I pledge Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America (Unless the people in office hold a different opinion than I do – in that case, I’m going to name-call, threaten and possibly even commit an act of violence against my fellow countrymen) And to the Republic for which it stands (As I said, only as long as my elected representatives align with my point of view – or else we need to re-arrange the areas where me and my like-minded friends cast our votes, for fear of a true “democracy” where the will of the people is the law of the land) One nation, under God (Actually, “under God” wasn’t added until 1954 during the “Red Scare” and the original version of the pledge was written by a socialist minister. Also, our constitution has provisions for freedom of religion – in fact, it’s so important, it’s the first part of the first amendment) Indivisible (That’s a good one…I guess we forgot about that little skirmish – the Civil War – that literally tried to divide our country in two. I know, I know, the pledge was written after that, but I believe we have been plenty divided on many issues for generations) With liberty and justice for all (Well, maybe not “all”. Ok, Liberty and justice for most. Alright, some…liberty and justice for some. As long as you have enough money, power, influence, are the right color, come from the right background, vote for the right people, say the right things, follow the right rules and pray to the right god. The rest of you heathens? Not so much.
Hello Everyone, before I get started here, I’ve been asked to contribute to the success of the IDGAFCO empire and I’d like to thank the Leadership of the website for the invitation and the opportunity. Also, if you’re easily offended, your delicate sensibilities may get bruised by exposing yourself to possible opposing viewpoints or the use of foul language, then you may as well stop reading now and move on. I will use the word fuck and you have been warned. That being said, what do I do with this opportunity? I mean, I understand that we are not supposed to give a fuck…but then what motivation would anyone have to create? Why create a song if you have nothing to give a fuck about? Why write an article or a story if you don’t give a fuck? Why go to the trouble of providing a landing space for interesting ideas and opinions if a fuck is not to be given? That’s what got me stuck. If I don’t give a fuck, then what the fuck am I going to write about? I decided that it’s possible to both give and not give a fuck. I give a fuck about shit that’s important to me and I don’t give a fuck if everyone agrees with me or not. That’s the thing about America – or at least, that’s what we’ve been led to believe about America. That we can all participate in democracy without necessarily agreeing with each other. I think the idea is noble and it seemed to work for quite a long time. The problem is that the narrative is always dictated by the ones who wield the most power and as long as it’s going their way, it’s easy to allow a minority to have a different opinion – because it’s not going to matter. They won’t have enough power whether it’s money, influence or votes, to make a damn bit of difference so sure – go ahead and voice your opinion – I don’t give a fuck. It’s your right, right? Freedom of speech and all that? It went along pretty seamlessly for a long time, but as technology advances, we are able to travel farther, faster and we now can communicate with each other on a massive scale. People who once lacked the resources to reach a large audience can now throw their views and ideas into the internet and millions of other people can potentially read them. Uh-oh, I think I better give a fuck, now! This is a problem with those that have held the keys to the Kingdom up until now. The status quo is being challenged and it’s uncomfortable to have to confront the possibility that maybe – just maybe – we could have been doing a better job. That America hasn’t been the idyllic land of opportunity for everyone like we’ve been conditioned to think is hard to admit. It was easy to not give a fuck about those who had no power, but these days, everyone seems to both give a very big fuck about what it is they care about and not give a fuck at all about those who don’t share their opinion. The more things change, the more they stay the same. I certainly give a fuck about our country and most definitely don’t give a fuck about those who refuse to admit that we can be doing a better job. But, no matter which side you fall on or where your politics lie, you better pay attention and give a fuck about what’s going on. Propaganda is skillfully created and looks like entertainment. Politics are disguised as education. Money is used as a weapon. OK. Now that I’ve got that the fuck out of the way, why don’t we get started…
Last day of 2021! Grab some RB downloads at discounts thru midnight tonight. Visit http://idgafco.com/album/robert-burbank/ for link and code. Have a safe and happy New Year.
