“Freedom” ~ Alice Cooper

“We the people of the United States
In order to form a more perfect union
Stop pretending that you’ve never been bad
You’re never wrong and you’ve never been dirty
You’re such a saint, that ain’t the way we see you
You want to rule us with an iron hand
You change the lyrics and become Big Brother
This ain’t Russia, you ain’t my Dad or Mother
(They never knew anyway)
‘Cuz I never walk away from what I know is right
But I’m gonna turn my back on you….

Freedom, we’re gonna ring the bell
Freedom to rock, freedom to talk
Freedom –

Raise your fist and yell!”

Tell it, Alice ! If more people would raise their fist and yell, this world would be a better place. Don’t wait until you figure out what to yell or what to rail against, or how to object “properly.” Make some goddamn waves already! Use a barter system for things you need and help starve to death the war machine. Question authority – take your children back from the state – they’ll thank you. Stage an old-fashioned sit-in, decry the bitter truth in a blog, or hang a sign on an overpass. Whatever way you do it, stop licking the hand that feeds you! Get your miserable ass out into the street and snap yourself and your neighbors out of the collective trance this nation is under. If you do nothing, that’s what you’ll get. Take a whack at the root of tyranny. Raise your fist and yell, damn it! It’s not insanity!

Burying your head in the sand hoping your life won’t be confiscated for the greater good is insane- it’s already on the chopping block with taxation at over 40%. Announcements over public address systems to be on “orange alert,” whatever that is, is insanity. Perpetual war in hopes of finding peace is insanity. Bloated government is insanity. Bleating like sheep at the ballot box in hopes of changing things is insanity.

If you can’t think of what to yell – experiment. Are you a man or a mouse? Squeak up! For starters, take yourself out into the middle of the street, take a deep breath and scream, “NOOOO!” Would I tell you to do anything I wouldn’t do myself, dear reader? NO, I WOULDN’T. Take a page from Network and try screaming out your window, we’re mad as hell and we’re not going to take this anymore! See if it makes you feel crazier or more sane than ever. Do you want to live or do you want to keep dying, slowly, one bitch-ass, bullshit law at a time?!

What’s that, you say? Your neighbors will think you’re crazy? Sorry, they are not thinking about you that much. To keep taking it up the tailpipe like they do is what’s crazy. To keep voting for more of the goddamn same is what’s crazy. Maybe they’re just waiting for someone else to rage at the machine first. Revolution was an outrageous notion too. Aren’t you glad it happened? Let that teenage energy buried inside you out of prison. Someone has to be first. Get up off of that thing! Don’t expect someone else to do this. You have to show the world that it is not crazy to object to tyranny. Putting human beings in cages or killing them en masse, now that is crazy!

Don’t make me come over there and get all up in your face, damn it! You’ll be sorry. Do you really want a visit from the Motor City madwoman?! Well, do you? There is one angry teenager inside me who’s mad as hell and not going to take it anymore! ”

Retta Fontana, at Strike the Root.