One thing which drives my lovely bride crazy is my eclectic taste in music.
Take Wyclef Jean (above). Not the kind of thing you expect someone weaned on 1970s British art-pop to get into. And I don’t like all his stuff. But some of his work, like Redemption Song (above) will make you cry.
One of Jean’s best lyrics (the video is not available through Google unfortunately) is Who Gave The Order, from the duets album Preacher’s Son. It’s a song about lies, and liars, and the killing which results from lies. Very appropriate to our time.
We live in a time of lies, and liars, and lies which cause death.
Some of the most important lies are still being hidden
at the Department of Justice.
While Republicans from President Bush on
down continue to claim no crime was committed, the House Judiciary
Committee has now proven that there was a concerted effort to purge
career prosecutors, civil servants, and replace them with political
hacks, with the aim of making justice partisan, something for "just us." Not just during this Administration but (through the protection of the civil service system) for decades to come.
So, who gave the order? You say nothing was wrong, that it was all
perfectly legal? Who gave the order? If there was nothing illegal you
have nothing to fear. Who gave the order?
Questions asked with no response, ey, Wyclef
Who’s gonna answer
Where did all these guns come from, tell me
Who’s gonna answer
Feeding lies to our daughters and sons
They will have to answer
Then what they gonna do when the Rastaman comes
Where you gonna run for cover
The plain fact is we know who gave the order. Karl Rove gave the order.
George W. Bush gave the order. If shoes were on the other feet Republicans would never accept it. They spent the 1990s constantly accusing Democrats of plotting to make justice partisan, systematically hiding evidence of Democratic crimes while making up
cases against Republicans.
Now that projection has become reality. Republicans are systematically
perverting the course of justice, and other Republicans are covering up
for them. That we know.
But who gave the order?
And then, once we know who gave the order:
Well what you gonna do, what you gonna do, what are you gonna do
Incarcerate a million and only free few
What was done to others, it shall be done to you
Open up your eyes and you will see the full view
Sometime only music tells the real story.
