Democracy Has Prevailed.

June 8, 2010

More On The Trib Brain Trust

You'd think they'd know how to read over there at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Or at least research more carefully.

From Sunday's "Whispers" column:
Rock 'n' roll delivering messages of conservatism?

It happens more than you might think, according to National Review.

The magazine's June 5 edition lists rock's 50 greatest conservative anthems. To make the grade, songs' lyrics had to convey a conservative idea or sentiment, such as skepticism of government or support for traditional values.
They even supply the url:
Space constraints prevent us from publishing the entire list, which can be found online at article.nationalreview.com/281095/rockin-the-right/john-j-miller.
But if you were to actually go to that page, you'd see this:

See the date?

May 26, 2006.

You'd think that with all the words flying around over there at the Trib, someone would have picked up the fact the "June 5 edition" it references is from 4 years ago. Not that that's the issue. The issue is how could a "news" organization get something so simple so wrong?

Now onto the list.

The Trib braintrust (and the folks at the National Review 4 years earlier) must not have paid too close attention to the "conservative" values on display on the list.

For instance "Bodies" by the Sex Pistols (they're conservatives??). The lyrics show that it's a song about a woman from Birmingham who'd just had an abortion. Are we led to believe that these lines sketch out the conservative position on abortion?
She was a no one who killed her baby
She sent her letters from the country
She was an animal
She was a bloody disgrace
Are they really sending that message - that a woman who's had an abortion is "a bloody disgrace"? Ok, thanks for letting us know what you really think.

Then there's Revolution (do I really need to tell you what band? c'mon). If anything the song isn't about Conservatism as much as it's about moderation:
You say you want a revolution
Well, you know
We all want to change the world
You tell me that it's evolution
Well, you know
We all want to change the world
But when you talk about destruction
Don't you know that you can count me out
So when the tea-partiers talk about how the tree of liberty needs to be watered with the blood of tyrants, we can expect the Trib to shout them down, right?

And anyway, don't conservatives reject evolution? Some do, anyway. Just sayin'.

My favorite "conservative" song on the list is, of course, Sweet Home Alabama. The braintrust describes it thusly:
A tribute to the region of America that liberals love to loathe.
Let's not forget when the song was written (1973-4) and with that in mind, what do you think these lines from this "conservative" song about the "region of America liberals love to loathe" mean?
In Birmingham they love the governor
Now we all did what we could do
Now Watergate does not bother me
Does your conscience bother you?
Tell the truth
And who was the governor of Alabama in 1974? That would be George Wallace, then a segregationist. And Watergate doesn't bother them?

Yea, that's a good conservative message. They should have done their homework better.

Written on June 8 2010.

4 comments:

Mark Rauterkus said...

Nice zings.

I do love political music. Perhaps my campaign CDs of the past will get a review in the next 20 years by the Trib too. I can keep the door of hope open a crack.

Conservative Mountaineer said...

Sweet Home, Alabama. Great song. Lynrd Skyrnd (sp?). Great Band. Grew up in 70's on this type of music. Gonna play it now on my laptop in a hotel room... with a glass of wine next to me. Woohoo. Thanks for reminding me.

Conservative Mountaineer said...

'course, what would you NE liberals know or understand anything about the South?

The song says 'Birmingham loves the Governor'. It does not say 'LS loves the Governor'. The lyics also say 'Now Watergate does not bother me'. Doesn't bother me, either.

EdHeath said...

Well, although I have lived in Pittsburgh since 1970, I was born in Athens, Georgia and my family is all Southern (including an Aunt and Uncle who lived for years in Birmingham). I have to say I find a lot of Alabama politics at least as embarrassing as a lot of Pittsburgh politics. Rather than analyze the vagaries of a comparison of Wallace versus Watergate, I will just point out that my favorite example of painful and embarrassing school integration is Boston in the 1970's. FWIW.

I really like Sweet Home Alabama too. I like Neil Young too, but there are times a Southern man don't need him around anyhow.