By Gene Weingarten
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Like many middle-age people, I wear more than one hat. I'm a husband,
a father, a journalist, a role model to a generation of idealistic
young Americans, etc. But one of my favorite hats, the floppy felt one
that still smells faintly of the sweet smoke of a controlled
substance, is "former hippie." We children of the '60s tenaciously
hold on to this self-image, even though our mirrors tell us that in
terms of sheer hipness, we look more like Arlen Specter than Arlo
Guthrie.
And that is why I am on the phone right now with Arlo. I need him to
clear up a little problem I am having, and reassure me that everything
is okay in my world. Arlo Guthrie became a hero to my generation in
1967 when he recorded his iconic, self-deprecating, darkly comic,
antiwar counterculture proto-rap masterpiece, "Alice's Restaurant."
The 18-minute song tells the true story of Arlo's teenage arrest for
littering, and his subsequent defiant confrontation with a Vietnam-War-
era draft board over his "criminal" record. The strength of "Alice's
Restaurant" is its feel of truth -- and how it speaks that truth to
power. I had occasion to reread the lyrics recently, and for the first
time, my instincts as an investigative humorist kicked in. I detected
a dissonant note. Hence, this phone call.
Me: So, you were arrested for illegally dumping a half-ton of garbage
that you scooped up from the floor of Alice's home, and took away to
dispose of as a favor, right?
Arlo: Right.
Me: And you were nailed by the fuzz because Officer Obie found your
name on an envelope in that half-ton pile of garbage and phoned you.
And in the funniest line of the song, you solemnly admitted to Officer
Obie that you had put that envelope under that half-ton of garbage,
right?
Arlo: Right.
Me: Why was your name in the garbage from Alice's restaurant? Wasn't
that all Alice's garbage?
Arlo: In 40 years, no one ever asked me that.
Me: Well, someone is asking now.
Arlo: Bravo. I will hate you forever for this.
Me:
Arlo: Okay, we have to attribute that line to creative license. Obie
actually found a paper with Ray's name -- Ray was Alice's husband --
and Ray directed them to me. But it worked better in the song the
other way.
Me: So, no biggie? A misstatement is okay because it "worked better"?
Arlo:
Me: I don't want to overstate my disillusionment here. But this is
like hearing Jesus say, "Okay, I didn't turn the water into wine,
exactly. Actually, I just added some Kool-Aid powder and turned it
into a nice, refreshing beverage."
Arlo: I don't know what to say, man.
Me: Are there any other untruths in the song?
Arlo: There's one. The 27 8-by-10 color glossy photographs with the
circles and arrows and a paragraph on the back of each one explaining
what each one was? They were not in color, they were actually black
and white.
Me: Did you learn your ethics from your dad? Might it be that this
land was really made for just him and a few of his cronies?
Arlo: You know, it's possible! I've heard that song sung at Republican
conventions.
Me: Ha-ha-ha-ha!
Arlo: Yeah!
Me: Wait. What were you doing at Republican conventions?
Arlo: I'm a registered Republican now.
We talked a bit longer, Arlo and I, and it was amicable, but it all
went by in a blur. My mind was cartwheeling. By becoming a Republican,
Arlo Guthrie has shredded the last remnants of my faith that our
hippie principles had any lasting meaning. How can he do this to us?
I'm a peaceable man, but if I had a hammer ...
On Jul 7, 8:16=A0pm, "HeyBub" <[email protected]> wrote:
> As I matured, I put away the foolish ideals of youth and became a
> conservative.
... , the foolish ideal of middle age ...
Robatoy wrote:
> By Gene Weingarten
> Sunday, July 4, 2010
>
> Like many middle-age people, I wear more than one hat. I'm a husband,
> a father, a journalist, a role model to a generation of idealistic
> young Americans, etc. But one of my favorite hats, the floppy felt one
> that still smells faintly of the sweet smoke of a controlled
> substance, is "former hippie." We children of the '60s tenaciously
> hold on to this self-image, even though our mirrors tell us that in
> terms of sheer hipness, we look more like Arlen Specter than Arlo
> Guthrie.
[...]
I was around during the '60s and I have no idea what you're talking about.
'Course I was taking ROTC, then worked for Goldwater, and so forth.
As I matured, I put away the foolish ideals of youth and became a
conservative.
