now this is punk rock:how much do u despise the government?
 

what do u think about your government?
(i know the one in the U.S sucks)
do you think that they're interfering with the music industry?
how would you express your feelings toward the gov.?
what are some punk rock ways you would deal with them?
rebelion?

does anyone agree with me?

thanx for looking at this DontRunMeOver:)

Cherrychic, this could be a very good thread, but at the moment you're being pretty vague about what your issue is. How do you think the government is influencing and exploiting music to mould people's minds in a certain direction?

Before talking about how music might be being used to 'mould your thinking', it might be worth considering how thorough a moulding process your family, your home community, your school, your friends and religious groups have already put you through. To give a brief overview, I'd say we're born as a bundle of flesh, bones, brain cells etc. with a few instincts, varying capacities for mental and physical aptitudes and no knowledge or opinions whatsoever (apart from that when we're hungry/cold/tired we want something done about it). Beyond these initial instincts everything which we know now had to come from somewhere and also (importantly) to be put somewhere in our minds. Much of this information - and ideas for how we should interpret the information - is not pure, first hand information but is instead greatly influenced by family/schools etc. This means that our personalities, personal morals and everything else about us is largely (not entirely, but largely) a creation of the opinions and personalities of the people and organisations around us.

Being moulded in some way by the government (and a lot of other organisations) is unavoidable. In fact, its already happened. The biggest issue for me would be WHERE TO DRAW THE LINE. The government 'moulds' us by making us learn a national language - is this a negative thing? The government 'moulds' us by creating laws and enforcing them - some of this law enforcement may have a negative effect on us, but I'd say most of it is beneficial.

HOW are the government manipulating people through music? I wouldn't say that the UK government are particularly guilty of ACTIVE manipulation, but then there's always the issue of censorship, watersheds, funding of certain BBC projects which show certain government biases.

What do you think? I'm tying up this ramble for now as its coffee time!

That's ok. If you want more people to comment (a lot have already looked I think, but not many have replied) then edit your original question a bit to give people more direction. Write a list of questions perhaps, write your own opinions. Give some examples for people to think about and to either agree with or to argue against!

dude, thanx i really appreciate ur honest opinion that really helps.

I'd write an entire album of songs, each of which highlighted individual complaints against the government and which gave specific, detailed accounts of how the government was wrong. Not lyrics which sings about anarchy, using it in the cliched punk-utopia way which it so often appears, but more like music which realises that music is not a powerful enough force to disrupt the whole of society but can have an effect if it its focussed at the right place, in the right way. Kick-ass, hard hitting music with catchy singable choruses and let the music drill the messages into people's heads. What effect do you think we would have seen if, for example, Red Hot Chili Peppers had brought out a single called 'Vote Kerry, Not Bush' a couple of months before the last US election? A song telling people to vote, a song telling people to buy from a certain supermarket chain (because a different one supports the military, for example). Ideally, going completely against the government's policy while not even mentioning them - as namechecking just reinforces how important/powerful something is, whereas just ignoring them nicely undermines their influence. Really, this would be a case of 'moulding minds through music' but like I said before, not all moulding is bad moulding.

Rebellion? Personally, I think that blatant rebellion just makes you look like an impotent idiot, there are much more subversive and manipulative things that you can do.

You can mould through music but it very rarely happens where they take any notice. Look at live 8 they did it and supposedly brought that off but afterwards they still didn't give a penny. You have green day try who are with American Idiot trying (apart from sell albums) to mould people..The gov. mainly. There was a song way back which aparently did something...I can't remember...John Lennon and Imagine...John Lennon stayed in his bed for what?...a week to protest something, I mean that is a stupid idea really! Music I think could mould because music can change the way we feel but wheather it goes for everthing I don't know...Could be as Don't Run Me Over says...Could be a waste of time.

Gosh the is a stupid thread.
How come anything anti goverment that serves no purpose to punk music.
Is ALWAYS posted in the punk forum?
You guys are acting the goverment is approving and disapproving all lyrics.
We have free speech idiots notice how leftover crack is still going and dead kennedys are still selling albums.

You're right that the threads in the wrong place, as its not really about punk music. At the same time, free speech means that you have the freedom to say what you want, NOT that everybody else gets to hear it in its pure, untampered-with form and it the original context.

Of course cause the goverment is stalking bands approving everything they say and editing it :rolleyes:

The only time anything is censored is because its mainstream and its censored by the record label not the goverment freaking out cause the band said fuck america.

if the gov wants to cencsor what a musician says .. the gov will kill you (have you killed )

"The only time anything is censored is because its mainstream and its censored by the record label"

That would under mainstream and they dont censor. "I dont like bush", They censor Fuck and i dont see how us not hearing swearing is gonna ruin our minds.

well alot of bands that will have a cd at target for instance will put out two versions

Look, I don't know what level you're trying to look at this from but I'd like to get deeper into it, not get all blase and say the government has no planned effect on music and likewise not get into crazy "We're all being subliminally influenced by 50 cent" paranoia. Governments affect how they fund the arts, governments may have some effect over which music shows are broadcast, when and which channels. They can have large impact on the availability of live music, rehearsal and performance provisions etc. in different areas. Governments can't make bands write certain songs and not others*, but they can influence what types of bands are around and therefore what type of musical scene is going on in any one place.

