There certainly is a "think for yourself" theme here, but the lyrics are pointing to more than just clichés.
What I get from this is that, if all you ever do is echo what others say is right or wrong, and don't think for yourself, then, even if your conclusions are sound, you're no more a part of a solution to problems or a contributor to progress than anything else. You can't truly say you believe or conclude something if you don't "test the scriptures," so to speak. Whether your individual beliefs are or could be judged to be qualitatively right or wrong have no bearing on this. The point is whether you've arrived at your conclusions in an effortful way. It's why some folks can agree to disagree.
Referencing the war on drugs is just one example. It was a prevalent thing on TV and everywhere else at the time. Back in those days, I used to believe all drugs were bad, cuz that's what I was told. I was also raised as a Roman Catholic. I don't mean to assert that drugs aren't ever bad, or that Catholicism is wrong; I'm just saying that I didn't question anything, until I did. Now, I'm not a Catholic, and I don't think all drug use, or all drug users, are bad. I arrived at these conclusions on my own, rather than simply accepting things.
Also, lines about "substance substitut[ing] love and affection" indicate that being handed beliefs about things, especially the war on drugs, is no different on one level than being on drugs. That's unmistakable, and not the way to build a better society, or to be better people.
In another light, this song is inspiring to those of us who are trying to think for ourselves, as well as those who have broken away from the idiot box and gravitated to attempts at being well-informed or even to autodidactism. It's so much better even today than all those heavy songs that just want to be heavy, angry, or menacing without actually saying anything more meaningful.
There certainly is a "think for yourself" theme here, but the lyrics are pointing to more than just clichés.
What I get from this is that, if all you ever do is echo what others say is right or wrong, and don't think for yourself, then, even if your conclusions are sound, you're no more a part of a solution to problems or a contributor to progress than anything else. You can't truly say you believe or conclude something if you don't "test the scriptures," so to speak. Whether your individual beliefs are or could be judged to be qualitatively right or wrong have no bearing on this. The point is whether you've arrived at your conclusions in an effortful way. It's why some folks can agree to disagree.
Referencing the war on drugs is just one example. It was a prevalent thing on TV and everywhere else at the time. Back in those days, I used to believe all drugs were bad, cuz that's what I was told. I was also raised as a Roman Catholic. I don't mean to assert that drugs aren't ever bad, or that Catholicism is wrong; I'm just saying that I didn't question anything, until I did. Now, I'm not a Catholic, and I don't think all drug use, or all drug users, are bad. I arrived at these conclusions on my own, rather than simply accepting things.
Also, lines about "substance substitut[ing] love and affection" indicate that being handed beliefs about things, especially the war on drugs, is no different on one level than being on drugs. That's unmistakable, and not the way to build a better society, or to be better people.
In another light, this song is inspiring to those of us who are trying to think for ourselves, as well as those who have broken away from the idiot box and gravitated to attempts at being well-informed or even to autodidactism. It's so much better even today than all those heavy songs that just want to be heavy, angry, or menacing without actually saying anything more meaningful.