Shut Up, Be Happy. Obey

News Footage Came On The Tv During Dinner Of Bloody Bodies Coming Back From Battle In Vietnam, Or The Race Riots In The South, People Getting Hosed In Selma, Alabama, Or The Biafra War, Where I Got My Name. In My Household, It Was Explained And Discussed With The Children, As A Way Of Educating Us From When We First Started Grade School Why Racism And War Were Wrong, What This All Really Means.

Another Part Of What Gave Me A Questioning, Rabble-rousing, Activist Heart And Soul Is That When All These Heavy Events Went Down, My Parents Did Not Shelter The Kids From It.

I Think That What's Perceived As Punk Out In Shopping Malls Or In Chain Stores Or On Mtv Has Almost Nothing To Do With What Punk Is About.

I Am An Anarchist In My Personal Life. I Try To Live My Life In A Way That I Don't Need Cops Or Baby-sitters To Keep Me From Infringing On Others. But I Don't Feel We Have Evolved Far Enough As A Species To Make Anarchy Work In Society Itself. We Still Need Government To Transfer The Wealth From Those Who Have Too Much To Those Who Have Too Little, To Make Sure Important Projects Get Done, And Keep Territorial Humans From Screwing Over And Killing Each Other.

It's Very Irresponsible As A Parent To Follow Tipper Gore Or The Religious Right's Advice And Just Take The Offending Cd Or Game Away From The Kid Without Discussing It.