I just heard Neil Young's new album, "Living with War". You can listen to a streaming broadcast of the entire album, on his site. Check it out!
One of the things that has really disturbed me about this whole thing with Bush's pet project (the war in Iraq) is how sanitary it has all been. The administration has done everything they can to make this war as painless for the American people as possible. They would even prefer deploying and re-deploying the same troops over and over rather than activate the draft. Why? Because if we had an active draft, the American people might actually feel the effects of being at war. It quits being just another reality show and starts becoming actual reality.
As much as I hate the thought of a draft, I also hate the fact that the American people are not allowed to see the realities of war. Newsmen are not even allowed to photograph the flag-draped coffins of those soldiers who "give the ultimate sacrifice" following the orders of their Commander-in-Chief. Since they don't see it, don't feel it, the average American has become complacent. While our leaders send more and more of our sons and daughters off to war - and whittle away more and more of those freedoms that our sons and daughters are supposed to be fighting for through means such as the Patriot Act, domestic spying, ect - "inquiring minds" are more concerned about the marital affairs of the latest Hollywood celebrities than they are about the war or even about preserving their own constitutional rights.
Neal Young's new album, "Living with War", is a protest album, plain and simple. A protest album of the likes that you'd hear from Michael Franti or a 60s era Joan Baez. Will it change many people's minds about the war? Probably not... but maybe it'll be a catylist to wake those millions of us who are already against the war from our media hypnotized stupor and motivate a greater number of people to actually go out into public and and join in the protests shouting, "Stop this insanity now!"
I can only hope. I will never willingly give up my freedoms... and hope is one freedom they can never take away.
Listen to the album. If you want the CD, you have to pay, but it doesn't cost anthing to just listen. My favorite song off the album is the title song. ^-^
peace