World Wide Suicide

brianlux
brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,844
edited April 2012 in A Moving Train
Great song, huh? I think so.

But is it? I mean... world-wide suicide? Is it? Please, some, convince me other wise. Can we just stop being idiots for awhile and do something constructive and useful? Maybe just start by being kind to each other and the world around us? If not, then why are we here?
"It's a sad and beautiful world"
-Roberto Benigni

Post edited by Unknown User on
«1

Comments

  • pandora
    pandora Posts: 21,855
    I love the song it is a sad story of a brave man. A hero.

    He lost his life trying to make the world a better place doing what he thought was right.

    We can follow his lead ...
    lets learn unconditional love starting on a personal level
    each day, each interaction.
    Loving, accepting, understanding most especially those we don't agree with.
    Not to allow petty differences like opinions or core beliefs interfere with love.

    Let's make others feel loved. This is the most fulfilling part of being here,
    I think.

    Let's save the world, stop hating on an individual level and let's stop feeling superior to
    others because of an opinion or belief. That's just not nice at all.

    Embrace and say yes! :D

    I guess that was my pep talk for the day :lol:
  • Jeanwah
    Jeanwah Posts: 6,361
    brianlux wrote:
    Great song, huh? I think so.

    But is it? I mean... world-wide suicide? Is it? Please, some, convince me other wise. Can we just stop being idiots for awhile and do something constructive and useful? Maybe just start by being kind to each other and the world around us? If not, then why are we here?

    Funny, I heard this song on the radio yesterday and I thought that EV probably isn't proud of it any more. Just since he's not the activist he once used to be, and not as angry.
  • BinFrog
    BinFrog MA Posts: 7,314
    pandora wrote:
    I love the song it is a sad story of a brave man. A hero.

    He lost his life trying to make the world a better place doing what he thought was right.


    I am not sure we listen to the same band.

    It's a story about a soldier losing his life in a hopeless war for a hopeless cause all because the president signed the orders to send our men off to fight in a war that has no meaning and no real resolution. The soldier's family member sees his picture, thinks of him, and can't believe they'll never see them in real life again. It's incredibly sad and doesn't really hit on the bravery/making the world a better place aspect of war at all.
    Bright eyed kid: "Wow Typo Man, you're the best!"
    Typo Man: "Thanks kidz, but remembir, stay in skool!"
  • pandora
    pandora Posts: 21,855
    BinFrog wrote:
    pandora wrote:
    I love the song it is a sad story of a brave man. A hero.

    He lost his life trying to make the world a better place doing what he thought was right.


    I am not sure we listen to the same band.

    It's a story about a soldier losing his life in a hopeless war for a hopeless cause all because the president signed the orders to send our men off to fight in a war that has no meaning and no real resolution. The soldier's family member sees his picture, thinks of him, and can't believe they'll never see them in real life again. It's incredibly sad and doesn't really hit on the bravery/making the world a better place aspect of war at all.
    I believe it is about Corporal Patrick Daniel "Pat" Tillman

    in my book he was a very brave man a hero ...

    you don't have to agree with a war to understand the heros that fought it
  • JonnyPistachio
    JonnyPistachio Florida Posts: 10,218
    brianlux wrote:
    Great song, huh? I think so.

    But is it? I mean... world-wide suicide? Is it? Please, some, convince me other wise. Can we just stop being idiots for awhile and do something constructive and useful? Maybe just start by being kind to each other and the world around us? If not, then why are we here?

    I like the song, but I always found it so strange how the music sounds a bit uplifting (maybe even happy), but the meaning is so damned sad.

    This line I always thought was spectacular:
    It's the same everyday and the wave won't break
    Tell you to pray, while the devils on their shoulder

    I took this song as the President being a heartless machine, just dropping our troops off like an assembly line.
    Pick up my debut novel here on amazon: Jonny Bails Floatin (in paperback) (also available on Kindle for $2.99)
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,844
    Jeanwah wrote:
    brianlux wrote:
    Great song, huh? I think so.

    But is it? I mean... world-wide suicide? Is it? Please, some, convince me other wise. Can we just stop being idiots for awhile and do something constructive and useful? Maybe just start by being kind to each other and the world around us? If not, then why are we here?

    Funny, I heard this song on the radio yesterday and I thought that EV probably isn't proud of it any more. Just since he's not the activist he once used to be, and not as angry.

