Debunking the "50 greatest conservative songs", part 6

There are many things that I have learned about conservatives. For one thing, they do not read and secondly, they do not research (I guess because research requires reading). In the time of the Internet, it’s really not that hard to find information that you are looking for, but apparently it’s tough for John J. Miller.

20. “Rock The Casbah” – The Clash

NRO Take: After 9/11, American radio stations were urged not to play this 1982 song, one of the biggest hits by a seminal punk band, because it was seen as too provocative. Meanwhile, British Forces Broadcasting Service (the radio station for British troops serving in Iraq) has said that this is one of its most requested tunes.

DL Take: Miller doesn’t really say why he feels this song is a, “conservative” song. That’s probably because it’s not. It has nothing to do with anyone going to the middle-East and bombing the crap out of Iraq or Iran. In fact, if you look at the lyrics, it is the King calling out the jetfighters. I know there are a lot of you conservatives out there who look at W. as your, “King” but that is not who they are referencing in the song. The song in fact is a light-hearted song placed on the album because of a complaint by the producer. The lyrics have to do with Iran banning rock music and a fictional account of what occurs after that. As noted in Wiki, Iran is not mentioned in the song and in fact all of the references are Arabic, not Persian.

So what makes conservatives believe that this is some anti-Islamic song? For the very same reason they believe that Bruce Springsteen’s, “Born In The U.S.A.” is patriotic.

27. “Obvious Song” – Joe Jackson

NRO Take: For property rights and economic development, and against liberal hypocrisy: “There was a man in the jungle / Trying to make ends meet / Found himself one day with an axe in his hand / When a voice said ‘Buddy can you spare that tree / We gotta save the world — starting with your land’ / It was a rock ’n’ roll millionaire from the USA / Doing three to the gallon in a big white car / And he sang and he sang ’til he polluted the air / And he blew a lot of smoke from a Cuban cigar.”

I don’t see the, “liberal hypocrisy” as he puts it, in this verse. It reminds me of an ad for Hummer – find a prestigious part of the planet and drive a gas guzzling beast over it. How many times have you heard this president say how important the environment is and do nothing? Can you say Kyoto?

Apparently Miller did not read the verses that followed that. Take this verse about a kid being arrested for selling crack:

Just another foot-soldier in a stupid little war
Another sound-bite on the American scene
Caught between the supplier only dreaming of money
And the demand of the man with money
Who needs a little help to dream

Or this verse which clearly shows that our priorities are in the wrong place:

So we starve all the teachers
And recruit more Marines
How come we don't even know what that means

It’s obvious.

35. “Who’ll Stop The Rain” – Creedence Clearwater Revival

NRO Take: Written as an anti–Vietnam War song, this tune nevertheless is pessimistic about activism and takes a dim view of both Communism and liberalism: “Five-year plans and new deals, wrapped in golden chains . . .”

DL Take: I looked into this and did not find a clear meaning for the song. However, in my search to define it, two themes were very clear: that the song is anti-war (Vietnam) where, “Rain” is a metaphor for, “Bombs” and the song is about loosing faith in our political system as a whole.

Sorry Miller, no dice.