Words I Never Said

I was listening to the new Lupe Fiasco album, Lasers, and heard a song that really stuck with me. It was "Words I Never Said" and here are the lyrics:

It’s so loud Inside my head
With words that I should have said
As I drown in my regrets
I can’t take back the words I never said
I can’t take back the words I never said

I really think the war on terror is a bunch of bullshit
Just a poor excuse for you to use up all your bullets
How much money does it take to really make a full clip
9/11 building 7 did they really pull it
Uhh, And a bunch of other cover ups
Your child's future was the first to go with budget cuts
If you think that hurts then, wait here comes the uppercut
The school was garbage in the first place, that's on the up and up
Keep you at the bottom but tease you with the uppercrust
You get it then they move you so you never keeping up enough
If you turn on TV all you see’s a bunch of “what the fucks”
Dude is dating so and so blabbering bout such and such
And that ain't Jersey Shore, homie that's the news
And these the same people that supposed to be telling us the truth
Limbaugh is a racist, Glenn Beck is a racist
Gaza strip was getting bombed, Obama didn’t say shit
That's why I ain't vote for him, next one either
I’ma part of the problem, my problem is I’m peaceful
And I believe in the people.

Chorus

Now you can say it ain't our fault if we never heard it
But if we know better than we probably deserve it
Jihad is not a holy war, wheres that in the worship?
Murdering is not Islam
And you are not observant
And you are not a muslim
Israel don’t take my side cause look how far you’ve pushed them
Walk with me into the ghetto, this where all the Kush went
Complain about the liquor store but what you drinking liquor for?
Complain about the gloom but when’d you pick a broom up?
Just listening to Pac ain't gone make it stop
A rebel in your thoughts, ain't gon make it halt
If you don’t become an actor you’ll never be a factor
Pills with million side effects
Take em when the pains felt
Wash them down with Diet soda
Killin off your brain cells
Crooked banks around the World
Would gladly give a loan today
So if you ever miss payment
They can take your home away

Chorus

I think that all the silence is worse than all the violence
Fear is such a weak emotion that's why I despise it
We scared of almost everything, afraid to even tell the truth
So scared of what you think of me, I’m scared of even telling you
Sometimes I’m like the only person I feel safe to tell it to
I’m locked inside a cell in me, I know that there’s a jail in you
Consider this your bailing out, so take a breath, inhale a few
My screams is finally getting free, my thoughts is finally yelling through

It’s so loud Inside my head
With words that I should have said
As I drown in my regrets
I can’t take back the words I never said

It leaves me with an interesting thought - do people really regret the things they don't say more than what they do? I think that the answer is yes. To take this beyond the petty issues and move toward the big picture, all you have to look at is the complete apathy of the average voter on politics and the inner-workings of the US. Our nation is in crisis, and in the hands of political parties that more and more resemble each other. As Republicans and Democrats take more and more corporate money, the less they give a fuck about the "Average American." This is not the view that is shown on our corporate media. Politics is shown as a horse race between ideologically opposed groups. The actual agenda is one that trends to the Right with no counterbalance. No matter your viewpoint, Gridlock is the word that best describes our Legislative situation.

Where does this leave the American public? Either to become entirely partisan and root for 'your side' in this sham of a horse race or to become apathetic. Just under 57% of registered voters voted for President in 2008 and only 37.8% voted in the midterms last year. That's a lot of voluntarily voiceless citizens. And while these people may not regret the decision to not vote in the short term, they sure as hell will have an opinion on what tax rates, spending, cuts, social issues that their 'representatives' will enact in laws in the future.

I, myself, will internalize this song and learn the lesson. Centrism and 'balance' does not equal fact. I truly believe that Liberalism is the correct lens to view the world through which you can build the best, most just society. Rush Limbaugh is a racist. Fox News DOES gin up support for causes that benefit only the wealthy through scare tactics and pitting 'real Americans' (White people) against the 'enemy' (non-whites).

The content of the speech is not the most important issue. Whether or not you agree with Lupe Fiasco on his opinions, you have to respect his willingness to share them. John Stuart Mill's philosophy on Speech in a democracy stated that it was bad to silence individuals' speech, whether they were incorrect or not. In a society with an open forum for ideas, all can be shared equally and the best of them can rise to the top. With today's media, there is a loudspeaker repeating the same ideas over and over that can drown out many if not all others. It is up to all of us to think for ourselves and say what we think. Vote. Become politically active by finding something that you're passionate about. Anything less can lead nowhere but regret...