For some reason I find this funny as hell: dueling websites from lefty and righty punks, fighting for the souls of the punky masses:
- Pierced and tattooed rockers are in for a mosh-pit civics lesson this year. Nearly 200 bands are lining up to lambaste President Bush and try to register a half-million voters through the Punk Voter coalition.
These bands say they can harness votes from the average liberal-leaning but disenfranchised punk-rock fan with a combination of politically charged lyrics and constant reminders about civic duty in a time of war.
"If you don't find yourself in the voting booth you may find yourself in combat boots in the desert," said Justin Sane, guitarist and singer for Anti-Flag, one of Punk Voter's most vocal members.
The bands are drumming their message home by inviting liberal groups like People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and the abortion rights group NARAL Pro-Choice America to their concerts. A Web site offers election news and commentaries from former Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra, Jay Bentley from Bad Religion and Jim Lindberg from Pennywise.
Punk Voter's roots stretch to the 2000 elections, when NOFX bass player Fat Mike suffered from insomnia after the Florida recount, where Bush defeated Al Gore by just 537 votes to win the presidency. He began calling colleagues in the music industry and soon launched a group with the dual purpose of motivating punk fans and unseating Bush in 2004.
....But Fat Mike's approach rankles some fans. Nick Rizzuto, a 22-year-old publicist for a New York radio station, has been a punk fan for a decade and a conservative since the 2000 elections. His Web site offers an alternative on the right, featuring commentaries from punk stars, like former Misfits singer Michale Graves, and its own take on the upcoming elections.
"I always thought that conservatives were underrepresented," Rizzuto said, "not only in punk circles, but in music in general."
Rizzuto said he has received dozens of supportive e-mails from other punk fans who have felt out of place at concerts and in conversations with friends.
Article comments
1 - BRICKLAYER
Dang, I thought this was gonna be about the Skins Vs. the Punks!
Anyway, punks aren't supposed to write manifestos and organize voter drives. Their supposed to form street gangs, incite soccer riots, overdose on drugs, eat their own fecal matter and throw it at their audience, turn over cars and then burn them, wear their hair in liberty spikes, carve words in their own and other's flesh, scare soccer moms and Nascar dads, and...wait...no, NO! They shouldn't be doing any of these things either. I guess they oughta do the voter drive thingy.
GO KUCINICH.
2 - mike
Hilarious. I love the line about fighting "the liberal punk establishment." Can an appearance on O'Reilly be far behind?
When I lived in L.A. in 1979-80, most of the punkers I met were apolitical or right wing.
3 - Chris Kent
The punks of the early 80s in Austin, Texas were fiercely liberal, though there was an equally fierce conservative faction, which eventually became the skinheads. Most skinheads were pro-military, bigoted, did not drink, did not smoke and even practiced some forms of celibacy - they were peculiar. A lot of that philosophy was inspired by the Washington DC band Minor Threat.
I can't remember the lead singer's name - Ian McKellan? He later formed Fugazi? Anyway, Minor Threat was great live, but the conservative factions that followed them were as creepy as the hillbillies in Deliverance.
4 - Particleman
it was Ian MacKaye (sp?) and yup, he did form Fugazi. caught them last year at Emo's and really enjoyed the show. though i can't say much about that whole 'straight edge' thing...makes no sense to me.
are there still skinheads in austin? in my 4.5 years there i never saw one.
5 - Chris Kent
Particleman,
I went to college near Austin in the early 80s. Lived there after college. Been in Dallas the last five years. I haven't seen a skinhead down there in years.
6 - David
How punk will the draft be for these kids?
7 - Eric Olsen
While the whole straight edge thing is ascetic as hell, I wasn't under the impression it was rightist. On the other hand, when you take any ideology far enough it circles back around and meets on the other side: both Pat Buchanan and Michael Moore oppose the war on terror and free trade.
8 - mike
Punk is just an excuse for throwing furniture out the window. And I mean that as a compliment. All this political stuff is beside the point.
9 - Abel
I've lived in Austin for 12 years and have seen maybe 5 skinheads the whole time. They were probably from out of town to see a show. Anyway, the scene "punks" here now are more interested in fashion than anything else, because that's what it has become, just a fashion trend. The teenage punks that come out to see Lower Class Brats, etc. are not that way, though. As if they have chosen a lifestyle. It's good to see the young kids carrying the torch.
