've heard others strongly protest that they feel it's wrong to use their stage as a soapbox. Maybe they feel that people are bombarded enough with political discussion and propaganda elsewhere in their lives and why should they be hit with it in their entertainment too?
While i may not write every song about a political subject, I personally can see the benefit of music as a means for cultural change. There's already so much media / entertainment out there that is based on distracting the general public. (It's either that, or trying to invoke fear). Some of the most influential music in the last 50 years (or more) came out of a passion to incite cultural or political change. To say that music is should only be created for carefree entertainment is to buy into the messages that we're being bombarded with day after day. Don't think, just consume. Be too scared to act. Distract, distract, distract.
