] ] "If you're listening to a rock star in order to get your
] ] information on who to vote for, you're a bigger moron
] ] than they are.

This is the only thing Alice Cooper says that I agree with. He's assertion that musicians have no right to discuss politics is beyond stupid.

Politics are one of the most important forces in music. CCR, Bob Dylan, the entrie Punk movement, The Doors Janis Joplin, Rage Against the Machine, Eminem, the list goes on and on. Now I agree a song entitled "Vote for Kerry" whose lyrics are nothing but "Vote for Kerry" is retarded.

In this day and age of 15 sec attention spans, music and song are a perfect medium for imforming the public about political issues.

Acidus wrote:
] ] ] "If you're listening to a rock star in order to get your
] ] ] information on who to vote for, you're a bigger moron
] ] ] than they are.
]
] This is the only thing Alice Cooper says that I agree with.
] He's assertion that musicians have no right to discuss
] politics is beyond stupid.
]
] Politics are one of the most important forces in music. CCR,
] Bob Dylan, the entrie Punk movement, The Doors Janis Joplin,
] Rage Against the Machine, Eminem, the list goes on and on. Now
] I agree a song entitled "Vote for Kerry" whose lyrics are
] nothing but "Vote for Kerry" is retarded.

The punk movement started out as an apolitical movement. The doors never wrote political songs and Jim Morrisson was a heartless conservative. Janis wasn't particularly political in her songs, either. Anyway, music and politics can go together well, but for God's sake, why do they simply support the democratic party line? Watching Lou Reed say in 2000 that he was supporting Clinton in spite of Al Gore's presence on the ticket turned my stomache. He said that Tipper Gore's pro-censorship activism was "water under the bridge." What a cop out! Zappa found out about Gore's presence as Clinton's running mate and commented that he would vote republican for the first time in his life in 1992. At least that guy had integrity and a free mind.
]
] In this day and age of 15 sec attention spans, music and song
] are a perfect medium for imforming the public about political
] issues.

Or we can let those with the 15 second attention spans be clueless, as they deserve to be. After all, when their devolution is done, they won't even be able to vote. They will be busy pumping gas and plowing fields. Keep voting in the hands of those who care about the land, not those who like John Cougar Mellencamp and the fucking Dixie Chicks. Shit, keep it out of the hands of any mindless monkeys that vote for elephants or asses.

Vile wrote:

] The punk movement started out as an apolitical movement.

True, and now it's just a fashion statement.

] The
] doors never wrote political songs and Jim Morrisson was a
] heartless conservative.

Bzzt. Both 'unknown soldier' and 'twentieth century fox' are pretty loud political commentaries (for the times), and Morrison was anything but a conservative. He supported women's liberation, and legalization of drugs, both pretty radical at the time. The only thing that you could construe as 'conservative' would be his anti-tax ramblings. I agree that the Doors aren't a good example of a political band though. They were far too self-absorbed to care about what the hell was going on in the rest of the world.

] Janis wasn't particularly political
] in her songs, either.

no, but the mere existance of a conservative white girl singing the mississippi blues, getting sloshed with the boys, and being overtly sexual was a HUGE political pronouncement for 1970.

] Anyway, music and politics can go
] together well, but for God's sake, why do they simply support
] the democratic party line? Watching Lou Reed say in 2000 that
] he was supporting Clinton in spite of Al Gore's presence on
] the ticket turned my stomache. He said that Tipper Gore's
] pro-censorship activism was "water under the bridge." What a
] cop out! Zappa found out about Gore's presence as Clinton's
] running mate and commented that he would vote republican for
] the first time in his life in 1992. At least that guy had
] integrity and a free mind.

I hate to say this, but it wasn't necessarily Tipper's fault. Blame the RIAA for not capitulating on a labelling system that made sense and dragging their feet (sound familiar?) forcing parental groups to make the move for them. The reason why Zappa and Dee Snyder got into a tizzy wasn't so much because of Tipper, but because they were going to lose album sales thanks to the RIAA. I think Dee and Frank took it out on the wrong people. I still love the look that Dee gave Tipper in the testimonial process though!

