Well she's right on to counts here. Sad to see that it takes a song by a left winger (and a whiney one at that) to point out that America is not a democracy; bet she doesn't point out it is a republic.
The media doesn't fool me either.
But whether Ani voted for him or not, George W. Bush most certainly is the elected President of the United States. Algore lost (and got the official tally for "popular vote" but his slim margin of 0.52% may have been in error; it is a moot point because that is not how the election is won).
Tell that to the Germans and Japanese. It ended WWII.
I guess that was just American "empire" building; we sure own those countries now.
The Japanese used the "Western imperialism" line of reasoning to defend their own military actions.
"The Dogs of War" by Pink Floyd
"Let's Roll" by Neil Young
"Hillbilly Shoes" by Montgomrey Gentry
This is a political group that was marketed to the masses during the reign of Bubba Clinton.
They are anarchist-socialists as are many of the others behind the international protests in America (not just this war but the WTO/antiglobalism, political conventions, etc.).
From the FAQ
Q: The questions to which I have never gotten a satisfactory answer are these:What happens in an anarchic society when someone does not want to go along with the will of the majority, defined as the decision of the group? Or, along the same lines, what happens when someone does not show responsibility to another's needs? Is there coercion, banishment, what? And who is responsible for determining when someone is not showing responsibility to another's needs? Who is responsible for meting out the appropriate sanction, whatever that may be? How does anarchy then avoid the creation, witting or unwitting, of a "ruling class"?
Society implies social interaction - call it what you want: bartering, trading,...whatever. What happens when someone does not hold up their end of a barter or trade? Is coercion and/or sanction necessarily involved?
Thanks for any insight you can provide. JBA: Firstly, an anarchist society does not and cannot depend on the will of the majority. Thats what a lot of democratic societies are based on right now, societies where 51% of the people can decide what the minority 49% should do. Anarchism is based on people reaching decisions where there may be persuasion and debate and argument and reason, but not coercion and majority-rule.
Secondly, I wont go into the questions in detail since I think youd be better served by having me point you to a couple of other peoples writings. Namely, Errico Malatesta and Albert Meltzer. Theres a booklet by Meltzer called Anarchism: Arguments For and Against which I think is brilliant and which answered a lot of questions for me when I first wondered what anarchists thought. It was originally written in the early 80s but its still relevant simply written, to the point, and whats more its small and cheap. I think theres an edition published by AK Press right now which costs about $6 (or £4) and I recommend it.
Malatesta was an Italian anarchist around the turn of the century who wrote some concise, well-explained books and essays about anarchism. Id go for Malatestas Anarchy, another cheap booklet and still available. Im not trying to cop out by not answering these questionsjust tried to think about what answered my questions when I was trying to find out about anarchism all those years ago.
SONGS USED AS BACKGROUND MUSIC IN FILMS AND/OR FILM TRAILERS
Home Alone 3 (1997) (USA) - Tubthumping which played over the TV trailers for the film in the USA in the run-up to Christmas 1997 when the film was released. Apparently, this launched us into a whole new marketing bracket, as kids under ten were demanding the Chumbawamba album from their parents or Santa for Christmas. And as a way of getting Chumbawamba albums into the heart of Middle America it did have some success, though we could not have known this at the outset. When we went back and did a tour of the US in March 1998, we suddedly had all these under tens coming to our shows with their parents, which we have never ever had before. It was hilarious, cos wed have all these kids down the front of the stage having a great time and you could see all their parents looking worried in the back. We played this outdoor gig in Tempe, Arizona and you could see parents putting their hands over their childrens ears when Alice came on as the all drinking, all smoking, all swearing nun in Big Mouth Strikes Again. Obviously a shrewd and calculated subversive move on our part, to indoctrinate and poison the minds of the the under tens of America (well not quite) but maybe in eight or ten years time when the kids are teenagers and young adults rioting in the streets of post-Dubya America, the trainspotter types amongst them will be quoting the more obscure lyrics from Tubthumper album to each other:
Oh but I bet you dont have the European version though do you?
What a diabolical question you ****s ask!
Tubthumping got placed in a lot more other trailers:
Dirty Work (1997) (USA) starring Chevy Chase -Tubthumping and Amnesia.Senseless (1997) (USA) starring Marlon Wayons - Tubthumping
In Gods Hands (1997) a surf movie - Tubthumping
Air Bud 2 (1998) (USA) - Tubthumping
Varsity Blues (1998) (USA) starring John Voight - Tubthumping
The James Gang (1998) (UK) - Outsider
Soft Fruit (1998) (Australia) - Tubthumping
Mystery Alaska (1999) (USA) starring Burt Reynolds -Amnesia
Theres Only One Jimmy Grimble (1999) (UK) starring Ray Winstone and Robert Carlyle. - Tubthumping ... (not sure if they used it in the end)
Joe Somebody (2001) (USA) starring Tim Allen - Tubthumping
Q: Um, this little question has been bugging me for a while.Do you guys see any benefit in religion/spirituality at all? I'm not religious or anything, just curious. And another thing I've been running over with a few friends.......(just want an opinion) people want meaning in their lives, they look for meaning in everything they do. But say there is no meaning? Suppose there's no reason or 'truth' or 'rightness' in anything? It's all meaningless. Or suppose EVERYTHING matters? Which would be worse? LizAnd these are the freaks that this teacher is poisoning young minds with???Q: No, I dont see any benefit in religion, other than the wearing of priests robes makes paedophiles easier to identify. As for spirituality, what exactly is it? Ive never trusted anybody who claimed to be spiritual. Its like claiming to have a sixth sense which nobody else can see. When people say theyre spiritual what they usually mean is: Im dead special me! Unlike the rest of you who are a couple of steps down the evolutionary ladder. The problem with religion or the state for that matter is that it involves putting faith in something above yourself. They take power and responsibility away from ordinary people and undervalue peoples worth.
In lefty circles theres a tendency to dismiss Western religions as bollocks whilst believing any old clap-trap as long as its Eastern. Im sick of hearing how spiritual and fantastic Buddhism is; tell it to the slave labourers in Burma. They live under a Buddhist system and its not doing them much good.
As for the second part of your question... the tendency to claim everything is meaningless or of equal importance seems part of the disease of post-modernism. I hate post-modernism because its just an excuse to be self serving and not care about anything.
I think its worth taking part in the struggle to be human. Calling it searching for truth sounds a bit pompous. Human beings are endlessly inventive and capable of fantastic things, seems sensible to put our efforts in to creating something better than we have now. We dont believe in fate. Weve got capitalism, religion and military regimes murdering and depriving people, these arent unchangeable, immutable ever to be with us systems. We dont have to accept them. Questions like Does nothing matter? Does everything matter? have to come second to why are vast portions of the earths population starving in the midst of plenty.