Cranked

Just finished the final touches of the websites supporting the release “unamerican” on July 4. I had the song available for download at about 11:30pm, so it wasn’t much of a window for people to get to (not that there’s anyone there, there, anyway, but i really felt strongly about releasing this song on July 4. So much of the inspiration for this song came from conversations and thoughts about the Founding Fathers, the sacrifices they endured, the risks they took, and the brilliance in creating a system of democracy. a few years ago, I overheard a couple of leftist, pot-smoking, tree-huggers (as Rush likes to say) talking about John Adams and Thomas Jefferson in very revered and passionate terms. I was surprised by the apparent dichotomy of progressives talking about patriotism and the essence of american values. It got me thinking – a lot. One day I was driving along the California coast thinking about a conversation I had with my friend Leslie about how great it is to live in america. I wouldn’t call Leslie a conservative in any way, so that conversation caught me a little by surprise, too. Anyway, I started thinking about how fortunate I feel to be living in America, and how outraged I get when people suggest that protesting the war or being concerned about the environment is “unamerican”. actually, i don’t really get outraged. I’m just really confused (given the core American values of freedom of speech and assembly) as to how exercising one’s freedoms is unamerican. So this song is dedicated to Karl Rove, GeeDub, and the whole GeeDub crew. Blessings on you, and i wish you well in whatever you find yourself doing in November 2004.