Disclaimer: The answers in this article are the opinions of the interviewee and are not meant to represent the whole band.
Coping - Tom Kenneally
What do you think of the current state of the nation?
Massive unemployment in a job climate where STILL nobody seems to be hiring has made it hard for our friends as well as us to find jobs that we enjoy. I have a college education and work at a grocery store. Mac does too and the best job he could find requires him to work from 11pm to 8 or 9am every morning and essentially have no life. Reese delivers sandwiches. Tyler doesn’t even have a job. We’d like better opportunities, but they don’t seem to exist. The nation is engaged in a subtle class warfare situation. Republicans work real hard at keeping taxes down, which although immediately gratifying for most, has kept us in this current economic state of peril. Everyone needs to pay a fair share, the problem is that everyone seems to have a different opinion of what their fair share is.
Who do you think is to blame for the troubles the US is having?
We are all to blame. When was the last time you voted (presidential elections don’t count). You need to vote from the ground up. You need to get local. I’m guilty of it just as much as everyone else so it’s almost hypocritical of me to say, but I’ll still point out the main issue. As a society we’ve coasted along for a long time assuming this democracy would run itself; that we didn’t need to participate because our votes didn’t count. The current state of things is held up by people’s indifference and the ones in charge are counting on that.
We’re just a country full of fucking idiots; that’s what it comes down to. We’ve been raised to believe that we can live our lives any way we want because this is America and for some reason we earned it. Despite gas being 5 dollars a gallon we still insist on our RIGHT to drive a huge truck instead of doing our part and taking public transit, or riding a bike, or if that is impossible, getting a vehicle that is more efficient. We still are “skeptical” of climate change science because it demands that we reduce and eliminate our reliance on fossil fuels and that would be inconvenient for us. We only have one planet to live on and if we fuck this up then the human race doesn’t deserve to survive. Just like Mr. Smith says in the Matrix (it was on the other night) human beings are a virus; we rape and pillage every god damn corner of this planet for the benefit of our comfy lifestyle without giving a damn thing back. What do we expect the result to be? People constantly ask me for a plastic bag for the ONE item they bought at Trader Joe’s and I just want to ring them around the neck say “Carry the fucking thing with your hands!” How can you be so selfish when you know that fucking thing will take 1000 years to decompose by itself in a land fill and is most likely going to join the other plastic bag in the tree in front of my house that’s been there for four months. We’re behind the intellectual curve in America and it’s our own fault. It’s the sunset on our history and we did it.
What do you think the nation or government would have to do to get the economy back in order?
The main issue is jobs. While we all appreciate the benefits of capitalism and the innovation and opportunity it has brought us we need to recognize that it requires counter balance. There was a time in this country not too long ago where you could have a working class job and provide for your family, own a car, and make a house payment. That time is gone because the jobs simply do not exist. In the name of capitalism and the bottom line companies have shifted so much of what once was domestic labor to overseas jobs. Everything is made elsewhere. We have become a service economy. We have doctors, lawyers, and engineers. Where does that leave people who couldn’t afford a college education? Up shit creak making sandwiches at Subway. Tax the living fuck out of companies that do their labor overseas. That will bring jobs right back home. Reopen those shuttered auto plants in Detroit. Start making things in America again. It will take a lot for that to happen considering the amount of pocket padding the corporations have done to our politicians.
Instead of bailing out all of these major banks and giving government subsidized loans for politicians pet projects of choice how about some student loan forgiveness? How about providing more tax credits to companies that hire more workers? How about investing in high speed rail transportation?
There were a lot of high expectations for the President when he was elected, how do you think the President has performed since getting into office?
President Obama certainly was a breath of fresh air after the Bush years and the amount of expectation put on the table may have been unfair, but there has been successes as well as failure. Correcting an economy that was off track for 8 years and turning the country takes a lot of time and energy especially when you have a Congress working against you every step of the way. We’ve been let down by some of his actions, but still feel that it is an improvement over how things were.
It’s still a year until the next presidential election, who do you think will be the Republican Candidate and do you think President Obama has a chance at a 2nd term?
