Evanescence – Going Under
An evening pause: Some modern music, to remind us that there is a culture out there that is very different than the tiny geek-oriented engineering world my readers like. In watching this very nicely produced music video, I was most struck by the vision the singer has of her audience. I wonder thus what her audience thinks of her and themselves, especially when this video has been viewed almost 70 million times.
Hat tip Wayne DeVette.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
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A peek at a dark part of our culture where pseudo devil worship and external symbolism (the tattoo culture) attempt to create a place where some of societies “misfits” (millennials) can feel validated and part of something bigger than they that they can belong to?
A lily white version of a Thug rap video? Luciferian “cultural appropriation”?
Everyone wants to belong.
I will throw this email in that I just wrote commenting on another dark element of our modern culture:
Should caucasian people be outraged that people of color wear pants?
I believe pants are a result of the caucasian culture, no?
Is that not also a form of “cultural appropriation”?
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/justin-bieber-cultural-appropriation-dreadlocks-accused-a6967201.html
Social justice, cultural appropriation, white guilt, students “not feeling safe” all of these terms are terms that are designed to give a feeling of “ownership” or some kind of childish validation but in fact it is all about racism, reverse or otherwise.
These are the tools of political manipulation that some of the left uses and perpetuates to keep their racist gravy train going. Pure childish manipulation, comparable to “The Big Lie” so well utilzed by the Nazi’s.
Cotour posed a commentary-question:
“A peek at a dark part of our culture where pseudo devil worship and external symbolism (the tattoo culture) attempt to create a place where some of societies “misfits” (millennials) can feel validated and part of something bigger than they that they can belong to?”
–I’d have to say “no,” in this particular instance, although I do understand from where you come. This however, IMO, doesn’t fit that characterization. This tune & the album as a whole are, if anything, surprisingly uplifting. It’s more in the Gothic Rock realm. As for being “validated” & “belonging to something bigger,” I would just say– everybody’s done that through “their own music.”
Bigger question might be; art imitating life or vice versa?
——–
-Not understanding the whole “pant” thing, but no problem.
The real one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzd1CjZc75M
Wayne wrote: “This tune & the album as a whole are, if anything, surprisingly uplifting.”
If this is considered uplifting, I *am* surprised.
*This* geek-oriented engineer will stay with some of the music of the early 20th century: Johnny Mercer, Cole Porter, Rogers and Hart, etc. Those composers wrote (truly) uplifting tunes that are the pinnacle of music; music has gone generally downhill ever since.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkJNaTQgjKM (Climb Every Mountain, Rodgers & Hammerstein)
The NewSpace and commercial space entrepreneurs could have been inspired by beautiful music, uplifting lyrics, and attitudes of tenacity such as this. “… Search high and low, follow every byway, every path you know … follow every rainbow ’till you find your dream.”
I doubt that either version of “Going Under” would or could have such positive effects upon those who listen to them. Lyrics such as “… daily defeated by you, just when I thought I reached the bottom” or “I know a place where dreams get crushed” are hardly inspirational.
Bob:
Search YouTube for “It’s all about the Pentiums” for a rollicking good Geek’s music video. Likely to annoy the modern PC (that is Politically Correct) crowd, but you’ve gotta love Wierd Al. Highly recommended.
Joey:
Har– personally, I have to be drunk or on prescription-medication to enjoy DEVO. There perhaps was a brief window when they could have bridged the gap between techno & skin-head, but no suck luck. HAR.
Edward: Seriously– taken as a whole “epic, gothic, story-line,” the whole album is amazingly uplifting. She has to first identify she is being ‘dragged under’ by her lover before she can escape it all, in another tune. (“Bring me to Life.”)
Mike Nelson: Submit your Evening Pause suggestions directly to Mr. Z. –check the “about” page for his email address. (I’m maybe 1 for 5 for my suggestions!)
Wayne:
The “Pants” thing is my response to the now growing element in our culture, the leftist element in our culture of redefining or creating new words to serve their political purpose. Why will the president not say the words “Islamic extremist”? Because that would validate the term, pure Saul Alinski.
Shape the words and define them and you can control the people, this is filling the void that “political correctness” leaves.
