I've been trying to write this for almost a month now, and every time I sit down to it, I get so pissed off that I can't continue.
Originally, this was going to be a nice fluff-oriented piece with heaps of historical references as justification for my point. But upon further review, I decided to simply say "Fuck it", and speak from my ass instead.
Recently, cultural barometer and moral watchdog, Wal-Mart decided to pull from its' shelves the new album by Industrial-Rock band Ministry. They cited as their rationale the desire not to promote music that is hateful, and that can lead to tragedies like the shootings at Columbine High School.
To say that this upset me a little is like saying the core of the Earth is a little warm.
First of all, Ministry is about as pacifistic as they come lyrically. Sure the music is often loud and angry, but the words speak of (among other topics) frustration at an increasingly violent and self-absorbed culture, hypocrisy and desire.
They speak frankly about these issues and include tons of sarcasm, and ironic counterpoint.
Basically, like much punk and post-punk music, the lyrics make the listener "think."
In fact, the record Dark Side Of The Spoon, is one of their most tame records.
My first response to this action was that they (Wal-Mart) were over-reacting, and in the process trying to make Ministry some sort of scapegoat.
The shooters in Littleton said that they listened to Industrial music and were into the Gothic scene. They were also self-avowed "white supremacists" which is often linked with neo-Nazi and Aryan-pride groups.
As much Industrial music is Germanic, there is often an association that Industrial (or all things German) is based around "white pride."
I guess that also means that anyone driving a Beetle, Beamer or Mercedes; that uses a Krups coffee maker; or that likes Mozart or Beethoven is also a Nazi and capable of mass murder.
The media (baa!) immediately labeled Industrial acts like KMFDM and Rammstein as "bad." Of course all this did was drive sales and I'm sure both bands, while upset at the shootings (Rammstein says as much on their homepage), did not mind the increase in airplay and sales. Both of these bands are also non-martial and if anything just make good dance music.
Maybe they should ban Milli Vanilli while they're at it.
The actions of the shooters followed the plot of the film Heathers more than any song, and yet I have not heard any hue and cry about banning films by Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty or (yum) Wynona Ryder.
Two fans of this music are what have corrupted it, not the art itself.
Similarly, followers of several books (The Bible, The Koran, and The Talmud) have been responsible more death than any piece of music. Does that mean that the message of these works of philosophy condones violence? Hardly.
Oh…you think I'm blaspheming? Talk to the Aztecs about that; or anyone in Africa around 1800; or to any descendent of a slave brought to the US; or to the Chinese during the Opium Wars; or to any victim of the Holy Roman Empire; or the Sioux, Cherokee or Apaches; or anyone from the heartland of western spirituality, the Middle East.
It's somewhat ironic that most censorship is based on faith-based "morality"; Faith which has been at the core of every armed conflict in recorded history. Yet it seems that it is music alone that makes people die.
Secondly, I began to wonder if this was not a knee-jerk reaction at all, but rather an attempt at corporate thought control.
Persuasive control of human behavior goes back to Adam, and people have been trying to control each other in the name of righteousness ever since.
By limiting the amount of thought-provoking material for distribution, Wal-Mart is actually helping to control the masses.
I mean how threatening are Mariah Carey, George Strait or the Backstreet Boys? Even alt-rock heroes Limp Bizkit present no real threat; after all they just live "for the nookie."
I guess if the masses are given enough Soma, they will never see or feel anything bad at all.
I find it ironic that the last great practitioners of such wholesale censorship were The Third Reich, and The Soviet Union. Both were totalitarian regimes were referred to by the US as "Godless," and were violently opposed in the name of God.
Now we have a Fourth Reich here in the US; how pleasant.
I wonder if Wal-Mart is going to ban rap as well. The genre glorifies gang violence, the objectification of women, homophobia, and pervasive substance abuse. I mean these are social problems are they not? And if we ban one sort of "bad" art, then should we not ban all morally "bad" music?
Then again hip-hop music (both rap and R & B) did account for sales of 81 million records last year, which made it the largest sales segment of the recording industry, so I seriously doubt THAT will happen.
It appears that this decision was based more on attention-getting headlines than any sort of real desire to change.
Sadly the true problem will be lost on most citizens. Embracing new or different ideas will always push people into the fringe of society. This is so because the majority tends to fear that which is novel. It threatens their position of power, as the dogma upon which their authority is based may be shown to be flawed. The majority ridicule and try to control the minority, and yet it is almost always the case that it is this minority that has provided the true impetus for change throughout history.
Galileo, Newton, King, Shakespeare and even Jesus himself were all labeled as (to use the modern vernacular) "freaks" by the powers that be. Michelangelo was even threatened with excommunication for his work in the Sistine Chapel. Yet these people have all helped shape the evolution of Western culture. Time has borne out the validity and genius of these philosophers and artists.
Now I don't mean to claim that Ministry is in the same league with the heavyweights mentioned above, but the fact remains that they are similar. Those who walk (or are pushed) to the fringe often see reality from a different perspective than the masses. This perspective allows them to see both the good and bad with the existing order, and make commentary on how change can be made for improvement. We may not like what they see or say, but that doesn't mean that their vision is invalid.
Limiting artistic expression of this sentiment disallows those in the fringe the opportunity to identify and grow; and can cheat society in the process.
In 1976 a broader revolution occurred within music that has shaped culture ever since, and luckily those in the religious right were not able to stop that revolution.
23 years later it is impossible to look at anything in society and not see an effect of the work of the master anti-conformists: the Sex Pistols.
Art, fashion, politics, technology, business have all changed as society finally caught up to the modern Anarchists. Somewhere Jean Jaures is smiling.
Enough embroidery.
Wal-Mart is trying to control youth violence by limiting access to art. All this does is make it more 'cool' to teens.
Art has nothing to do with violence; lack of communication and understanding do, however.
We tend to be afraid of what we don't know. We also tend to label what we don't know as "bad."
Sadly most Americans are so caught up in profligate consumerism that they hardly seem to know themselves anymore, and that is part of the problem.
By supporting Wal-Mart or any other retail establishment that seeks to control your right to enjoy what you want, you are slitting your own ideological throat, and have no claim when people begin to marginalize you, or your beliefs.
You can talk to your kids and your friends. Or you can be afraid of what may be troubling them, and try to push it to the corner like Wal-Mart is doing.
The choice as always, is yours

I leave you with an excerpt from Ministry that may have helped a few people see the problem in Colorado. It is off of their 1988 album: The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste. It's a good thing Wal-Mart doesn't want people to know that there is a problem (isolation) like this in America.

die! die! die! die!
scum-sucking depravity…debauched!
anal fuck-fest…thrill olympics
savage scourge…supply and sanctify
so what? so what?
die! die! die! die!

die! die! die! die!
you said it!
sedatives supplied become laxatives
my eyes shit out lies
i only kill to know i'm alive
so what? so what?
die! die! die! die!

die! die! die! die!
so what, it's your problem to learn to live with
destroy us, or make us saints
we don't care, it's not our fault that we were born too late
a screaming headache on the brow of the state
killing time is appropriate
to make a mess and fuck all the rest, we say, we say
so what? so what?
die! die! die! die!

die!
now i know what is right
i'll kill them all if i like
i'm a time bomb inside
no one listens to reason,
it's too late and i'm ready to fight!
so what? now i'm ready to fight!