Another Blast From The Past

Now that the election is over and the results known, I instantly thought of this weekend's featured artists as an appropriate tribute to the process. I have seen these guys in concert twice, once in Nuremburg (home of the famous trials) and once in Indy during the Quadrophenia tour a few years ago. This band is one of my top five favorite bands of all time. They are simply known as, The Who.

At this point in the process, the GOP has found itself in the same position the Democrats have, in the past two cycles. Forced to look inward and seek answers is normal. And at times, it becomes necessary to look deeper into the core principles and re-evaluate how well they are being adhered to. As anyone that has had a campaign rejected will tell us, sometimes you look into a mirror and ask: Who Are You?:



The games, the facades, the acts are always fun to watch in a campaign. Often times, it is the candidate that tells the people what they want to hear, as opposed to what they need to hear. This is once such song that has much to say about this aspect of the human experience in this dishonest world we often find ourselves in. As the lyrics so accurately point out:

The shares crash, hopes are dashed
People forget
Forget they're hiding.

Behind an eminence front
Eminence front - it's a put on

Here is Eminence Front:



While others have chosen to hide behind their self-constructed masks, I have always been open and honest about the things that others need to hear. In short, I am blunt and to the point, but always with a certain level of compassion for the other person's feelings. I have never felt the need to hurt someone to get a point across, but have been able to communicate that point in a clear and concise way. The next song has a passage which illustrates my concrete belief that people need to be more self-reliant and proud of that particular quality:

Out here in the fields
I fight for my meals
I get my back into my living
I don't need to fight
To prove I'm right
I don't need to be forgiven

Here is the immortal, Baba O'Riley:



Sometimes it can be a struggle to see injustices prevail and I guess it's only natural to feel some level of anger, when these things are so apparent. It makes a person mad, sad, and sometimes altogether confused. This next tune expresses all three of these emotions very well and it is one of my favorites, Behind Blue Eyes:



Frustration and disillusion are two themes from this last song.

The old saying goes: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. I only wish more people could learn lessons like this, the first time around. Sadly, many in this world cannot and do not. It takes a lot to fool me at my age, but I can be fooled. Once.

In this finale, we can learn much, especially in the context of this election process. This passage says something that many people will see come to pass through their own personal experiences, something that my generation was forced to confront at this time in 1976.

Carter had beat Ford in a close election, the tides were turning toward a new era then, just as they have now. I was in in boot camp in Ft. Sill Oklahoma, my education in life was just beginning. And here comes the greenhorn upstart that would change the world. (I remember posters of Jimmy's photo, with beard and long hair superimposed. The caption read, JC is coming.)

I voted for him. Silly me. All of us that voted for him had to learn some hard lessons and come to fully recognize our folly. But more than anything else, we learned to spot BS better after this was all over. This passage from the song says it best:

There's nothing in the streets
Looks any different to me
And the slogans are replaced, by-the-bye
And the parting on the left
Is now parting on the right
And the beards have all grown longer overnight

I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
Don't get fooled again
No, no!

Meet the new boss,
Same as the old boss.

Enjoy.