10 - Douglas Mays
HHHMMM... interesting comments on anti-political punks of early times. Here in Seattle in the mid70s to mid 80s it was anything but that. The scene that the young future grungers learned from was anything but anti-political. Go to www.cdbaby.com/x-15, sample 'Mad Again' and 'Vaporized' to start with. You might find that what years later evolved into 'grunge' had alot more validity than you might realize. Try www.seattlemusicweb.com also. The get out and vote attitude is really lame. Throw a brick (an offering on this site)
Anyway, punk is highly political and active where I'm from.
11 - Eric Olsen
I am ambivalent about the whole "get out the vote" endeavor. Part of what elections measure is the level of interest in the election and these efforts skew that. They are also NEVER neutral in their efforts: any get out the vote effort is going to run in favor of liberals/Democrats because adult white males are most likely to vote and most likely to be Republican.
Ultimately people need to feel some kind of internal desire to participate in the process, it can't be guilteed upon them from the outside and have any lasting impact.
12 - Eric Olsen
by "adult" I meant older, say, 35+
13 - mike
I'm 96 years old, and I still have my own punk band and go to shows every night. Although yesterday I left my teeth at home. So I resent this ageist attack on my generation.
14 - Eric Olsen
that comment won't seem funny at all in another 40 years
15 - mike
Although political punking will be long gone since we'll be forty years into the U.S. military dictatorship that begins on or before November 2.
16 - Eric Olsen
ah yes, how blindly optimistic of me
17 - mike
Well, no wonder: "I certainly feel bad about the suspension of the Constitution and the dissolving of Congress, but as Sean Hamity--with whom I have some disagreements, to be sure (for example, I think the round up of gays is slightly excessive)--says, these are temporary steps, because Bush is firmly committed to democracy--although let me engage in some further hand wringing about the takeover of the networks by Halliburton Media; it is sort of odd that Mr. Democracy does all of these things, but again our resolve must be strong--and since I just parrot the government's line anyway, it doesn't really affect me. Rock on!"
18 - greenradical
conservative punks more like skinheads.greedy idiots trying to make punk mainstream so it fades away from its left roots.there scared of the radical left breeding ground that is punk.but all there going to do is make people more left & radical. a change is coming.P.S THE CONSERVATIVES THINK THEY ARE ROYALTY THEY THINK THEY ARE SUPERIOR THAN YOU.PICK A SIDE
19 - Bob A. Booey
Conservative punks (ahem, Dave Nalle) don't realize they're, to quote Green Day, walking contradictions. Either they don't understand the spirit of the music and the origins of its politics and identity as a cultural movement or they're just spoiled rich kids who like snotty music to rebel against their overbearing, coddling parents.
That is all.
20 - average guy
who cares what most of these kids think, especially those into this garbage music? NOFX? Misfits? Who are these freaks? MTV is crap! I am sick and tired of most 23 year olds thinking they are important and thinking that what they say is important. You don't know jack shit until you are at least 40. All I need is the proof supplied in many of these blogs. You know who you are. You write this dumb shit.
21 - Bryan
Israel left Egypt because Slavery became intolerable.
Punks are doing the same thing.
Now all punks need to untie and come to agreeances about who the enemy is ...
(Zionazis in the government, Builderbergs, The Black pope, The Black Queen, The Satanic regimes of Government, The Edomite house of Talmudic Judaism, The Synogauge of Satan, The Abomination that causes Desolation)
If all of the youth pointed their collective guns at the babylonian mystery tower it would topple.
ALL PEOPLE WANTING SOCIAL CHANGE AND TRUE AND LASTING PEACE AND LIBERTY, THE KIND YOU HAVE TO FIGHT AND DIE FOR, START HERE:-
WWW.JAHTRUTH.NET
22 - Jonny
I think that punk was never supposed to be just left wing or just right wing at all. Look at Joey and Johnny Ramone. We should all be more openminded and stop creating stupid stereotypes about liberals and conservatives...besides, Libertarian is the way to go ;)
23 - Tommyboi
I agree mostly with the last two posts. People need to wake up more and constantly seek the truth about the powers that be. Time moves, people mature (usually) nothing stays the same, learn and grow. Unite!