you know, the more i think about this, the more disgusted i am. look at his t-shirt in that picture
LOOK AT IT.
it says: "what's your excuse?"
now, read these lyricspower and passion - midnight oil
wasting away
in paradise
Going backward,
once in a while
Moving ahead,
Falling behind
What do you believe,
what do you believe
What do you believe is true
Nothing they say makes a difference this way
Nothing they say will do
Take all the trouble that you can afford
At least you won't have time to be bored
Oh the power and the passion,
Oh the temper of the time
Oh the power and the passion
Sometimes you've got to take the hardest line
Sunburnt faces around,
with skin so brown
Smiling zinc cream and crowds,
Sundays the beach never a cloudBreathing eucalypt,
pushing panel vans
Stuff and munch junk food
Laughing at the truth,
cos Gough was tough til he hit the rough
Uncle sam and john were quite enough
Too much of sunshine too much of sky
It's enough to make you want to cry
Oh the power...I see buildings,
clothing the sky, in paradise
Sydney, nights are warm
Daytime telly, blue rinse dawn
Dad's so bad he lives in the pub,
it's a underarms and football clubs
Flat chat, pine gap,
in every home a big mac
And no one goes outback,
that's that
You take what you get
and get what you please
It's better to die on your feet than to live on your knees
when i was younger, amongst all the simon le bons and pretty boy bands, amongst our crushes on the cute one from the clash, or sting or suggs, behind all that, was the constant admiration for midnight oil in general, and peter garrett in particular.
he sang his guts out, he was passionate, he believed and he made you believe too, even if you were just a school girl, then a uni student, then a young worker, more interested in going out and drinking and dancing than politics and the environment.
but he was always there, with those arms spread wide, those massive hands stretched in supplication for people to hear him.
so peter, old pedro, vieux pierre. what gives? do they have you over a barrel? did you have to sign something before joining the labor party, saying you would denounce your old ways, leave it all behind. start anew. sell your fucking soul for a chair in the house of politics. and have to make kissy kissy suck arse to the americans, who you also criticised in your songs.
hey, remember, you even sang a song about us bases in australia, you even mentioned PINE GAP.
have you forgotten? you made it rhyme with 'big mac' (and better punctuation with this one, I had to put in lots of possessive apostrophes in the last lyrics)
US FORCES
US Forces give the nod, IT'S A SETBACK FOR YOUR COUNTRY (your country too peter).
Bombs and trenches all in rows,
bombs and threats STILL ASK FOR MORE (they're still asking, and you're helping them)
Divided world the CIA,
say who control the issue
You leave us with no time to talk,
YOU CAN WRITE YOUR OWN ASSESSMENT (guess you have as well, haven't you?)
Sing me songs of no denying,
seems to me too many trying
Waiting for the next big thing
Will you know it when you see it,
HIGH RISK CHILDREN DOGS OF WAR (did you EVER think in your life someone might say this about you?)
Now market movements call the shots,
business deals in parking lots
Waiting for the meat of tomorrow
i am so disgusted.* this is the man who everyone in the country relied on to stick to his principles, ideals, values.
i am so ashamed and cross i am starting to write like derryn bloddy hinch.
stopping now.
see you garrett. there is no excuse. whatever the trade-off. live on your knees, peter, live on your knees.
it's enough to make me want to cry.
* 2012 note - I have to say I am not nearly as disgusted with Peter Garret these days. What was that? Young rebellion? I'm not sure but I think he's okay for the moment. Would love to see him get out there and be The Person Who Does A Lot of Serious and Solid Work in a Political Capacity for the Indigenous People of Australia.
8 comments:
Sad, isn't it?
What some people don't know about Peter Garrett is that he is a bit of a Christian Fundamentalist. Not like Fred Nile or Family First, but enough to stop him from joining the Greens.
In person he is still a very nice guy (I spoke to him for a while about 3 months ago), but by joining the ALP he essentially agreed to accept the decision of the ALP caucus, even when he disagrees with it's decisions. He would argue that it bettere to be inside the tent pissing out, then be outside the tent pissing in, but in the end does it make a difference? Given ALP policy, it doesn't seem so.
