Father Rapers. Father rapers, sittin’ right there next to me on the bench. And the meanest, ugliest one, the meanest Father Raper of them all, Rush Limbaugh, was comin’ over to me on the bench. He said, “Kid, what did you get?”
I said, “I didn’t get nothin’ I had to pay fifty dollars and pick up the garbage.”
And they all moved away from me on the bench, until I said, “And creating a nuisance.” and they all came back, shook my hand, and we all had fun filling out the forms and playing with the pencils on the Group W bench"
Johnny Q, you got a lot a damn gall to ask me if I’ve rehabilitated myself, I mean, I mean, I mean that just, I’m sittin’ here on the bench, I mean I’m sittin here on the Group W bench ‘cause you want to know if I’m moral enough join the Republican party, burn abortion clinics, beat up homosexuals, teach intelligent design in public schools after bein’ a folk singer.
I have to disagree. I’m not saying Woody was a great songwriter, but the guy could write some killer lyrics. His career was cut short due to illness so he wasn’t able to keep recording or performing after about his early 40’s. He continued to write lyrics and poetry though, thousands of pieces actually, and Billy Bragg and Wilco put them to music on their two Mermaid Avenue albums. Listen to his words put to their music and I don’t see how you can call him an idiot.
Ted Nugent doesn’t surprise me in the least. But then, I’ve grown up in a time when he was better known for promoting gun culture and libertarianism than for being a singer. Did he have a different persona back in the day?
I don’t care if he is Satan’s first lieutenant, he has made some great music and puts on a great concert. And Steve Goodman begged him to do City of New Orleans. And out of a lot of giants who recorded that song, Arlo’s version is still the best by far.
Actually, to be allowed to vote in many areas you have to register, and in general the only options available are Dem or Rep. I tossed a coin and ended up republican.
I just wanted to be legally registered to vote so I could exercise my franchise. My personal take on it is that there should be no party requirement to register as a voter.
And as I vote, I also reserve the right to bitch about politics when it is the person I didnt vote for that won and is acting like a jackass. No vote, no right to bitch about the government.
I recall back when “Cat Scratch Fever” was big. That’s when I first heard he was a Republican. I and everyone else I knew were surprised, I guess because the whole rock ‘n’ roll mystique at that time just seemed naturally to preclude Republicans. No one seemed to know much about his views on anything then.
I had to register with a party to vote in Hawaii, but they mercifully grant the option of registering as an Independent. That always tickled me, being a registered independent.
Ted Nugent doesn’t surprise me at all. He has always been about as vocal as he can be about it. Dennis Hopper, on the other hand, was a bit of a shocker for me.
I was at a folk festival around 2004 in the heart of granola country in upstate NY. One old performer announced that he was going to do an old blues number, re-done as a protest song about the White House (big cheers from the audience.) But if one listened closely, the lyrics all had to do with Waco, Ruby Ridge, Janet Reno, etc. I wondered if the guy was so fried that he didn’t even know who was in the White House that year.
So yeah, those folkies can be as unpredictable (politically) as anyone else…