Posted on 02/05/2007 3:05:38 PM PST by Stultis
Of course, the point is clearly satirical and sardonic, i.e. that Bush is not quite so bad as Caligula, Hitler, etc, and that the narrator of the song must reach for such extreme examples to provide a (weak) defense of his country's present leadership.
Oh, yeah. Newman also implies that Clarence Thomas isn't really (authentically) black, specifically that he he's no longer a "brother" as Pluto is no longer a planet. The New York Times expurgated this bit when they ran Newman's lyric on their OP-ED page, which is odd since AFAIK they've never had a problem previously with white liberals pronouncing on the ethnic inauthenticity of black conservatives.
Maybe Newman can take on the recently troublesome issue of vetting membership for the Black Congressional Caucus?
A FEW WORDS IN DEFENSE OF MY COUNTRY
By Randy Newman
I’d like to say a few words
In defense of our country
Whose people aren’t bad nor are they mean
Now the leaders we have
While they’re the worst that we’ve had
Are hardly the worst this poor world has ever seen.
Let’s turn history’s pages, shall we?
Think of the Caesars for example
Why within the first few of them
They were sleeping with their sister
Stashing little boys in swimming pools
And burning down the city.
And one of 'em, one of 'em
Appointed his own horse Consul of the Empire
That’s like vice president or something
That’s not a very good example, is it?
But, wait, here’s one, the Spanish Inquisition
They put people in terrible position
I don’t even like to think about it
Well, sometimes I like to think about it
Just a few words in defense of our country
Whose time at the top
Could be coming to an end
Now we don’t want their love
And respect at this point is pretty much out of the question
But in times like these
We could sure use a friend
Hitler. Stalin.
Men who need no introduction
King Leopold of Belgium. That’s right.
Everyone thinks he’s so great
Well he owned the Congo
He tore it up too
He took the diamonds, he took the gold
He took the silver
You know what he left them with?
Malaria
A president once said,
"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself"
Now it seems like we’re supposed to be afraid
It’s patriotic in fact and color coded
And what are we supposed to be afraid of?
Why, of being afraid
That’s what terror means, doesn't it?
That's what it used to mean
[To the first eight bars of "Columbia The Gem Of the Ocean"]
You know it pisses me off a little
That this Supreme Court is gonna outlive me
A couple of young Italian fellas and a brother on the court now too
But I defy you, anywhere in the world
To find me two Italians as tightass as the two Italians we got
And as for the brother
Well, Pluto’s not a planet anymore either
The end of an empire is messy at best
And this empire is ending
Like all the rest
Like the Spanish Armada adrift on the sea
We’re adrift in the land of the brave
And the home of the free
Good-bye, Good-bye, Good-bye.
I'm sure this will come as a surprise to Thomas and his family.
Is this the same guy who sang about short people?
Another article I saw noted that Newman has been performing this song in Europe "all last summer". Recording only recently released, by Nonesuch Records, exclusively through i-tunes.
Great - Words of wisdom from the man that penned "Short People Got No Reason to Live."
This is he! Randy has been breathing the West Coast air for far to long.
Bush Derangement Syndrome does seem to hit the drama queens the hardest.
Sad.
It sounds like he's saying good bye to hippie leftism :-)
Nothing in his lyrics about Bin Laden or Mohammed. I guess they are the good guys to him.
Hint: Short People
I think you can safely speak for yourself, old fella. Glad you're not Prez; you'd be forgettin' where you put the nucular missiles.
Dat ess ahn estupid f'ck!ng song.
Another idiot reveals his total ignorance of history and facts to the world.
ever since "short people" was released, he realized there is a market for being offensive. he continues.
And who is Newman to say that Clarence Thomas isn't a "brother" any more? What, he's too articulate, good-looking and clean?
Why is this dunce given credibility?
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