Patrotism

Over the last 8 years I’ve noticed a change in the definition of patriotism in The United States. Lets bring in good old Webster for a definition:

“Love for, or devotion to, one’s country.”

That’s it.  That’s all you need to be patriotic.  You don’t need to be pro-war.  You don’t need to be Christian.  You don’t even need to agree with every decision the president makes.  If you are a citizen of this country and you care about it, you’re patriotic. Since The Patriot Act passed it seems that patriotism has changed into an unthinking, unquestioning, and unchallenged agenda. I just feel like this kills all hope of gaining a unity again.  Non-Partisan Nationalism would be nice to return to without restraints and further brainwashing.  If you take things away slow enough, people won’t even realise their rights have been stripped.

G Stands for “Greed”

 I’ve really been too busy to make an in-depth post about really anything.  And this post is just a continuation of this repetition.  Except this one is just a simple reflection on Trent Reznor’s new album, Year Zero.  Behind it is a complete Alternate Reality, set 15 years in the future.  In the year 2022, The United States (with the aid of the Coalition for Peace) establishes a new international calendar that places the current year to 0000.  You can easily find yourself lost in the beautiful complexity behind this album and the Alternate Reality.

Here is a simple link to the NIN-Wiki that explains the alternate reality, its websites and how a person would have gone about the process of discovering these sites.  Disclosed below are lyrics to one of the more popular songs on the CD.  This song stirred some controversy over the meaning of the Capital G.  Many reviews pointed out the idea that it referenced George Bush.  Trent eventually explained that the G stood for greed.

“When it came to write the words,” Trent explained.  “I really wanted to focus on something that was at the forefront of my consciousness which is, as an American, I’m appalled by the behaviour of our government and the direction that it has taken and the direction that it’s taken everyone else in the world and its arrogance.”

Download the open source files on http://yearzero.nin.com/

Capital G – Nine Inch Nails

I pushed a button and elected him to office and uh
He pushed a button and he dropped the bomb
You pushed a button and can watch it on the television
Those mother fuckers didn’t last too long, huh huh
I’m sick of hearing about the haves and the have nots
Have some personal accountability
The biggest problem with the way that we’ve been doing things is
The more we let you have the less that I’ll be keeping for me

Well I used to stand for something
Now I’m on my hands and knees
Trading in my God for this one
And he signs his name with a capital G

Don’t give a shit about the temperature in Guatemala
Don’t really see what all the fuss is about
Ain’t gonna worry ’bout no future generations and uh
I’m sure somebody gonna figure it out
Don’t try to tell me that some power can corrupt a person
You haven’t had enough to know what it’s like
You’re only angry cause you wish you were in my position
Now nod your head because you know that I’m right
Alright

Well I used to stand for something
But forgot what that could be
There’s a lot of me inside you
Maybe you’re afraid to see
Well I used to stand for something
Now I’m on my hands and knees
Trading in my God for this one
And he signs his name with a capital G