If the wearing of dead locks is to be a violation of some new cultural “politically correct” rule that is not to be crossed by a “white” person then I propose that anyone who adheres to that thinking should give up all of the trappings of the modern “white” world / culture and that would begin with the surrendering of their pants.
This is also an extension of this redefining of words and essentially reality that is underway:
https://youtu.be/GOqtl53V3JI
Robert Reich explains it from a year ago the push that has now happened in NY and California by the Dems and the people who they pander to. This $15 dollar an hour minimum wage, which I call a Maximum minimum wage has little to nothing to do with actual business economics but social manipulation.
The powers that be have created the out of balance nature of our economy by creating the culture of dependency “the un acceptable welfare state” where a population of people has been encouraged / incentivized to reproduce and now those people must be paid a living wage doing menial / transitional work. Menial work is just that, menial, it is not work that by design is meant to raise a family on. The lowering of standards is now the norm, lets all aspire to the “profession” of flipping hamburgers.
Why doesn’t the government make the minimum wage $35 dollars an hour, then I would mandated to give myself a raise! A maximum minimum wage knows no bounds.
And further to my point and not to be disrespectful in any way shape or form, is this the cultural appropriation that the activists in the story are defending? (real world cultural video below) If you are a person defending such un American things as promoting that a person (however subjectively dopey they might look) can not wear a hair style that they choose without “offending” some special group in America, then you know not what America is all about and your attempt at redefining it now offends ME!
https://youtu.be/28WZ8BwJ6Vo
Cotour– ok., (ref Pants) thanks. I seem to recall reading something of which you speak & recently. (the whole cultural misappropriation ‘thang.)
More directed comments later if I can whip something into shape.
–tangential & slightly less abstract; personally, I try to emulate the dominant culture as far as dress/appearance, rather than the fringe culture. (In my youth, it was the opposite.) Some “costumes” are pure ornamental but most have practical applications if you dig a little deeper. (I like my pants–we have “winter” where I live..) I do however, wear a clip-on tie, ‘cuz more than one disgruntled client has tried to choke me via that method, & you never want to get a real tie caught in machinery, of any kind.
So….whaddayou really think of Evanescence?
Evanescence ……………………..HMMMMM.
I see your Evanscence, and raise you one Celebration Day.
https://youtu.be/OM_y3pHZGHU
Given the little that I know about you, I suspect that you have a closer connection to Evansence over and above the norm.
Notice in Reich’s comments on where the “extra” money comes from to pay these extra costs.
https://youtu.be/GOqtl53V3JI
“the money will come from profits and not in the form of increased product or service costs”.
This is the great equalizer, stripping the “extra” money from “evil” capitalist business creators / owners. Apparently it is this disparity in income that creating and successfully running a business causes that is at the core of the leftist agenda? (these people have really lost their collective ability to reason and understand, this is a psychological / disease / condition)
Question for Mr. Reich: When and where do the new businesses come from AND how do the existing businesses survive when the government tells them how much they MUST pay an entry level employee over and above the ability to pay?
AND
Now the mandatory 12 week leave law:
http://www.cnn.com/2016/04/05/health/paid-family-leave-new-york-passage-momentum/index.html?eref=rss_health
There is no room for start up situations here, the $15 dollar an hour and the 12 week laws eventually start at employee #1. The government is essentially stifling new business and making the people who desire to start new businesses to become “outlaws”. I suppose that all start up monies will now have to be sourced from the government now after submitting a very long and detailed business plan?
Ah, the plan is almost complete.
I think pants actually came from the Mongols.
Then I guess under these “new” rule we all have to give them up then.
I always suspected that dreadlocks were just a name created to describe the hair of people with poor hygiene who never washed their hair…
Speaking of dreads, technology, economy and all of the associated elements I post these two stories that need to be begun to be thought about.
1. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scott-santens/humanity-needs-universal-_b_9599198.html
2. http://www.charlierose.com/watch/60362672
Cotour wrote: “Question for Mr. Reich: When and where do the new businesses come from AND how do the existing businesses survive when the government tells them how much they MUST pay an entry level employee over and above the ability to pay? AND Now the mandatory 12 week leave law”
The French have made it harder to fire employees, so now French companies are reluctant to hire until it is absolutely necessary. As a result, France has a high unemployment rate. This is what comes from overregulating business.
