Good is bad?

Buck the trend. Fight the power. Bad is good…

I’ve said it before – the easiest way to be labeled a cheesy musician is to be really popular. People like to like something before it’s popular, or even after…but to like something when it’s popular is uncool. You can't possibly have great tastes - or the taste of an artist, if you like what everyone else likes. You're the equivalent of a commoner.

How many people would admit to liking McDonald’s. They’re the world’s most popular restaurant and you can’t get anybody to admit to liking them (except for all of you who are going to leave a comment saying that you’re a card carrying member of the McDonald’s fan club).

It’s cool to like Ralph Nadar. It’s even cooler to like the independent bands that will never be discovered because, “they’re too smart for mainstream listeners”. What you’re doing there is telling people they’re not too smart for you…because you “get them”.

I joked about putting an American flag up on the wall of my office just to see people’s reactions. It was like I was telling them I was putting up a swastika. You’re not allowed to be patriotic, lest you be labeled one of those red necks that hates those (fill in a stereotype here). I have a friend that gets on me about my USA baseball hat. It's one of those faded blue hats where the letters are faded blue with some outline...it's a cheap Old Navy hat that doesn't look like the kind of thing Fuller wears on the 4th of July. It's not bright red, white and blue. It's basically a blue baseball hat. If you wear a Darfur shirt that has 35 cents going to some cause - that's ok...because they rape and murder people over there. Wear a USA hat where they've generally cleaned up most of that craziness? That's just evil. Ask the next person you see wearing a Darfur shirt/sticker/button about what exactly is happening over there and what they're doing about it (besides the shirt/sticker/button) you'll be shocked at their response.

The point isn't the hypocrisy of the people proclaiming that something must be done in Darfur while not really doing anything - it's the immaturity of denouncing one thing - lifting up the other...and really doing very little about either.

Believe me - I'm not going to go on a USA rant - or even tell you to buy American (I'll head in to work today in a sweet, sweet Honda...although they do make those in Ohio....but I'll be wearing clothes made somewhere far, far away...) I just think it's interesting to see what's popular and not popular.

It feels like when the goth kid down the street is hanging out with 17 other kids who all wear all black and never see the sun...and they do it to be different....all 17 of them dress the same to...be...different.

I look at it that way...it's just sort of silly.