    Maybe Ed needs to hear this one:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Es-Zws_g ... re=related

    Tears fall down...
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • gimmesometruth27
    gimmesometruth27 St. Fuckin Louis Posts: 25,076
    BinFrog wrote:
    pandora wrote:
    I love the song it is a sad story of a brave man. A hero.

    He lost his life trying to make the world a better place doing what he thought was right.


    I am not sure we listen to the same band.

    It's a story about a soldier losing his life in a hopeless war for a hopeless cause all because the president signed the orders to send our men off to fight in a war that has no meaning and no real resolution. The soldier's family member sees his picture, thinks of him, and can't believe they'll never see them in real life again. It's incredibly sad and doesn't really hit on the bravery/making the world a better place aspect of war at all.
    i agree with this post. this song is not celebrating anything.
    "You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry."  - Lincoln

    "Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
  • pandora
    pandora Posts: 21,855
    gimmesometruth27 wrote:
    BinFrog wrote:
    pandora wrote:
    I love the song it is a sad story of a brave man. A hero.

    He lost his life trying to make the world a better place doing what he thought was right.


    I am not sure we listen to the same band.

    It's a story about a soldier losing his life in a hopeless war for a hopeless cause all because the president signed the orders to send our men off to fight in a war that has no meaning and no real resolution. The soldier's family member sees his picture, thinks of him, and can't believe they'll never see them in real life again. It's incredibly sad and doesn't really hit on the bravery/making the world a better place aspect of war at all.
    i agree with this post. this song is not celebrating anything.
    It celebrates a wonderful young man's life ... Pat Tillman.
    Something some people can't acknowledge because they don't agree with the fight,
    none the less he lived and died doing what he thought was right,
    as many have throughout history. I respect that!
    Celebrate him and that ... he was a hero!
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,844
    gimmesometruth27 wrote:
    BinFrog wrote:
    pandora wrote:
    I love the song it is a sad story of a brave man. A hero.

    He lost his life trying to make the world a better place doing what he thought was right.


    I am not sure we listen to the same band.

    It's a story about a soldier losing his life in a hopeless war for a hopeless cause all because the president signed the orders to send our men off to fight in a war that has no meaning and no real resolution. The soldier's family member sees his picture, thinks of him, and can't believe they'll never see them in real life again. It's incredibly sad and doesn't really hit on the bravery/making the world a better place aspect of war at all.
    i agree with this post. this song is not celebrating anything.

    I agree, gimme, I don't see or hear anything celebratory about this song. Sorry, Pandora, and with all due respect, this was not meant to be a celebratory post. And when I mention world-wide suicide I'm talking about much more than the middle east.
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • hedonist
    hedonist Posts: 24,524
    brianlux wrote:
    If not, then why are we here?
    Why are we here?

    Because we're here - roll the bones.



    We're part of nature...therefore bound to fuck up, and continue to evolve.

    Ad nauseum ;)
  • pandora
    pandora Posts: 21,855
    brianlux wrote:
    I agree, gimme, I don't see or hear anything celebratory about this song. Sorry, Pandora, and with all due respect, this was not meant to be a celebratory post. And when I mention world-wide suicide I'm talking about much more than the middle east.
    You dismiss the life of a young man making a choice, Pat Tillman ...
    that is sad and lacks compassion for him and his family's loss.
    Yet you speak to change the world :? start here then.

    By celebrating his life, his choice you do not condone war, you only understand him

    Your original post speaks of the song, it's meaning to you.
    I state mine to me and feel I understand Ed's message and reason for bringing Pat to us.

    He was a hero ... I celebrate that and remember Pat's giving soul.

    You can find other messages if you choose. But when you speak of love
    please include all :D
  • BinFrog
    BinFrog MA Posts: 7,314
    hedonist wrote:
    brianlux wrote:
    If not, then why are we here?
    Why are we here?

    Because we're here - roll the bones.



    We're part of nature...therefore bound to fuck up, and continue to evolve.

    Ad nauseum ;)


    a Rush reference...kick ass.
    Bright eyed kid: "Wow Typo Man, you're the best!"
    Typo Man: "Thanks kidz, but remembir, stay in skool!"
  • BinFrog
    BinFrog MA Posts: 7,314
    pandora wrote:
    You dismiss the life of a young man making a choice, Pat Tillman ...
    that is sad and lacks compassion for him and his family's loss.
    Yet you speak to change the world :? start here then.