President Obama is certainly the underdog in the fight for the next presidential term and while whoever the Republicans nominate with either be too dumb (Rick Perry), a Republican poser (Mitt Romney), bat shit crazy (Michelle Bachman), or someone else entirely, it will be crucial for the president to drum up enthusiasm within his own base. Democrat voters are famous for their lack of enthusiasm at the voting booth if they even make it there at all. You can always count on the gay-hating, war hawk, religious freak - cultural warriors to make it to the polls because it’s all they think about in that small space between their ears.
In the last year or so, we’ve seen other smaller countries protest and challenge their government and sometimes come out ahead. Do you think if the citizens of the US did similar protests, would they be successful?
It’s going to take a lot more misery here to motivate anything like what we’ve seen in the Middle East. If most people can’t even take the time to vote there’s no way they’re going to make a picket sign and go stand out on the corner for days on end. Although if the government shut off the internet like they did in Egypt, people would lose their minds.
Suns - Mikey Russsell & Clinton Weber
What do you think of the current state of the nation?
MR: Honestly, I think the baby boomers squandered away the country our grandfathers died and broke their backs rebuilding after the depression and WWII and now we have a generation of disappointed and angry young people who feel unpatriotic and helpless against American politics.
CW: Throughout the years, certain low points of US society had us ‘Mericans shaking our heads, grumbling that “It can’t get any worse.” So I’ll be the first one to declare YES! It CAN get worse; and it probably will.
Who do you think is to blame for the troubles the US is having?
MR: I think a lot of people are to blame. I think anyone your eyes land on is to blame in some way because we all have a chance every day to start turning it around and making things different and better. The real tragedy is the fact that we don’t. Sure we have some protests and picket and all the conventional rebellion tactics, but at the end of the day the rich get richer and the middle class is being weeded out and there isn’t a whole bunch being done about it. For a country that was founded on revolution and built to have them semi-regularly, that’s sad.
CW: There isn’t one specific person, party or political player that is the direct cause of the economic woes and the political split in Washington. On that note, there isn’t one person who will fix it, either; it’s going to take a lot of politicians to stop squabbling and C.E.O.’s to stop treating most of humanity like peasants to fix this. So, we’re fucked.
What do you think the nation or government would have to do to get the economy back in order?
MR: I think legalizing and taxing the use, growth, and sales of marijuana would be an amazing place to start. I think it would create a deluge of jobs and it would make a lot of sense.
CW: Build alternative energy sources, like windmills, and then hang the greedy pigs from them! LOL JK. We’d never build windmills.
There were a lot of high expectations for the President when he was elected, how do you think the President has performed since getting into office?
MR: I think he really wanted to do well and when he got into office I think he saw how it really is and got disenchanted with the whole gig. It’s American politics. It’s a show. I think our president, and the presidents before him all the way back to Kennedy are pawns. I don’t know how much they actually have to say about the major decisions that are made in this country. There’s no way the Obama that hung out with Bill Ayers would allow the banks to be this out of control. There’s no way he would let the Afgan War go on this long. The truth is there are a lot of things he just doesn’t have a say in because the real president of this country is money. Everyone knows that, we just don’t talk about it.
CW: No single person can change the unraveling bipartisanship of TWO bullshit parties and attempt to reform this bureaucratic political system while kissing babies and raising tons of cash for next years campaign.
It’s still a year until the next presidential election, who do you think will be the Republican Candidate and do you think President Obama has a chance at a 2nd term?
MR: I think Obama could win a re-election. It’s possible. As for the GOP candidate they could probably do better digging up Nixon or Reagan at this point. Who knows what they’ll do. Remember when McCain busted out Sarah Palin the night of his big campaign kick off speech?? It’s all a game and the people will never win. Fuck em.
CW: Perry vs. Obama. Barack wins.
In the last year or so, we’ve seen other smaller countries protest and challenge their government and sometimes come out ahead. Do you think if the citizens of the US did similar protests, would they be successful?
MR: I think with any corrupt government throughout the ages there comes a time when the people snap. The real question is how bad do things go south before WE snap? Furthermore if and when it happens will we have a situation in the U.S. like they currently do in Lybia or Egypt? And at that point what would even be left to revolt for? I think right now it’s twilight in America and the revolution will come at about dawn. We just need to make it through a long night.
CW: While hundreds of thousands of protesters line the gold-paved Wall Streets, our mainstream media doesn’t give a peep about that, but whether or not the Tea Party chairman has been having regular bowel movements. If people would just stop and think about how backwards everything is… nah, forget it. Carry on with your designer drugs, five dollar lattes, celebrity newspapers, and what’s this thing called? ManDex?
