If Everyone Cared by Nickelback
Lately I've been really impressed with Nickelback's "If Everyone Cared." Maybe it's because I want to live in that fantasy world, and maybe it's because I love the fact that younger people appreciate this sentiment.
I came of age in the early 80s. It was a horribly embarrassing time as far as music goes - hair bands and Madonna - long before she became anything resembling socially responsible. We all have to grow.
I'm encouraged that a song about peace and caring can rise on the charts.
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
We�d see the day when nobody died
What a simple message. I hope the upcoming generation "gets it" because my generation certainly didn't. Some of us did, but enough of us didn't that we're at war again. Maybe "getting it" on a large scale requires growing up in a time of war. How unfortunate.
I was too young when Vietnam ended to really comprehend politics and by the time the first Gulf War started I was plenty old enough to know it was about oil and too young to understand how to do much about it. I guess age doesn't matter because I couldn't figure out how to stop "oil war #2" either.
Ultimately, enough people in any generation have to "get it" to elect people who won't start wars. We're not there yet. Maybe the next generation will be.
I don't meet many 20 somethings who are gung ho on war. Maybe when you're the age group dying you feel a little differently about it. I know there are some, but they seem to be in fewer numbers.
At some point we're not going to have enough people to fight wars without a draft. Frankly, I'm eager for that day. If we had a draft, and *anyone's* kid could end up being killed in Iraq (or fill in country of your choice), we'd be out of the war business in the blink of an eye. There wouldn't be any discussion about the best way to get out of Iraq, we'd just be out. And we'd be a lot less cavalier about starting more wars.
Back to the song... If you haven't seen the video, it's well worth catching it. I'm sure you can find it online.
Nickelback lyrics
If Everyone Cared
From underneath the trees, we watch the sky
Confusing stars for satellites
I never dreamed that you�d be mine
But here we are, we�re here tonight
Singing Amen, I�m alive
Singing Amen, I�m alive
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
We�d see the day when nobody died
And I�m singing
Amen I, I�m alive
Amen I, I�m alive
And in the air the fireflies
Our only light in paradise
We�ll show the world they were wrong
And teach them all to sing along
Singing Amen I�m alive
Singing Amen I�m alive
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
We�d see the day when nobody died
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
We�d see the day when nobody died
And as we lie beneath the stars
We realize how small we are
If they could love like you and me
Imagine what the world could be
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
We�d see the day when nobody died
We�d see the day, we�d see the day
When nobody died
We�d see the day, we�d see the day
When nobody died
We�d see the day when nobody died
posted by Patsy Terrell at 10:09 AM
1 Comments:
Some very good points, but you can't really say that war's as black and white as 'getting it right' being just not going to war. There will always be people who do terrible things for power, and sometimes war is the only way to stop them. Hitler, for one. If we hadn't used force to stop him then all Jews would just be dead. I expect Hitler did understand that peace is nicer than war, but it was what he was willing to do for political gain, and as long as there are people like that, there will be war. It's a sad but true fact of human life. I suppose we need to destroy ourselves in some way, though, or the Earth would just be overrun with humans, and there would be people starving, and we'd all live in huge country-wide appartment blocks or something, because if we humans don't kill ourselves, then who will? Not that I'm in favour of mass murder in any way, it's just a thought. Thing is, because war is sometimes neccessary, and so acceptable, then it gets used more and more simply for the benefit of a country, which is why we have wars for oil now. It's all very complicated and nasty, and there are far too many shades of grey.
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