The pain is coherent. They blame politicians which is correct. But they fail to see it’s the system that perpetuates the problems. Then project their misery on minority groups and the disadvantaged. Oliver sings-
“So they think you don’t know. But I think that you do.”
But they don’t. And that’s the problem.
He also blames "welfare queens." And calls them fat.
He says we have a bunch of people starving, and we have programs to help, but instead of helping, he sees the programs being abused.
Do you not think these programs are being abused? Have you been to the south where poverty and obesity are at insane rates?
Also, it's hilarious how he can touch on 20 issues that every one of us agree with, but the left hyper-focuses on one line they don't like, because he just looks like a hillbilly trump supporter to y'all.
"Also, it's hilarious how he can touch on 20 issues that every one of us agree with, but the left hyper-focuses on one line they don't like, because he just looks like a hillbilly trump supporter to y'all."
That's sorta the problem of right wing populism dude. Yeah, many of the issues pointed out in the song are legitimate and need to be addressed but how he tacks on "welfare queens" is trying to shift the blame onto people have nothing to do with your own hardships. That family getting $400 a month in food stamps is not the reason everything sucks right now.
I listened to his song before I knew anything about him, and I was into it until that point, but yeah, when you make a song about rich people exploiting you, but then spend half the song talking about the much less impactful issue of poor people wasting their government-issued money on junk food, your message stops being effective.
It's like stubbing your toe and breaking your arm at the same time, and complaining just as much about both.
but then spend half the song
Once again, hyperfocusing on one line is not 'half the song' and when you put it in context, he's simply saying that those people that need welfare aren't getting it, while others are abusing the system. It's not just about making laws to help poor people, it's about ensuring that it gets to the people that need it.
He is redirecting anger that rightfully should be aimed at the overclass to the underclass. The underclass is not causing his problems. It is the overclass.
Education folks... education. Prime example here why it is so, so important to be able to think critically.
Have you taken the time to look into why there's such an obesity problem? It sure seems like the singer hasn't, otherwise he wouldn't be denigrating poor people for being obese.
EBT doesn't pay much and the cheaper foods are chock full of terrible ingredients that tend to lead to obesity. It's not easy to afford good fruit, vegetables, grains, etc when you've got a small amount of money that has to stretch a lot.
If it weren't for the myth of the welfare queen we might be in a better place to provide for people in need. And there will ALWAYS be people in need in a capitalist society. It's how it works.
Honestly, a bit of empathy and understanding would go a long ways for people so upset about people on welfare.
I can't even see you but I can tell you look like a "hillbilly trump supporter" too.
I like fudge rounds. And I’m not fat or on welfare. Checkmate ginger. Lol
Then project their misery on minority group
Where did this happen? You're just making this up.
This song is just manufactured crap. The people who brought you Fox News have figured out that their audience also listens to country music.
The whole thing with mysterious producers approaching him out of nowhere when he's at his lowest point to get him to record a faux-populist song that really reinforces conservative power is very Black Mirror.
Calling it Populism is already giving them ground. It's Fake Populism. It's manufactured and funded by the elite class, rather than advocated for and created by the working class.
Fake populism. What a bullshit statement. Populism is populism. The message either resonates or doesn't. The fact that we're discussing it suggests that it resonates. So what do we do about it? To agree with your argument is the reason why Trump became president. As a society we cannot discount discontent regardless of the ideology. There are a lot of pissed off people on this planet for various reasons. If the song or message didn't resonate we wouldn't be talking about it so it's not fake. A rich man paid for a poor man song. So who is the sucker? The person who believes it or the person who argues against it? It is what it is but it's not fake if you hold an opinion and that's the point.
I heard the song and like the beat and now I'm reading a thread where I feel like a bad person for enjoying a song for just being a song. Was in a thread earlier today about Sherman and the civil war. Has there ever been a war fought by the rich man on behalf of the poor man? The answer is no. At the extreme the question is are we willing to die for our beliefs?
There is a large swathe of people who are disenfranchised maybe we should care. The root cause is what is important but we often fall into debates about ideology without addressing the systemic issues.
My opinion is we have far more in common with the people around us than we care to or are capable of realizing. We all struggle so it's important to first empathize and then determine from what root these opinions are derived. Granted, some are fake but many are genuine.
EDIT: sorry, realize this became a wall of text and I'm half drunk and half-baked but I hope I made a coherent argument for both sides. If the discourse is civil it's a healthy conversation to have and an argument worth having. Have a good evening folks.
Who?
An excellent take-down of the song’s philosophical underpinnings.
I disagree with the author’s skepticism about how this went viral though. As other commenters have indicated, it feels like the release was a little too well coordinated for some random YouTuber.
According to the Citations Needed podcast, it was an obscure video that was plucked up by a rightwing organization and promoted to be in everyone's feeds
You know he fucked an ostrich, right?