Big Science - Jason Richards
What do you think of the current state of the nation?
The United States is supposed to be a land of equality filled with smart, hard-working, fair people who strive to get along despite different views and backgrounds. That’s what I’ve always thought anyway. But what we have is sad. There is a huge canyon between people who make sense and have the general well-being of everyone in mind and a small segment of people who are concerned for themselves only. It’s become the land of sensationalism and exploitation. The ideas and laws that keep us free have been manipulated so that no actual equality exists.
Who do you think is to blame for the troubles the US is having?
If we’re talking financial problems, it’s pretty obvious who the trouble makers are. There are a lot of dirty fingers that were in that pie, but this started years ago. Everyone should own a home? Let’s be reasonable. It’s a fantastic idea but given the disparity in incomes in this country, it’s absurd.
What do you think the nation or government would have to do to get the economy back in order?
Get out of the wars that we’re currently entrenched in. Republicans always say that government spending has to be cut so let’s start there. Seems to be a pretty big money leak wouldn’t you say? Invest in education and make universal heath care happen so that workers are healthy in mind and body. Raise taxes on the rich and corporations. Corporations need to be held responsible for the well-being of the people they employ and the people in the lands where they sell their goods and make their profits.
There were a lot of high expectations for the President when he was elected, how do you think the President has performed since getting into office?
I think he’s been doing a damn fine job. He was handed a terrible situation. I think he needs to toe the line less though. He needs to stand up and make his vision happen and forget what anyone might say.
It’s still a year until the next presidential election, who do you think will be the Republican Candidate and do you think President Obama has a chance at a 2nd term?
I think Obama has a definite chance at a second term. I have no idea who the Republican candidate will be. Perry maybe? At least Palin isn’t in the race for the nomination. If I was a woman, I’d rather never see one of us in the White House than to see her be put there.
In the last year or so, we’ve seen other smaller countries protest and challenge their government and sometimes come out ahead. Do you think if the citizens of the US did similar protests, would they be successful?
Tough call. I’m not sure that we’d need to go through everything that people went through in the smaller countries. We have channels for change available here. Our leaders don’t sit for decades. However, if changes are going to be made, US citizens need to be organized, dedicated and lawfully ruthless.
Noise By Numbers - Dan Schafer
What do you think of the current state of the nation?
These are financially dark times for the middle and lower class. With the unemployment rate at 9 percent, the worst recession since the Great Depression, and broken government through fierce partisan divide, it’s no wonder citizens are fed up. Corporations are behaving recklessly and failing, while they are getting taxpayer bailouts, making record profits, and CEO’s are making enormous bonuses. Average Americans have lost their jobs and homes, so it’s no wonder Grass roots movements like Occupy Wall street and the Tea Party are expressing their anger. Whether you believe the role of government needs to be smaller or larger, Americans are pissed off-and rightfully so. Whether this bail out helped save our economy from turning into a Great Depression I don’t know. But, it’s very frustrating for people who are struggling to make ends meet come to find that 1% of the country owns 42% of the wealth.
Who do you think is to blame for the troubles the US is having?
There’s a lot of blame to go around. I think government falls under the umbrella of corporations. They are pulling the strings, not vise versa. De-regulation and supply side economics comes to mind. The “trickle down” theory. If this was effective then where are the jobs? Also, how is it possible that companies like GE paid no taxes last year? Meanwhile, my wife and I pay through the nose for being self-employed. Point blank, these corporations are not paying their fair share in taxes. Many of these CEO’s believe that placing profit over people is not only their right but their duty. I believe it is greed. Then you also have September 11th and it’s aftermath which was a huge setback to our economy. We put billions into homeland security and fought 2 wars which racked up trillions in debt. Also to mention is what the mortgage lending banks were doing which ultimately lead to the housing bubble. Wall Street is also guilty with the bets on mortgages, credit default swaps, and other shit I don’t understand. All of the above and more are collectively to blame.
What do you think the nation or government would have to do to get the economy back in order?
Shared sacrifice and loyalty. Loyalty in American made products. Keep jobs in America. Have Corporations and the wealthy pay their fair share. Get rid of tax loopholes for corporations off-shore in places like the Caymen Islands. But, more importantly jobs need to be created with wages that allows people to spend.
