Quicunque vult...: Flags and Icons
Quicunque vult...: Flags and Icons
Both flag burning and willful abortion intersect at one vital point: There is despair for the future. Flag burning says that the nation is headed in a direction that will lead to its destruction. When the future appears too bleak for either parents or the infant, abortion becomes the “logical†choice. In “Red Rag Top,†the couple chose abortion because “I was out of a job and she was in school/Life was fast and the world was cruel.†So, the infant paid the price of the parents' lousy choice of premature sex. That was an expensive lay. And the tote board just keeps on rackin' up each time the song plays, teaching its values to more and more listeners as it does. Wherever for some there is no immediately self-gratified hope of a future, apparently the only option is to destroy any hope of a future for others – either burn a flag to symbolize the destruction of democracy or have an abortion, or both. Right now both represent the full-fledged “American Way.†The always eloquent Dcs. Carder is more knowledgeable of country music than I. Her juxtaposition of two mainstream artists and their message is fascinating. She takes two seemingly disparate national issues as sung by these artists and brings them together. Visit her post for the complete text.