Allegedly.
I heard it was a sick ostrich.
Banger of a song. He's right, we need to talk about these issues:
Working overtime and getting shitty pay
Feeling like the life is being wasted paying bills, and the little bit of joy we get is through substance abuse
Politicians enriching themselves by screwing Americans over
Inflation being too high and what money that we do get in our paychecks having 30% taken out by the government.
Politicians not looking out for the working class, but befriending and partying with Epstein trafficking minors.
Young men dying at absurd rates due to suicide
Did you read the article? It debunks at least half of the complaints you make
A friend shared the music with me and right off the rip I thought the song was a banger. It immediately fills a void left open by modern country. I didn't read into it nearly as much as some folks here are . .which is somewhat puzzling to me. It's country music it's always going to be a woe is me story. I'll listen to the words more closely next time.
I'm new to Lemmy so I'm not sure yet how to tag users but Bee is getting beat up a bit in this thread. I think part of the reason why this is getting so much traction is because it is good music. The debate is the message. Misplaced frustration isn't uncommon regardless of political belief. I think where exception is to be taken is when it pushes or promotes violence. The same debate was had about gangster rap and other forms of music years ago.
It's weird that this song has gotten so much hate from the left. And the critique is always the same line about welfare, but you don't hear them quote the rest of the words of the song.
First off, right before the welfare line, he mentions there are too many Americans starving, he's saying that the welfare isn't being allocated properly. If you've walked through the south, you've seen this. Trashing the whole concept of the song because one line, that in a vacuum, some people on the right use to discredit welfare shouldn't be the goal.
I see so many comments saying we need to unite against the rich, and when a song goes viral saying to do that, he gets trashed because he looks like a republican. This song talks about:
Working overtime and getting shitty pay
Feeling like the life is being wasted paying bills, and the little bit of joy we get is through substance abuse
Politicians enriching themselves by screwing Americans over
Inflation being too high and what money that we do get in our paychecks having 30% taken out by the government.
Politicians not looking out for the working class, but befriending and partying with Epstein trafficking minors.
Young men dying at absurd rates due to suicide
Are these partisan issues? They seem like working class issues. Yeah, that welfare line I think is out of place, even if there may be some merit. But don't lose the forest staring at a tree. This is a protest song against how the politicians have treated the working class.
The issue with the song and with right wing populism generally is that it gets some of the complaints right, but points people in exactly the wrong direction in terms of looking for solutions. So it can be really maddening for people on the left because it's substituting for a correct analysis in a way that sabotages bringing the working class together.
with right wing populism
What makes this right wing populism?
That's kind of what the whole article is spent laying out.
I thought this distinction between left and right populism from the article was useful:
As the political analyst John Judis has argued, this is more or less what distinguishes right populism from the left variety: Whereas left populism posits a binary between the people and the elites, right populism conjures a three-part division of society between “the people,” the elites, and the undeserving others whom the elites coddle at the people’s expense.
The song's complaints about working class life ring true, but then whenever it gets close to a political statement, whether about taxes, politicians, or welfare it never says anything a wealthy conservative would argue with.
That’s kind of what the whole article is spent laying out.
Please, enlighten me with your own thinking. Is it because he's saying some welfare programs are abused while the starving people who actually need help aren't getting it? What do you think of the topics he addresses in the other 98% of the song?
but then whenever it gets close to a political statement, whether about taxes, politicians, or welfare it never says anything a wealthy conservative would argue with.
Is that what your issue is? Lets see, Biden is a wealthy liberal and 50 million democrats voted with him. It's not about what a wealthy conservative or democrat would say, it's about experience. This man is experiencing working overtime, while seeing inflation run rampant, his paycheck getting deducted 30%, substance abuse, politicians having a rich peoples club, young male suicide rates and those needing help not getting it.
Is this different than the issues in the democratic run inner cities? I lived in seattle for 6 years, I can tell you the issues he's talked about are the same.
We seem to be going around in circles a bit. You're pointing to the various ways in which he speaks to legitimate complaints about the difficulties of life, which I've already agreed are valid. The problem is nothing he explicitly or implicitly suggests doing about those problems would actually help, and indeed the implied recommendations fit more with a conservative policy outlook that would be actively harmful to people with those problems.
Stop being lazy. You're asking others to do the work for you seem then you're going to sound based on their summary. Read the article like the rest of us and you'll be on the same page.
What makes this right wing populism?
Redirecting justifiable anger at the overclass to the underclass is classic right wing "populism". It's very popular with the billionaires pulling your strings.
Working overtime and getting shitty pay
And then redirecting anger that should go to the overclass to the underclass. The bottom line is that his song will help trick people into giving rich people get more gigantic GOP tax cuts and increase wealth inequality.
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