As for minimum wage laws (a similar problem), there are states and localities in the US that mandate minimum wages at a higher pay than the federal government. You may want to consider dropping the word “maximum” from your phrase; I think it does not fit properly.
Companies survive because they adapt, often by reducing workforce or passing the additional costs on to the customers. Either way, our overall prosperity and standard of living suffer. Think of how many more goods and services we could afford if the competition increased due to almost everyone being productive, not just the current 63%, and the government did not regulate so heavily that prices get so high.
Wayne,
Apparently I lacked context for your choice of song. I (for one) really like the Evening Pauses. Please continue to make suggestions.
Milton Friedman and the negative income tax, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtpgkX588nM
Apropos of the ‘Evening Pauses’ (which I enjoy), comes this video from the ‘By Ken Levine’ blog. Won’t spoil it, just go listen.
https://youtu.be/Bk7RVw3I8eg
Any thread that includes DEVO is Ok with me….. ;-)
Whip It!
https://youtu.be/IIEVqFB4WUo?t=2
Talk about your cultural misappropriations LOL!
And speaking of DEVO and lack of pants…. ;-)
Jerkin Back and Forth:
https://youtu.be/V77Di0KZrSU
Thank you guys for the time-travel back to my mis-spent youth :-)
Beautiful World:
https://youtu.be/X9tvLrWG1mk
Blair– excellent version of a Classic! (I kept expecting them to go all metal-rage, any second!)
Steve– HAR. Like I mentioned prior– have to be drunk to truly enjoy DEVO, but I still have my copy of their debut album in glorious vinyl. (Best techno-version of “Satisfaction” ever!)
Cotour– yes, do enjoy the Zeppelin as well! (prefer the early material but, it’s all good) HAR– my Daughter turned me on to Evanescence when she was in College, & concurrently at the time I noticed large segments of our 20-something female mental health clients that repetitively played that album (“Fallen”) non-stop, so I just had delve deeper. (In contrast, the 30/40-something schizophrenic folks loved playing Ozzie & Pacific Northwest Grunge, repetitively.) [We encouraged folks to listen to music to ‘relax,’ but few of us ever bothered to actually discover exactly what was popular— very enlightening & often my one “in” to reach people.]
Edward– enjoy practically all your Evening Pause suggestions! (Not a big Opera fan myself, but am more familiar than I’d like to admit!) Apparently, you all previously made all my ‘original’ suggestions from the 1930’s to 1950’s, so I was forced into making suggestions from more contemporary Artists.
Wayne,
I find some opera music delightful, but too many operas end as tragedies — Gilbert and Sullivan being very notable exceptions.
This certainly has been the liveliest discussion on music that I have seen come from any Evening Pause posting.
Yo, Edward!
-once you get DEVO, “pants,” & “cultural misappropriation” in the same thread, all bets are off HAR.
-Should clarify on Opera, –know way too many of the tunes themselves but don’t understand the story-lines! It’s as-if, well… they are singing in a foreign-language of some sort! (HAR) (I can do ASL ( sign-language) & some Spanglish, but that’s about it.)
German Opera always sounds ominous & “gothic,” while with the French & Italian I catch maybe 5-10% of what’s going on… just not my thing! (Sing in English & make it rhythm & I’ll sign up!! HAR)
When it comes to the classic American-Musical however, I’ve warmed up greatly to that genre over the past 30 years. Just saw White Christmas, Holiday Inn, & Oklahoma recently, & was able to sit through them w/o getting up!
I love “White Christmas.” I even get to use the line about my clothing having shrunk.
Don’t worry about not understanding the opera’s song. If they are upbeat, then someone is happy now, but they are destined to die of tuberculosis, get stabbed to death by their lover, or something. I listen to the songs, not the story.
Except for Gilbert and Sullivan, in which case everyone ends up happy. I think that these two realized that we were going to have easier lives and happier times, starting in the late 19th century and adjusted their attitudes accordingly.