| Ben Folds Five – Brick Lyrics | 19 years ago |
|
As far as the government's treatment of women as reproductive machines-- obviously, this is an opinion, but I think when you have things like this: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/15/AR2006051500875.html ...where there are federal guidelines in place that ask all females capable of conceiving a baby to treat themselves -- and to be treated by the health care system -- as pre-pregnant, regardless of whether they plan to get pregnant anytime soon, is an example of that behavior. While of course next to no one is going to cite controlling women as a reason for being anti-choice, it is something I feel much the anti-choice movement believes in-- when you have government representatives such as Bill Napoli saying that abortion should only be allowed for religious virgins who were raped and brutalized... well, there's a level of moral righteousness to those views. I do realize that there are those who are anti-choice because they genuinely believe it is about taking human life, and that it isn't fair to just lump dissenters into one group. I respect these opinions, even if I vehemently disagree. The government is controlled by a majority of white, upper class men, and I believe it reflects the interests of those who run it, not the public it is supposed to serve. If abortion were a men's issue, I wouldn't doubt for a second that there would be abortion clinics on every corner. Your mileage may vary. If you don't believe sexism (and, for that matter, racism, homphobia, and classism) are inherent in our governmental institutions, there really is no use in further arguing this point, as we'll never see eye to eye. I also identify as a semi-anarchist (it's complicated), so, we are unlikely to agree about the government's role in the individual's life. I think what gets a lot of people upset with those who identify as anti-choice is that it seems most are all for cultivating a "culture of life," as long as it doesn't affect their ability to go to pre-emptive war and put criminals to death. Again, not all those who are anti-choice obvisouly agree on all these issues, but it is the general public stance of the right-wing party, who currently controls our country's government and is working to overturn abortion law. |
|
| Ben Folds Five – Brick Lyrics | 19 years ago |
|
nik-- >>without the government telling me it is right, my right as an American... do I feel that abortion is the right thing to do? I think the answer for people who are pro-choice is obviously yes, because it is not viewed as taking a life. I also believe that each individual should have the inherent right to make the decision for themselves, rather than a government or any other institution make it for them. I think the problem with the anti-choice movement in this country is that at its core, it is centered around the need to control women, not about protecting unborn children. The government has a tendency to view women as reproductive machines rather than human beings. I'm sure we can all agree on the fact that it is unfortunate that a large percentage of women who undergo abortions do so due to financial inabilities to take care of potential children. Perhaps if the education and poverty levels in this country were raised, the number would go down. As far as the song goes-- I can say that if I felt this song were against choice, I would not be able to love it the way that I do. I don't think it is taking a position, but I also do enjoy how brutally honest it is about the situation. When you hear the line, "She's a brick and I'm drowning slowly" -- it's actually kind of a selfish statement. He's looking at her as something dragging him down, even though she must be going through unbelievably painful turmoil for making this decision. However, it's balanced out by him actually being there, bringing her flowers, not just cutting her off. Of course, it's ultimately tragic, since it clearly puts a divide between them that cannot be breached. So sad. |
|
| Regina Spektor – Samson Lyrics | 19 years ago |
|
I went and read some about the story of Samson and Delilah, and I think it gave me more insight into this song. According to the biblical story, Samson was given extraordinary physical strength through God. First he fell in love with a woman named Timnah, a Philistine, and weds her-- at the wedding reception, he promises a group of Philistines that he will provide them with thirty sets of clothes if they can solve a riddle. They are unable to solve it, but they implore Timnah to get the answer from him-- she does, and tells them, and Samson becomes furious because he doesn't have clothing to give to them. He leaves town and kills thirty other men in a nearby village, steals their clothing, but when he returns, Timnah is now married to a friend of his. Enraged, he ultimately ends up killing a thousand of the Philistines. When he goes to Gaza, Samson meets and falls in love with Delilah. The Philistines convince her to get him to tell her the source of his power-- he tells her it's his hair (however, it was not *really* in his hair, but because he had already broken two laws of the Nazarite. this was enough for God to take his power away from him). Delilah cuts off all of Samson's hair, and then he is captured by the Philistines, who gouge out his eyeballs. However, the way he dies is by pulling down the two central pillars in a temple. This seems to be referred to in the song with the lines "Oh, we couldn't bring the columns down / Yeah, we couldn't destroy a single one." I think the narrator of this song-- Delilah-- is lamenting about what could have been. Because she secretly did love Samson. All of the stories say that Samson loved Delilah, and make no mention of her returning the feelings. The lyric "I loved you first" seems to imply that not only did she love him back, but she loved him before he even loved her. As I see it, this song is about how she imagined a different ending for their tragic romance. In this version, after she cuts his hair, he just eats a piece of bread, tells her it's okay, it's all right, nothing has changed. They make love and get a happy ending. And in her version, the Bible doesn't even mention them because what she did didn't matter-- he didn't change history, and they just loved each other, quietly. |
|
| Ben Folds Five – Brick Lyrics | 19 years ago |
|
I actually think the "can't you see/ it's not me you're dying for" part isn't so much directed at the unborn fetus as it is at his girlfriend. She's agonizing so much over this decision, metaphorically dying over it, even, and she's made it but it's not because of him-- it's for her own well-being and future. On a personal note, I think it's a gorgeous, haunting song that depicts the isolation of such a predicament really well. I'm vehemently pro-choice, but I think it's ridiculous to belittle the gravity of such a decision, and the emotional aftershocks-- particularly when this young woman felt trapped by circumstance. |
|
| Shawn Mullins – Lullaby Lyrics | 23 years ago |
| I love this song-- beautiful, sweet, heartbreaking. I kind of take it to be about a girl who has grown up with a pretty nice life, but there's more underneath the surface-- she's not as happy as she seems. I also kind of get the impression that the person singing this song is a boyfriend of hers, one who is helping her break out of her old life. It's a beautiful song, I could listen to it on repeat forever. | |
* This information can be up to 15 minutes delayed.