Found this important song on the Facebook page of Mike Finnigan. Mike made a post that read: "I was in Chicago over the past weekend. (he is touring with Bonnie Raitt) It was insane. Not the protestors, the police. It felt like they were expecting an armed seige by some foreign power! Police were everywhere, sirens going off every 30 seconds, police cars racing all over town." That was a preamble to this link Mike posted. One of Mike's friends, guitarist Jack Morris Sherman, posted this song in Mike's thread, which leads us here:
Graham Nash - Chicago (off a Vinyl 45) *song starts at 25 seconds
A Call to Action to Resist and Reject The Police State
Graham Nash released Chicago back in about 1970. It was inspired by both the riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, as well as the trial of the Chicago Seven, where protesters at the convention were charged with intent to incite a riot. Hearing this song this week, it felt as if Nash wrote it last weekend during the Nato Summit, where the reality that we live in a Police State was felt strongly by those who were there to protest the wars led by the U.S. and Nato around the world.
Our liberty and freedom in America, and in and around the path of terror left by the U.S. war machine around the globe, has been slowly chipped away and dismantled. It's not what the founders intended for. Those founders left it in our hands to do something when the government is out of control. Do something we must! We must go beyond the call of duty, for liberty is now so threatened, far past being temporary as many politicians swore it would be after 9/11.
It's up to artists and fans to take the lead. Music can move mountains. Politicians still like to connect with leading artists. Leading and emerging artists should never back down, even in the face of adversity. The world saw what happened to the Dixie Chicks for saying what they believed, and it was a score for The Police State how it temporarily set the group back. Fortunately, the Dixie Chicks did not back down and went on to make a movie about that hard time in their life. We cannot allow artists to be beat down for expressing their views, in my humble opinion. Liberty and freedom is not perfect, in fact it can even be dangerous. But the alternative of tyranny at the hands of the police state is far less perfect to the point of evil dangerousness without end. The U.S. is well known to torture and assassinate. We drop bombs from unmanned planes, making us just as chickenshit as ever. We have adopted a preventative war approach, preemptively striking, invading and occupying countries when they have done nothing to us. This is all going against inherent American values.
Don't be afraid to stand up to The Police State. I am not talking about physical resistance. I am talking about peaceful resistance. Look these fuckers in the eyes and ask them questions? Am I legally required to answer your questions? Have you read The Constitution? Have you read The Bill of Rights? Are you upholding the Constitution or are you a member of The Police State? If or when they grab you, don't talk and don't resist. Don't even fall limp. Simply be prepared. Dress for jail. Use your mind and not your fists, otherwise you will be stooping to their pathetic level.
The best thing we can do right now is to become informed. It's not a conspiracy theory that we are now officially living in a Police State. It's a fact! Learn about it. Write about it. Write songs, write comedy, write letters to Congress and write letters directly to The President and Vice President. Fans should support the artists who are resisting The Police State. We can use music to bring about real needed change to restore liberty. As Graham Nash wrote and sang, "We can change the world".
