Rage Against the Machine is back together after a long hiatus, at least long enough for a mini-tour this summer. I for one hope it leads to some new album releases--in their day, they were some of the most innovative musicians in rock & roll, particularly guitarist Tom Morello. Not surprisingly, though, this left-wing politically charged band created some controversy at their first performance this week. The president and his cabinet as "Nazi war criminals"? Not exactly original, guys.
But be that as it may, I'd be hypocritical if I joined the masses calling for them to be investigated, prosecuted, or otherwise censored after supporting Don Imus's right to free speech during Nappyheadedho-gate. The fact of the matter is that while I couldn't disagree more with their opinion, they didn't come anywhere near the line of inciting actual violence. Lead singer Zack de la Rocha did call for the the death of a president, this is true. But read the true transcript:
"A good friend of ours said that if the same laws were applied to U.S. Presidents as were applied to the Nazi's after World War II, then every single one of 'em, every last rich white one of 'em from Truman on would have been hung to death, and shot. And this current administration is no exception. They should be hung, and tried, and shot. As any war criminal should be."The italics in that quote were added by me, to point out what keeps it unquestionably protected speech: what's being advocated here is not murder, but execution, a legitimate judicial process. And that's a threat that needs to be a viable option for us all.
And in keeping with this week's pro-free-speech post, I've changed my Recent Experiences album this week to Rage's greatest album, instrumentally speaking, 1996's terrific Evil Empire. Enjoy the weekend, everyone!
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