Yes, very sad, that he has sold his soul.
I'm still at a loss to know what to do when it comes time for Peter Garrett is up for re-election. I'm a swinging voter, but Labour are definitely my preference at present. That said, I live in Garett's electorate. I have a dilemma!
And MG, thanks for you comment on my blog. Of course I read it!
I'm still recovering from John Schumann singing "It doesn't matter who's in power cause it's a crooked game/ It goes on and on and we get ripped off all the same". As soon as he got anywhere near having some political influence as an adviser to Meg Lees he seemed to use the position for the sole purpose of shafting Natasha Stott Despoja.
But Peter Garrett’s comments are even more depressing. Why was he even talking about bases? He’s meant to be arguing with Turnbull over water and stuff.
All very sad...
I think this is further evidence that he's just been a Sleeper all along.
My dream outcome for the next federal election in that the Greens hold the balance of power, in both houses. I'd like to see the libs get shafted but honestly Pete and Kevin's new labour just looks like old liberal. Let them sneak ahead of Howard but have the Greens be their conscience.
i'm with you, aof. hell, i'm with you all.
was it larissa dubecki in the age yesterday who was snivelling about how peter just had to grow up (paraphrasing here), insinuating it's silly or childish or unrealistic to remain idealistic? that ideals can and should be put to the side as we can then all fucking move on or some such shit? she said, from memory, that peter's detractors are being negative, and not realising that he has matured, blah de fucking blah.
i'm not being very articulate but my basic message to ms dubecki is this:
since when were ideals dirty and something to shed when it got a little rough? since when was it a mature thing to leave behind what you fervently believed 20 years before, as if that period of time automatically makes it old=redundant and worthy of jettison? think about it. think about how much we need someone who sticks with their principles, who can hold their head up and say THIS is what i thought 20 years ago, not cause it was fashionable, not cause it was our niche but BECAUSE IT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO THINK. THE RIGHT THING TO SAY.
and why is it now not the right thing to think or say?
[drinks copious amounts of white wine and goes to watch little miss sunshine in an effort to self-medicate out of despair]
[drinks copious amounts of white wine and goes to watch little miss sunshine in an effort to self-medicate out of despair]
We've been living parallel lives!
RE Peter; it's a shock and it's fucked. Pine Gap is still a huge concern. It's all very secret and it worries me greatly that we can have American spy bases and the like in Australia, let alone so many American (and British, and French) uranium mines etc.
How can Garrett do this?
It was Tracee Hutchinson in The Age actually, but who gives a toss about her anyway.
I believe that the only chance PG has to make a REAL difference at a political level is to join a party that is likely to take power in Australia. There is only one..the ALP. This is why he didn't go with the Democrats or Greens. All he has to do is hold his tongue, bide his time, try not to isolate himself too much and soon he will be able to advocate and implement some of the ideas he has espoused, (gently gently). But there must be some level of compromise involved, which the far-left doesn't seem to be capable of. I think PG has learned a lot since leaving the Oils. Call it selling out if you will, but if you want to have influence, the first thing you should NOT do is change things too radically too soon, or you'll find yourself at the bottom of the heap again. Australians are a very fickle, divided lot.
That said, there's nothing wrong with ideals. All the things we cherish about our society are founded on ideals.
The Hutchison (no n) article is here http://www.theage.com.au/news/opinion/the-attack-on-garrett-is-the-real-hypocrisy/2007/02/23/1171734021767.html
She says "To my way of thinking US Forces give the nod/it's a set back for our country — actually penned by the Oils' Jim Moginie — has never been more potent than it is today. That sentiment — and the impact it had on me as a young woman — isn't weakened by Peter Garrett's pragmatic resolve to be part of a political process that is all about compromise. Isn't that what democracy is all about?
Aren't we all better served by having people in our parliaments who have the courage of their convictions than have them filled with people who've never taken a stand on anything in their lives?"
Pragmatism seems to have won out over courage of convictions in my opinion.
But remember Hutchison is an ex-girlfriend of a member of the Oils and knows Garrett well.
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