There were a lot of high expectations for the President when he was elected, how do you think the President has performed since getting into office?
In 2008 people were treating Obama like he had a magic wand and would magically solve everything. I knew then this wouldn’t be the case when he took office. I knew his presidency would be very tough. The Bush Administration left 2 wars, a recession, and a huge deficit. There was a lot to clean up. But, people are tried of not seeing results for their economic troubles.
It’s still a year until the next presidential election, who do you think will be the Republican Candidate and do you think President Obama has a chance at a 2nd term?
They say a week is a year in politics. So, who knows. If I had to base my feelings on polls and recent debates I would say Mitt Romney will be the Republican candidate. I think Obama has a chance of winning if he can convince voters the Republicans just want to be him. There were top economists who were saying that it would take 5 years for this economy to turn around. If Obama can effectively communicate that, show that he actually has a backbone, continue to promote legislation like his jobs bill, then maybe he can emerge as the victor.
In the last year or so, we’ve seen other smaller countries protest and challenge their government and sometimes come out ahead. Do you think if the citizens of the US did similar protests, would they be successful?
History has shown us that through marches and protests, issues like Civil rights, labor issues, and Women’s rights were accomplished. Small victories have been won by the people collectively. Many of these rights we take for granted were fought hard for. So, change is possible and nothing is set in stone. This country has been down this road before. We currently face many challenges in regard to the economy and this won’t be as simple as who we vote for in the next election.
Mannequin Men - Miles Raymer
What do you think of the current state of the nation?
Tough to say. It’s heartening to see the spark of genuine old-time leftist populism flare up around things like the Wisconsin union crackdown and the Occupy Movement, and it’s tempting to imagine that conservatives have pitched so radically far to the right that they’re setting themselves up for a massive electoral backlash, but it seems like politicians are doing just fine pandering to a mix of wild-eyed modern-day John Birchers and amoral plutocrats, so maybe that’s just me being Panglossian.
Who do you think is to blame for the troubles the US is having?
I think it’s less a “who” that’s to blame than a “what,” which is this massive sense of entitlement that has become such a disturbingly major facet of the American character over the past couple decades. Bankers want to make ridiculous amounts of money exploiting the middle class, people in the exurbs want to drive their SUVs, and if anyone tries to tell them these things are irresponsible they throw a temper tantrum. So I guess all of America is to blame for acting like big fucking babies all the time.
What do you think the nation or government would have to do to get the economy back in order?
Completely rebooting Americans’ expectations regarding what they see as their right to unlimited consumption.
There were a lot of high expectations for the President when he was elected, how do you think the President has performed since getting into office?
Obama is the Alien: Resurrection of Presidents. You see the combination of the Alien franchise, the guys from Delicatessen, and Winona Ryder playing a robot and you can’t help but get your hopes up about how it’s going to be the best thing ever and then the movie comes out and it turns out to be in the pocket of the financial industry and completely incapable of playing hardball enough to get any real change through Congress.
It’s still a year until the next presidential election, who do you think will be the Republican Candidate and do you think President Obama has a chance at a 2nd term?
Out of the vast horde of people vying for the Republican ticket so far there have only been a couple of contenders who don’t hold views that would give the typical moderate voter the howling fantods. I’m sure the Obama campaign has its fingers crossed that Herman Cain takes the nomination because the number of people in the country who are seriously willing to turn over the keys to the free world to that nutjob is one of few things making me feel good about the health of our nation.
In the last year or so, we’ve seen other smaller countries protest and challenge their government and sometimes come out ahead. Do you think if the citizens of the US did similar protests, would they be successful?
I think the Occupy movement is doing something really good and positive, and maybe it’ll reverberate enough to affect some actual change, but the people they’re going up against happen to be the richest and most powerful people in the USA, so it’s tough to be too optimistic about it. I haven’t felt any noticeably freer recently.
The Copyrights - Luke McNeill
What do you think of the current state of the nation?
I think the U.S. is in a state of somewhat disarray. The economic gap between the haves and the have-nots is bigger than ever. We’re still the only developed country without universal healthcare, and the sad part is I don’t think half the people in this country want those improvements. For whatever reasons, ignorance, pride, tradition, a huge chunk of the poor and middle class people in this country want to keep the status quo even though it’s 100 percent against theirs and their country’s best interests. One thing that is a slight positive, is that I feel that discrimination based on sexual orientation is becoming less and less accepted, and I feel that within the next 10-15 years there will be statutes or maybe even a constitutional amendment banning discrimination based on sexual orientation, including the right to marry.
