6 daze...

Dead Kennedys - California Über Alles

When frustrated friends/family/coworkers ask me, "Why are you so damn late all the time?" I simply reply that I was born this way--I came into this world two weeks late and I've been that way ever since. So it should come as no surprise that I really suck at paying attention to deadlines and returning things on time.

What does this have to do with the Dead Kennedys? Well. This morning I had to get to the library first-thing since I forgot that I was supposed to return two DVDs yesterday (them's some hefty fines!). It must have been fate, but Milk, which I still had yet to see, was sitting right at the front counter and I grabbed it on a whim. You see, I spent much of yesterday watching Anthony Bourdain's jaunts in San Francisco as "research" (ie avoidance of packing), so I figured this was a sign from god to continue my "education".

Ok, I knew Milk was supposed to be good, but, holy shit, this film is incredible. (Yes I cried. Multiple times.) Aside from being an incredibly inspirational, moving film, it also shed some much needed light on the Dead Kennedys' version of  "I Fought the Law". In fact, I heard their cover before I even started listening to the Clash (yes, I know that's not the original either) and was genuinely surprised to find that the first line wasn't "Drinkin' beer in the hot sun". Anyway, the song is about the assassinations of Harvey Milk and George Moscone and, in classic DK/Jello style, satirizes the outrageous outcome of Dan White's trial and the "Twinkie Defense".

Beside today's discovery, I really have to confess that the Dead Kennedys are a huge part of why I am relocating to the Bay. DK was probably the first punk band I ever seriously got into. I've always loved Jello Biafra's satirical, hilarious, scathing lyrics mocking politicians and other social/political bullshit of the day. His words forced me to take a deeper look at social issues of the past and re-evaluate the seemingly very similar problems of our current society. I'm sure this influence had no small impact on my political leanings as a teenager and certainly has shaped the human being I am today. Thus, I think "California Über Alles" is a necessary addition to this list.

And, to be completely honest, the impetus for my application to this position was almost entirely because of the guitarist's name, East Bay Ray. On the AmeriCorps listings, I saw that this non-profit was hiring someone do to something and it happened to have something to do with the East Bay, so, like, whatever dude, I went for it (I didn't even know what the East Bay was at the time). Turns out this "something" I am assigned to do is actually pretty cool (I hope?), even though I might not even be assigned to the East Bay in the end.

Ah, well. Cheers to you, DK, for continuing to push me along on this here journey-o-life.