This is a very close-to-the-bone indictment of the borderline psychotic persecution complex that attends much of the "family"-oriented Fundamentalist Christian culture in the U.S. I know, because I lived with a certain amount of this: My ex is a fundie, who was plugged in with this cadre; some in this group are distinctly beyond "borderline."
All the essential ingredients are here: The ideal of the "folk family"; a sad, if not tragic surrogate for genuine family love and affection. The reference to gasoline highlights the fact that much of what Americans tout as our values are really a rank materialism, internalized to the point where it becomes invisible, except as a vague (and not entirely unreasonable) fear that it could run down the drain any second. The bear is, of course, communism. The reference to irony points up the fact that this ilk won't cop to irony, and often resents it. The "daily home astrology report" is a pretty clever attempt to summon up an idealized example of the "new age"-leaning mainstream media dreaded by the xenophobes in the "Christian family" movement. To hear them, you'd think if the committed the unpardonable sin of turning the dial away from "the straight and narrow," they'd tune in Leslie Down.
This song kept me pretty well grounded while I was being exposed to this stuff; Dobson and suchlike.
Touche, Johns!
This is a very close-to-the-bone indictment of the borderline psychotic persecution complex that attends much of the "family"-oriented Fundamentalist Christian culture in the U.S. I know, because I lived with a certain amount of this: My ex is a fundie, who was plugged in with this cadre; some in this group are distinctly beyond "borderline." All the essential ingredients are here: The ideal of the "folk family"; a sad, if not tragic surrogate for genuine family love and affection. The reference to gasoline highlights the fact that much of what Americans tout as our values are really a rank materialism, internalized to the point where it becomes invisible, except as a vague (and not entirely unreasonable) fear that it could run down the drain any second. The bear is, of course, communism. The reference to irony points up the fact that this ilk won't cop to irony, and often resents it. The "daily home astrology report" is a pretty clever attempt to summon up an idealized example of the "new age"-leaning mainstream media dreaded by the xenophobes in the "Christian family" movement. To hear them, you'd think if the committed the unpardonable sin of turning the dial away from "the straight and narrow," they'd tune in Leslie Down. This song kept me pretty well grounded while I was being exposed to this stuff; Dobson and suchlike. Touche, Johns!