    No-one is dismissing Pat Tillman or what he did. That is entirely not the point. You tried to turn this thread, yet again, into a life affirming, lesson-of-the-day post and it's not warranted.
    Bright eyed kid: "Wow Typo Man, you're the best!"
    Typo Man: "Thanks kidz, but remembir, stay in skool!"
  • pandora
    pandora Posts: 21,855
    BinFrog wrote:
    pandora wrote:
    You dismiss the life of a young man making a choice, Pat Tillman ...
    that is sad and lacks compassion for him and his family's loss.
    Yet you speak to change the world :? start here then.

    No-one is dismissing Pat Tillman or what he did. That is entirely not the point. You tried to turn this thread, yet again, into a life affirming, lesson-of-the-day post and it's not warranted.
    I have the right to my opinion on the song ... correct?

    The song is about a beautiful young man who chose to go to war and lost his life.
    The story behind the story is that of many.
    There is more here than ho hum that is awfully sad I hate war ...
    cause we all do!

    It is about a man's life ... that is what Ed gave to me with this song,
    maybe it gave something different to others.

    I do have a way of affirming positive emotions because that is what I feel.
    I felt alot of love and pride in Ed's words for Pat Tillman...
    and thankfully this is what has stayed with me over the years.
  • hedonist
    hedonist Posts: 24,524
    BinFrog wrote:
    a Rush reference...kick ass.
    LOVE those boys.

    To tie into the original post -

    There is unrest in the forest
    There is trouble with the trees
    For the maples want more sunlight
    And the oaks ignore their pleas

    The trouble with the maples
    (And they're quite convinced they're right)
    They say the oaks are just too lofty
    And they grab up all the light

    But the oaks can't help their feelings
    If they like the way they're made
    And they wonder why the maples
    Can't be happy in their shade

    There is trouble in the forest
    And the creatures all have fled
    As the maples scream 'Oppression!'
    And the oaks just shake their heads

    So the maples formed a union
    And demanded equal rights
    'The oaks are just too greedy
    We will make them give us light'

    Now there's no more oak oppression
    For they passed a noble law
    And the trees are all kept equal
    By hatchet, axe and saw



    (Brian, the Rush lyrics just fit, to me - in how we hold to our roots, how we battle, how we can co-exist, and how we can short-change ourselves too, in the end. I shall stop quoting them now :) )
  • BinFrog
    BinFrog MA Posts: 7,314
    Rush - Territories

    I see the Middle Kingdom between Heaven and Earth
    Like the Chinese call the country of their birth
    We all figure that our homes are set above
    Other people than the ones we know and love
    In every place with a name
    They play the same territorial game
    Hiding behind the lines
    Sending up warning signs

    The whole wide world
    An endless universe
    Yet we keep looking through
    The eyeglass in reverse
    Don't feed the people
    But we feed the machines
    Can't really feel
    What international means
    In different circles, we keep holding our ground
    In different circles, we keep spinning round and round

    We see so many tribes overrun and undermined
    While their invaders dream of lands they've left behind
    Better people...better food...and better beer...
    Why move around the world when Eden was so near?
    The bosses get talking so tough
    And if that wasn't evil enough
    We get the drunken and passionate pride
    Of the citizens along for the ride

    They shoot without shame
    In the name of a piece of dirt
    For a change of accent
    Or the color of your shirt
    Better the pride that resides
    In a citizen of the world
    Than the pride that divides
    When a colorful rag is unfurled
    Bright eyed kid: "Wow Typo Man, you're the best!"
    Typo Man: "Thanks kidz, but remembir, stay in skool!"
  • pandora
    pandora Posts: 21,855
    hedonist wrote:
    LOVE those boys.