On Jul 7, 1:57=A0pm, Robatoy <[email protected]> wrote:
> By Gene Weingarten
> Sunday, July 4, 2010
>
> Like many middle-age people, I wear more than one hat. I'm a husband,
> a father, a journalist, a role model to a generation of idealistic
> young Americans, etc. But one of my favorite hats, the floppy felt one
> that still smells faintly of the sweet smoke of a controlled
> substance, is "former hippie." We children of the '60s tenaciously
> hold on to this self-image, even though our mirrors tell us that in
> terms of sheer hipness, we look more like Arlen Specter than Arlo
> Guthrie.
> And that is why I am on the phone right now with Arlo. I need him to
> clear up a little problem I am having, and reassure me that everything
> is okay in my world. Arlo Guthrie became a hero to my generation in
> 1967 when he recorded his iconic, self-deprecating, darkly comic,
> antiwar counterculture proto-rap masterpiece, "Alice's Restaurant."
> The 18-minute song tells the true story of Arlo's teenage arrest for
> littering, and his subsequent defiant confrontation with a Vietnam-War-
> era draft board over his "criminal" record. The strength of "Alice's
> Restaurant" is its feel of truth -- and how it speaks that truth to
> power. I had occasion to reread the lyrics recently, and for the first
> time, my instincts as an investigative humorist kicked in. I detected
> a dissonant note. Hence, this phone call.
> Me: So, you were arrested for illegally dumping a half-ton of garbage
> that you scooped up from the floor of Alice's home, and took away to
> dispose of as a favor, right?
> Arlo: Right.
> Me: And you were nailed by the fuzz because Officer Obie found your
> name on an envelope in that half-ton pile of garbage and phoned you.
> And in the funniest line of the song, you solemnly admitted to Officer
> Obie that you had put that envelope under that half-ton of garbage,
> right?
> Arlo: Right.
>
> Me: Why was your name in the garbage from Alice's restaurant? Wasn't
> that all Alice's garbage?
> Arlo: In 40 years, no one ever asked me that.
> Me: Well, someone is asking now.
> Arlo: Bravo. I will hate you forever for this.
> Me:
> Arlo: Okay, we have to attribute that line to creative license. Obie
> actually found a paper with Ray's name -- Ray was Alice's husband --
> and Ray directed them to me. But it worked better in the song the
> other way.
>
> Me: So, no biggie? A misstatement is okay because it "worked better"?
> Arlo:
> Me: I don't want to overstate my disillusionment here. But this is
> like hearing Jesus say, "Okay, I didn't turn the water into wine,
> exactly. Actually, I just added some Kool-Aid powder and turned it
> into a nice, refreshing beverage."
> Arlo: I don't know what to say, man.
> Me: Are there any other untruths in the song?
> Arlo: There's one. The 27 8-by-10 color glossy photographs with the
> circles and arrows and a paragraph on the back of each one explaining
> what each one was? They were not in color, they were actually black
> and white.
> Me: Did you learn your ethics from your dad? Might it be that this
> land was really made for just him and a few of his cronies?
> Arlo: You know, it's possible! I've heard that song sung at Republican
> conventions.
> Me: Ha-ha-ha-ha!
> Arlo: Yeah!
> Me: Wait. What were you doing at Republican conventions?
> Arlo: I'm a registered Republican now.
> We talked a bit longer, Arlo and I, and it was amicable, but it all
> went by in a blur. My mind was cartwheeling. By becoming a Republican,
> Arlo Guthrie has shredded the last remnants of my faith that our
> hippie principles had any lasting meaning. How can he do this to us?
> I'm a peaceable man, but if I had a hammer ...
" You can get anything you want at Alice's restaurant, cepten Alice"
Joe G
On Jul 7, 1:57=A0pm, Robatoy <[email protected]> wrote:
> By Gene Weingarten
> Sunday, July 4, 2010
>
> Like many middle-age people, I wear more than one hat. I'm a husband,
> a father, a journalist, a role model to a generation of idealistic
> young Americans, etc. But one of my favorite hats, the floppy felt one
> that still smells faintly of the sweet smoke of a controlled
> substance, is "former hippie." We children of the '60s tenaciously
> hold on to this self-image, even though our mirrors tell us that in
> terms of sheer hipness, we look more like Arlen Specter than Arlo
> Guthrie.
