Screams From The Gutter
1985 | Punk
“You could be just a number, you could be just a vote. -- But you are also the reason of their desperation.”
Trivia
- Raw Power is a hardcore punk band from the northern Italian Reggio Emilia.
- The band draws it's name from the Stooges album.
- Screams from the gutter was released on Toxic Shock Records after the band was discoverd when they supported the Dead Kennedy's opn a show in LA in '84.
THE HOT TAKES
Luke Tatum
"Elections, discussions, and conferences...Are the reasons for the street violence." Wow. It's always interesting to talk about proximate causes versus ultimate causes. Let's take an example: You are at a restaurant, and the service is incredibly slow. You could blame the proximate cause, which is that the restaurant is busy. Or, you could blame the ultimate cause, which is that management did not adequately prepare. Possibly the staff they hired was poor, or there was not enough staff, or they did not buy enough supplies so people are having to change their orders. Regardless, the blame lies at the feet of management. This responsibility is why many people shy away from such positions. It goes back to them. When we apply this kind of thinking to the state, we can blame things like racial tensions on inflammatory comments made by specific people, or on news coverage. But who is ultimately responsible? The management. If you're generous you could call them inept, but if you're honest you'll call them sinister. Government, which claims authority to make decisions for us all, does a horrible, horrible job. This is their fault, and they need to be removed.
Sherry Voluntary
"Politicians you are shit," and all the people said, Amen.
Nicky P
I'm always at odds with punk rock when it comes to politics. The "mainstream" punk scene seems to be more about identity than fighting power and control. I've been greatly confused that the anarchocapitalist ideal hasn't been widely espoused by a group that is so infatuated with a DIY ethos and toppling governmental power, yet here we are where "punks" support presidential candidates like Hillary. I remember coming up in the scene the ways that people like Che Guevara were idolized and how little attention I payed to the context. These days I can't understand how he can still be lauded as he is. Perhaps it's part of the great shell game that's been played causing people to think that business is the enemy. Business is a benign thing when competition exists but most of us have grown up in a world in which competition has been subverted through government charge and cronyism. I digress though. This song makes no distinction between left and right or good & bad like the modern day punk movement does. Politicians are the enemy. They are a vile class of humans trading power for prosperity. Without government authority there is no compulsion to trade with anyone, without regulation competition can thrive. Most importantly, without something like the FED stealing from us to fund a standing army no one can amass power without giving greatly to society. We are beyond the times when Kings could claim divine right. Politicians are simply trying to keep that feudal system going.