I hope everyone is as happy about the election Of President Obama to a second term as I am. The Right, it seems is having a hard time adjusting to their new reality. The other day I read a Washington Post column by Dana Milbank, detailing the Right’s 5 stages of grief. You can read it here.
http://www.postbulletin.com/...
This got me thinking as I was walking along listening to my iPod. Many of the songs seemed to reflect the general mood R's were grappling with. So, I decided to set these stages of grief to music to try to help those on the Right come to grips with what just befell them. More below the fold.
Green Day was on deck, belting out a stew of emotions that I realized could be emblematic of the 5 stages of grief many on the Right were currently experiencing. So I listened as best I could to try and sort out what might be best for each stage. The five stages, Denial, bargaining, depression, anger, and finally acceptance, were interwoven through many albums and styles of songs. Here for your listening pleasure, is my take on what they might be going through as they sort through their feelings about the election.
All songs by Green Day.
STAGE 1. Denial
Song: Wake Me Up When September (November) Ends.
Can anyone forget Karl Rove’s meltdown on Fox news on election night as Ohio was called for President Obama? No, I didn’t think so. The only thing we need to do here with the following song is change the lyric September to November and we are on our way.
STAGE 2. Bargaining
Song: Minority
Now that the Republicans have realized they have lost the Hispanic vote, the Black vote, the Women’s vote and pretty much every other minority vote out there, they will try to bargain their way into getting those votes by claiming they ARE really like them after all. This is all in an attempt to have the majority next time. If you detect the defiant tone, that is pretty much how the Right bargains these days, my way or the highway.
STAGE 3: Depression
This stage will probably be a long and nasty one for them. Some will act more crazy than depressed, So I have decided to break this up into two parts. These songs speak for themselves.
Part 1. Song : Basket Case
Part 2. Song: Boulevard Of Broken Dreams
STAGE 4. Anger
Song: Loss of Control
A this point they raging at everybody and trying to assign blame, classic lashing out. They actually have lost control, of the WH, Senate, and their inner dialogue.
STAGE 5. Acceptance
This is another area that needs two parts. Many will reach this stage, some will not. Here’s to hoping they eventually all reach this stage, for their mental health as well as ours.
There is some nostalgia throughout this song. I see it as an attempt to put the good times up on a pedestal in their minds right next to the framed copy of Ronald Reagan.
Part 1. Song: Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)
Part 2. Song: Macy’s Day Parade
This song will give a peek into the mind of the R’s on inauguration day. So, I think of it more as Inauguration Day Parade, at least for them.
Hope everyone enjoyed our counseling session. Let's get to stag 5 already! I also hope the very talented Billie Joe Armstrong (lead singer) is feeling better these days.
For anyone that's is interested, Green Day had an album come out in the middle of the Bush Administration called American Idiot. It was about everything that was going wrong in our country at that time. Both songs: Wake Me Up When September Ends, and Boulevard Of Broken Dreams are from that album. The album was made into a play.