    To tie into the original post -

    There is unrest in the forest
    There is trouble with the trees
    For the maples want more sunlight
    And the oaks ignore their pleas

    The trouble with the maples
    (And they're quite convinced they're right)
    They say the oaks are just too lofty
    And they grab up all the light

    But the oaks can't help their feelings
    If they like the way they're made
    And they wonder why the maples
    Can't be happy in their shade

    There is trouble in the forest
    And the creatures all have fled
    As the maples scream 'Oppression!'
    And the oaks just shake their heads

    So the maples formed a union
    And demanded equal rights
    'The oaks are just too greedy
    We will make them give us light'

    Now there's no more oak oppression
    For they passed a noble law
    And the trees are all kept equal
    By hatchet, axe and saw



    (Brian, the Rush lyrics just fit, to me - in how we hold to our roots, how we battle, how we can co-exist, and how we can short-change ourselves too, in the end. I shall stop quoting them now :) )

    I think these fit too ...
    for Pat and the why to the question at hand ...

    Do you see the way that tree bends?
    Does it inspire?
    Leaning out to catch the sun's rays
    A lesson to be applied
    Are you getting something out of this all-encompassing trip?

    You can spend your time alone, re-digesting past regrets, oh
    Or you can come to terms and realize
    You're the only one who can't forgive yourself, oh
    Makes much more sense, to live in the present tense

    Have you ideas on how this life ends?
    Checked your hands and studied the lines
    Have you the belief that the road ahead, ascends off into the light?
    Seems that needlessly it's getting harder
    To find an approach and a way to live
    Are we getting something out of this all-encompassing trip?

    You can spend your time alone re-digesting past regrets, oh
    Or you can come to terms and realize
    You're the only one who cannot forgive yourself, oh
    Makes much more sense, to live in the present tense
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,844
    BinFrog wrote:
    pandora wrote:
    You dismiss the life of a young man making a choice, Pat Tillman ...
    that is sad and lacks compassion for him and his family's loss.
    Yet you speak to change the world :? start here then.

    No-one is dismissing Pat Tillman or what he did. That is entirely not the point. You tried to turn this thread, yet again, into a life affirming, lesson-of-the-day post and it's not warranted.

    Thank you, BinFrog! Exactly what I'm thinking.

    Pandora, I tried being respectful in my reply to you. For whatever reason, you seem to be trying to sabotage this thread. This thread is not about Pat Tillman. Please, start your own thread about Tillman. If you continue to sabotage this thread I'll ask the mods to lock it or delete it altogether and I'll try again elsewhere. I don't understand why you're doing this but please take it elsewhere. This thread is about what I see as the insanity of world-wide suicide. Disagree? Fine. Sabotage the thread, not fine and not nice.
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • gimmesometruth27
    gimmesometruth27 St. Fuckin Louis Posts: 25,076
    pandora wrote:
    brianlux wrote:
    I agree, gimme, I don't see or hear anything celebratory about this song. Sorry, Pandora, and with all due respect, this was not meant to be a celebratory post. And when I mention world-wide suicide I'm talking about much more than the middle east.
    You dismiss the life of a young man making a choice, Pat Tillman ...
    that is sad and lacks compassion for him and his family's loss.
    Yet you speak to change the world :? start here then.

    By celebrating his life, his choice you do not condone war, you only understand him

    Your original post speaks of the song, it's meaning to you.
    I state mine to me and feel I understand Ed's message and reason for bringing Pat to us.

    He was a hero ... I celebrate that and remember Pat's giving soul.

    You can find other messages if you choose. But when you speak of love
    please include all :D
    this song is NOT celebrating anything. if it were it would have been a happy little song about a happy little soldier who willfully died doing what he thought was right. have you read the book on tillman? he was not happy about being over there. he did not agree with the war. he was killed there and his death was used as a rallying point and recruiting tool. we were told he died valliantly fighting the taliban, when in reality he was killed by his own unit...

    you can celebrate his life and try to find that meaning in this song, but it is not there. it is an angry song, like all of pearl jam's songs about war.
    "You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry."  - Lincoln

    "Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
  • Kat
    Kat Posts: 4,989
    1. Lyric interpretations belong in the forum for that, Words and Music...Communication.

    2. Everyone is entitled to interpret a song as they choose and everyone is correct...it's a very personal thing and the author often leaves the lyrics open to multiple interpretations.

    3. No one is in Ed's head and so making definitive statements about the meaning or meanings behind his lyrics would be an exercise in imagining, right?

    This thread is being moved and a discussion of the lyrics should be in a friendly way...we're all Pearl Jam fans, right?

    Thank you.
    Falling down,...not staying down
This discussion has been closed.

Categories