] ] In this day and age of 15 sec attention spans, music and
] song
] ] are a perfect medium for imforming the public about
] political
] ] issues.
]
] Or we can let those with the 15 second attention spans be
] clueless, as they deserve to be. After all, when their
] devolution is done, they won't even be able to vote. They
] will be busy pumping gas and plowing fields. Keep voting in
] the hands of those who care about the land, not those who like
] John Cougar Mellencamp and the fucking Dixie Chicks. Shit,
] keep it out of the hands of any mindless monkeys that vote for
] elephants or asses.

here's the whole reason why I had to reply to this post. This is bad bad bad. Or maybe you're just throwing this grenade for effect? The last thing you want to do is cause MORE gap between haves and have nots. This is how revolution happens. And while I'm all for revolution, they have a tendency to be unpredictable and kill a lot of innocent people in the process. Besides, it's the people who are pumping gas and plowing fields who usually have their heads on straight about things most of the time. It's the stock brokers and executives that tend to think that life is nothing but a video game.

flynn23 wrote:
] Vile wrote:
]
] ] The punk movement started out as an apolitical movement.
]
] True, and now it's just a fashion statement.

Yes, and its been that way since the brits and the west coast bastards took a fancy to it. (Mind you, there are exceptions. Dead Kennedys were not image punk until a couple of years ago and the New York Dolls were the first image punkers.)
]
] ] The
] ] doors never wrote political songs and Jim Morrisson was a
] ] heartless conservative.
]
] Bzzt. Both 'unknown soldier' and 'twentieth century fox' are
] pretty loud political commentaries (for the times), and
] Morrison was anything but a conservative. He supported women's
] liberation, and legalization of drugs, both pretty radical at
] the time. The only thing that you could construe as
] 'conservative' would be his anti-tax ramblings. I agree that
] the Doors aren't a good example of a political band though.
] They were far too self-absorbed to care about what the hell
] was going on in the rest of the world.

Yes, and they suck.
]
] ] Janis wasn't particularly political
] ] in her songs, either.
]
] no, but the mere existance of a conservative white girl
] singing the mississippi blues, getting sloshed with the boys,
] and being overtly sexual was a HUGE political pronouncement
] for 1970.

True, but isn't Britney Spears the same thing today...and I hear Christina Aguilera likes sucking dick! They break from their very images by being such guttersluts!

]
] ] Anyway, music and politics can go
] ] together well, but for God's sake, why do they simply
] support
] ] the democratic party line? Watching Lou Reed say in 2000
] that
] ] he was supporting Clinton in spite of Al Gore's presence on
] ] the ticket turned my stomache. He said that Tipper Gore's
] ] pro-censorship activism was "water under the bridge." What
] a
] ] cop out! Zappa found out about Gore's presence as Clinton's
]
] ] running mate and commented that he would vote republican for
]
] ] the first time in his life in 1992. At least that guy had
] ] integrity and a free mind.
]
] I hate to say this, but it wasn't necessarily Tipper's fault.

Read her book. Raising PG Kids in an X-Rated Society. I think you will readjust that last statement. Really, hard as it is to believe , the dems sacred COW Tipper is a rotton cunt. The labels were the start of things. They did not censor, but merely provided a guide. However, when the Clinton Administration allowed Wal Mart to crush mom and pop merchants all over america, it also allowed for an ecomonic-based form of censorship. Music stores in malls began checking ID's when someone bought a record with a Tipper-sticker. The RIAA did not do this. SHE did. Think about it, why would the... [ Read More (0.9k in body) ]

Decius wrote:
] ] "To me, that's treason. I call it treason against rock 'n'
] ] roll because rock is the antithesis of politics. Rock
] ] should never be in bed with politics," says the
] ] 56-year-old Cooper, who begins a 15-city Canadian tour on
] ] Aug. 20 in Thunder Bay, Ont.
] ]
] ] "If you're listening to a rock star in order to get your
] ] information on who to vote for, you're a bigger moron
] ] than they are. Why are we rock stars? Because we're
] ] morons. We sleep all day, we play music at night and very
] ] rarely do we sit around reading the Washington Journal."
]
] Alice Cooper is a republican.

He was probably referencing Alain Jourgenson's (Ministry) forthcoming anti-Bush album and tour, which in this case, might be a bit more pragmatic than any and all rock stars.

flynn23 wrote:
] He was probably referencing Alain Jourgenson's (Ministry)
] forthcoming anti-Bush album and tour, which in this case,
] might be a bit more pragmatic than any and all rock stars.

Got a link for that?

Decius wrote:
] ] "To me, that's treason. I call it treason against rock 'n'
] ] roll because rock is the antithesis of politics. Rock
] ] should never be in bed with politics,"

Maybe thats why he always sings about vapid, corny shit.