For example, everywhere I've lived I've been aware of much more funding being put into 'high' culture (theatre, orchestras and musical theatre, even though musicals are rubbish) by councils than is invested in providing venues for rock bands or rock nights. Care to discuss?

*(Unless they're commies... ah those commies)

government -were gonna make them all like britny spears


*patroh shooting his toe

how are some punk rock ways to deal with the government? omfg liek get a bunch of the punx together and start a riot riot upstart oi oi oi! christ. i'm all for letting you're voice be heard but to classify certain civil action as punk rock is ludracris. punk rock is MUSIC! and sure the government has their hand in music, they have their grubby ****ing hands in everything. as misfits said anything mainstream that might make the labels lose a few bucks will be censored and tampered with to reach the lowest common denominator. but thats the labels not the government. sure the government has a lot of pull on whats played on mainstream radio, because its what the majority of their citizens will be listening to and they want shape what thats going to be. i'd like to think government has better things to do. but apparently not.

but on a seperate note did anyone else hear this? several members of the french government blamed the riots they've been experiencing from the muslim and black youth on, you guessed it. RAP MUSIC! it seems we all forgot that the police uneccessarily killed two kids. i'd really like to think the government had a little more dignity than that. but hey, they're french, what are you going to do. :)

thanx lots guys that was very upbuilding and nice *sarcasm*. i guess i'm just gonna go die now cuz i;m not a good thread maker. i'm not worthy of making threads. (thanx for trying to help halfbaked and patroh)

well according to the poster s with high post counts
you have nothing to contribute




i for one think this is a great thread

awww. that's so sweet. thanx, i guess i'll live.

i think dontrunmeover secretly works for the gov. thats why he doesn't like this thread:)

:band: blimey

The first portion of that served no purpose as i said the mainstream is always gonna be fucked in that sense and as for that last part. Adults/rich people care more for shakespeare then they do for slipknot.

Was that stuff about the us government getting tips about weapons of mass destruction from some guy that forged it true?

sure why not..........
i'm sorry that's getting annoying. i can't resist.

"What do you think about your government?" Too vague. Certain aspects of our government work well. Other aspects are very difficult to fine tune or in some cases understand fully. Anarchy, to me, is not plausible. I've had this debate before, and it went nowhere.

"Do you think that they're interfering with the music industry?"
Well they "interfere" with just about everything. I don't really care what's selling or getting censored on the radio. Good music is always going to be sitting there being neglected, waiting to be discovered.

"How would you express your feelings toward the gov.?"
There's something called voting. That's the whole point of democracy.

"What are some punk rock ways you would deal with them?"
I would get a anarchy patch pre-ordered from Hot Topic and put them on my bookbag next to my F*ck Bush and Sex Pistols buttons, surrounded by a well thought out design of old belt studs and safety pins. Maybe I'll graffitti tag city hall or kick over a trash can too. So many punkin' possibilities.

sounds awesome dude, that's punk rock

hookers you poser,
Wheres your misfits shirt from hot topic?
and why didn't you mention your bondage pants?
Seriously leave out the most punk rock things about it idiot.

he shoulda said he was gonna do all that while wearing his misfits shirt and bondage pants. :ar_15s:

I know that voting makes up PART of the democratic process, but is this really how you intend to go about your life getting things sorted? "Oh, the pothole at the end of my road exploded last week and the crap is still lying stale in the middle of the street. But no worries, theres an election coming up in 2 years. That might get things cleaned up." Democracy isn't just about voting for something every couple of years. Its also about making a fuss to those in charge whenever theres a problem, with elections as backup.

Yes cherrychic, I work for the government. If you hear a rattling around your dustbins tonight, don't worry, that's just me.

i don't vote

OMG!!!!! thanx for telling me that i was wondering what that noise was

voting sucks!!!!

Dont triple post.
and Voting rocks would you rather live in a monarchy?
Wow you idiot you dont vote but you know voting sucks?
How can you say that when you dont have any expierence in doing it?

yo son, i aint trustin them sh*tz. clinton got radars an sh*t hidden in his sax, ya heard? try ta send tha dirt dawg on a long vacation.

Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those others that have been tried.
-Winston Churchill

i always thought that made sense. it aint perfect, but its the best we got.

nice.

best president ever...

That's very impressive but still.....I would vote if there were any policys that were any good..Plus I'm too young:(