> And that is why I am on the phone right now with Arlo. I need him to
> clear up a little problem I am having, and reassure me that everything
> is okay in my world. Arlo Guthrie became a hero to my generation in
> 1967 when he recorded his iconic, self-deprecating, darkly comic,
> antiwar counterculture proto-rap masterpiece, "Alice's Restaurant."
> The 18-minute song tells the true story of Arlo's teenage arrest for
> littering, and his subsequent defiant confrontation with a Vietnam-War-
> era draft board over his "criminal" record. The strength of "Alice's
> Restaurant" is its feel of truth -- and how it speaks that truth to
> power. I had occasion to reread the lyrics recently, and for the first
> time, my instincts as an investigative humorist kicked in. I detected
> a dissonant note. Hence, this phone call.
> Me: So, you were arrested for illegally dumping a half-ton of garbage
> that you scooped up from the floor of Alice's home, and took away to
> dispose of as a favor, right?
> Arlo: Right.
> Me: And you were nailed by the fuzz because Officer Obie found your
> name on an envelope in that half-ton pile of garbage and phoned you.
> And in the funniest line of the song, you solemnly admitted to Officer
> Obie that you had put that envelope under that half-ton of garbage,
> right?
> Arlo: Right.
>
> Me: Why was your name in the garbage from Alice's restaurant? Wasn't
> that all Alice's garbage?
> Arlo: In 40 years, no one ever asked me that.
> Me: Well, someone is asking now.
> Arlo: Bravo. I will hate you forever for this.
> Me:
> Arlo: Okay, we have to attribute that line to creative license. Obie
> actually found a paper with Ray's name -- Ray was Alice's husband --
> and Ray directed them to me. But it worked better in the song the
> other way.
>
> Me: So, no biggie? A misstatement is okay because it "worked better"?
> Arlo:
> Me: I don't want to overstate my disillusionment here. But this is
> like hearing Jesus say, "Okay, I didn't turn the water into wine,
> exactly. Actually, I just added some Kool-Aid powder and turned it
> into a nice, refreshing beverage."
> Arlo: I don't know what to say, man.
> Me: Are there any other untruths in the song?
> Arlo: There's one. The 27 8-by-10 color glossy photographs with the
> circles and arrows and a paragraph on the back of each one explaining
> what each one was? They were not in color, they were actually black
> and white.
> Me: Did you learn your ethics from your dad? Might it be that this
> land was really made for just him and a few of his cronies?
> Arlo: You know, it's possible! I've heard that song sung at Republican
> conventions.
> Me: Ha-ha-ha-ha!
> Arlo: Yeah!
> Me: Wait. What were you doing at Republican conventions?
> Arlo: I'm a registered Republican now.
> We talked a bit longer, Arlo and I, and it was amicable, but it all
> went by in a blur. My mind was cartwheeling. By becoming a Republican,
> Arlo Guthrie has shredded the last remnants of my faith that our
> hippie principles had any lasting meaning. How can he do this to us?
> I'm a peaceable man, but if I had a hammer ...
This from Arlo's Wiki page:
Politics
Guthrie endorsed Texas Congressman Ron Paul for the 2008 Republican
Party nomination. He said, "I love this guy. Dr. Paul is the only
candidate I know of who would have signed the Constitution of the
United States had he been there. I'm with him, because he seems to be
the only candidate who actually believes it has as much relevance
today as it did a couple of hundred years ago. I look forward to the
day when we can work out the differences we have with the same
revolutionary vision and enthusiasm that is our American legacy." [5]
He told the New York Times Magazine that he is a Republican because,
"We had enough good Democrats. We needed a few more good Republicans.
We needed a loyal opposition."[6]
Seems as good a reason as any, and better than most, to join a clique.
R
How in the hell are we to know if we are in the middle right now?
When we know for sure it is too late.
"Neil Brooks" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:4a424a57-5e67-450b-8325-1a6545346d6b@c33g2000yqm.googlegroups.com...
... , the foolish ideal of middle age ...
On Jul 7, 8:16 pm, "HeyBub" <[email protected]> wrote:
> As I matured, I put away the foolish ideals of youth and became a
> conservative.
GROVER wrote:
>
> " You can get anything you want at Alice's restaurant, cepten Alice"
> Joe G
And you left the entire preceding post intact, just to post that?
--
-Mike-
[email protected]