Purple Berries

[redrabid]

Maybe I am too cynical: Always taking the easy way out.

[JoeD80]

The silver people - the "straight folks, still eating the bullshit from the politicians and were all Gung Ho for VietNam.

It's a reference to people in radiation suits. Silver radiation suits -> Silver People.

Paul Kantner's prologue to the song (quoting from his book, Lyrica):

Earth July 1975
Black sails knifing through the pitchblende night
Away from the radioactive landmass madness
From the silver-suited people searching out
Uncontaminated food and shelter on the shores
No glowing metal on our ship of wood only
Free happy crazy people naked in the universe
We speak earth talk, go ride the music

[babson]

The silver people - the "straight folks, still eating the bullshit from the politicians and were all Gung Ho for VietNam.

It's a reference to people in radiation suits. Silver radiation suits -> Silver People.

Paul Kantner's prologue to the song (quoting from his book, Lyrica):

Earth July 1975
Black sails knifing through the pitchblende night
Away from the radioactive landmass madness
From the silver-suited people searching out
Uncontaminated food and shelter on the shores
No glowing metal on our ship of wood only
Free happy crazy people naked in the universe
We speak earth talk, go ride the music

Yuk! Just ruined that song for me. I didn't think we were in a nuclear war in 1969. So he was looking way into the future, six years. I suppose it's a challenge to keep a war going for so long without involving nukes. Tell you what! I'll compromise and just think of the Wooden Ship as the Hippie Culture, sorta like the Yellow Submarine, sailing through the bullshit.

You can't account for taste...

As it turned out, it was only the invention of the microwave oven - nothing to get hung about...

deleted a knock on the book.

[Susan Butcher]

The song is about escape from Amerika. At that time people were giving up on San Francisco, and moving into the country, out to Portland, off to Australia, wherever. He was right to drop the first verse, it makes the subject too specific.

[babson]

Well, back then, escaping into the Hippie Culture was good enough for me.

Nowadays, leaving the USA for a wiser country, one more mature in dealing with human nature in politics, crosses my mind, from time to time.
Maybe they were just 40 years off.

Robert McNemara said that we can't end war until we change human nature. We can't change human nature, at least, not anytime soon.

Then it was Aristotle I think, who said, for the human race to change, first, their Gods must change. See why it's "Not anytime soon"?

BTW, I listened to Wooden Ships again. It's still a beautiful song...

[redrabid]

Right!
But you can't escape reality. Wherever you go, it follows you. It's part of you. If you don't like it, change it. Turn around and speak its true name.

[babson]

Right!
But you can't escape reality. Wherever you go, it follows you. It's part of you. If you don't like it, change it. Turn around and speak its true name.

Like when I got drafted in 1969. After that, I found that the Hippie Culture, not reality, followed me wherever I went, military, vietNam, civilian, didn't matter. It pops up even today, here and there, 42 years later.

OK, I'll try it!

REALITY, you are now my SURREALISTIC PILLOW...

AND, I bought a book on reality so I can study up on it.

A People's History of American Empire (American Empire Project)"
Howard Zinn...

REALITY, my friends is really over-rated...

[redrabid]

I was never in the army and never in a war, so it is difficult for me to answer the previous post.
But to me it seems that the Vietnam war was a terrible reality for all involved. Friends of mine were in later wars and all, some more than others, are scarred by it. And whatever their ways to survive, they have to face their ordeals.

[babson]

It's just that I feel reality is in the eye of the beholder, so to speak, so I didn't know where you were coming from.

The reality you mention does have a way of haunting us. Most just tell me they don't think about it. Many of these scars are not the proudest moments of many of us. I know too much about it, so I don't really want to relive some of those stories.

The only reality that would be worse, is when our next foreign war isn't foreign, and happens on our own soil. Thus, the reference to Zinn's book which I caught a little bit of on the history channel yesterday.

That's the main reason we still have these foreign wars, because we (The USA) haven't experienced any real horror here. We are the only country that has had these constant foreign wars going since World War II.

[redrabid]

Babson, I think I understand you, though I don't agree with you that reality is in the eye of the beholder. For me, reality is the place where I buy my daily bread (and I don't mean the bakery).
But my point is that if we don't like something, more is asked from us than turning our backs, just wanting it not to be or to happen. "War is over, if you want to", my ass. We have to make our stand against war mongers. Choosing the right president might be a good first.

[Susan Butcher]

The "daily bread" reality is where we spend most of our time, and we have to deal with it the best we can. We can't shift that reality much because for millions of people it's the only one. What helps me is to know that in some exceptional times and places it can be different. That's how I see it.

[babson]

Let's let reality lie. It must be getting tired.

As for doing something about the myth that war is over, I think you and me just did. Got a Revolution!

I have some fear that there won't be the Hippie culture cunning, not only "for" peace, but peaceful.

What we learned at a very early age back then, was 2 things.

First, a demonstration, no matter how organized as peaceful, will always get out of hand. Remember this isn't about wages and benefits, it's about the actions of a Government.
(Chicago six, Seattle Seven).

Second, the government enforcers will beat the shit out of you like the '68 Democratic convention, or kill you a la Kent State.

So, we did what we could, which was just living the Hippie Lifestyle. You won't move the people of a nation with violence, you will just spook them.

Finally you need the numbers, so your voice is one voice. It took years for the Hippie culture to get so big. Today, there is not one voice, it is fragmented. Demonstrators against Iraq/Afghan have displayed violence toward the military bases. This sort of display gets you nowheres. There are under cover anarchist in the demonstrators, to make sure it gets out of hand, and violence erupts.

Make no mistake, the Hippie Culture terrified the Government, and a resurgence of it, I fear would have some more dire consequences, peaceful or not.

And today's foreign war has no draft, so apathy is way up. They signed up for it right? It's good for a military career, right?

Other than that we have about the same numbers in opposition to us (the warmongers) as we had back then. The government was smart by handling and covering the big obstical of the draft, so it could wage another foreign war for profit and a realistic weapons test lab. What makes me uneasy about these current wars, is that they could turn into a draft. The threat is there.

After than it's simple, make a demand or set of demands, take it to the people, by whatever means. They say six people can start something like this.

Only a truely peaceful display and effort will result in changes that will withstand the test of time.

Back then, we didn't know if we'd be successful, and we didn't care. The Hippie Culture fulfilled all the empty spots in us.

The new President? The current one may be him in a year. That's why I'm reading the Zinn book. I would vote for a president with an agenda to end war, especially our addiction to constant foreign wars.
I haven't seen one yet, unless Obama turns out to be the one, but I remain skeptical.

[Susan Butcher]

Public opinion in Australia was against a war with Iraq from the start, but it made no difference. America said go, so we went, just like Vietnam. Pathetic, isn't it? I don't think it'll change much until America changes.

[plasticfantastic]

As I wrote in a song quite a while ago (so DON'T judge!)

Nobody's gonna change the world
If they don't change themselves
How can we wait for better days
If we don't change our ways
We only break each other's hearts
Because ours are broken too
Don't try to change someone 'til something changes you

Because there's nothing better than expressing thought in rhyme...

[EmbryonicRabbit68]

Wow that was really nice.You got music for it?Because I got a bunch of lyrics but none of the music I have composed fits much of it.I was thinking about a thread where we post our songs/lyrics/poems?