Who do you think is to blame for the troubles the US is having?
Economically, I believe it really is the fault of the Wall Street ultra-capitalist culture. Wall Street and corporate America are designed to run and are fueled by greed. Success in capitalism, especially corporations, is measured by growth, and growth only happens when another business or person is displaced. It’s a horrific and cruel model to tell you the truth. I know that sounds over-dramatic, but for the past 30 years, we’ve been taught that greed and profit and growth at any cost is not only good, but is the goal. This came to a head with the sub-prime mortgage collapse, and the economy hasn’t recovered ever since. Even though all parties seem to be unanimous that under-regulation was a major cause, no drastic changes have been enacted. Wall Street still runs the same way. No one went to jail. No one went broke. The lesson to be learned apparently was to take risks to become rich quick, and then get bailed out by the taxpayers when they call their tab.
Another thing that’s enraging is that poor and lower-middle class people are mocking OWS for standing up and calling attention to major problems that are 100 percent in their interest. People holding up counter-protest signs that list their hardships, and then say “But I’m not whining in a park for a handout.” Hey dude, YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE TO WORK 70 HOURS A WEEK WITH NO HEALTH CARE TO MAKE RENT. THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT OWS IS CALLING ATTENTION TO. The most ironic thing is that the counter-protesters are saying “Stop asking for handouts,” while at the same time implicitly defending banker assholes who took the biggest handout in the history of the world. Yes the OWS movement can be silly at times, but I think it has been a huge success if for no other reason than for raising more awareness of the growing economic gap in the U.S.
What do you think the nation or government would have to do to get the economy back in order?
Again, raise taxes on the wealthy. They are at their lowest since the 20s. Stop fighting wars. There is no winning or finish line in sight for these quagmires. I’m not an economist but I don’t understand why tariffs aren’t higher in the U.S. It shouldn’t be cheaper for U.S. companies to export all manufacturing jobs across the world to Asia and then ship the products back to the U.S. to sell. There should be some downside to that. Yes, I’m sure that means that you couldn’t get 10 T-shirts for 2.99 anymore, but products don’t need to be that cheap. We have too much shit already.
There were a lot of high expectations for the President when he was elected, how do you think the President has performed since getting into office?
I bought in when he was elected. I heard Obama speak at my law school in Carbondale, Illinois back when he was running for State Senate. He spoke in a huge room, but there were only about 25 of us in there. He spoke and answered questions for more than 90 minutes, and I agreed with almost everything he said. He was much more progressive when he was on a smaller stage. I really believe that he still has those ideals, but he keeps them on the back-burner for fear of public reaction. I think that’s the problem. He’s too worried about how the Republicans and his opposition will think of him. They’re never going to like him, so I hope in his second term, he’ll really set out to make good on some of his promises. But yeah, as of now, I’m disappointed in his performance.
I am glad that he’s finally getting troops out of Iraq. I wish he would close Guantanamo Bay like he promised. I hope he raises taxes on the wealthy and gets troops out of Afghanistan. I also hope he starts down the road of universal healthcare, but I understand that might not be the best program to initiate when the economy is the way it is.
It’s still a year until the next presidential election, who do you think will be the Republican Candidate and do you think President Obama has a chance at a 2nd term?
I’m guessing it will be Mitt Romney. I don’t see any other real viable candidates in that field. They all seem like cartoons or characters on sitcoms. And yeah, I think Obama should win pretty easily, but, this country elected George W. Bush at least once, maybe even twice.
In the last year or so, we’ve seen other smaller countries protest and challenge their government and sometimes come out ahead. Do you think if the citizens of the US did similar protests, would they be successful?
I don’t think the U.S. is in anywhere near the situation that Libya and Egypt were in. Our government is pretty stable comparatively. Smaller protests I think would, have, and are working. Remember, protests were the main catalyst in ending the Vietnam War, and the main factor in causing Lyndon Johnson to decide to not pursue presidential re-election. So, of course protests can work in the U.S. But, yeah, I think a full-on overthrow of the government wouldn’t go too well here, haha.
