"Burg is the German and Dutch (as 'Burcht') word for castle"
Recently, I played a gig in a place we shall call Farmburg. Because there are farms there, though no castles (that I know of).
As you may know, my bass drum features prominently a stencil of our thirty-third president, an image that fits nicely with this band name. Plus, it's pretty and not something stupid like my initials or some crap. (Man, that's crap when people do that.)
The thing is, I play in other bands, too—other bands whose names do not have such a seeming connection to "Give 'em Hell Harry." When I play with these other bands, it's not uncommon for somone to approach and inquire about the bass-drum stencil. (Standard question: "Is that FDR?"). These exchanges inevitably lead to a sort-of awkward conversation, wherein I explain the other band I play with, and their name, and that, no, it's not (at least not directly) a reference to the president, but you know, it's cool and junk, you know? Okay, great.
At the recent gig in Farmburg, however, the exchange was somewhat different:
Dude: Is that Harry Truman?
Me: Yep.
Dude: Hmph. Better be careful with that. People 'round here don't much like Democrats.
Me: Oh. Well, he did drop the bomb. On Japan. Twice.
Dude: Oh, was that him? Well, shoot. Musta been one of them good Democrats.
Me: [nervously] Heh. Musta been...
Why did I do that?! I seemingly endorsed the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, just to placate this guy. I hate it when I do that—say something to smooth over the ripples, even when it's something I don't fully agree with. And yet it's something I do fairly often, even when there are other readily available arguments at-hand (e.g., "well, he did desegregate the military").
No convictions, this one…
As you may know, my bass drum features prominently a stencil of our thirty-third president, an image that fits nicely with this band name. Plus, it's pretty and not something stupid like my initials or some crap. (Man, that's crap when people do that.)
The thing is, I play in other bands, too—other bands whose names do not have such a seeming connection to "Give 'em Hell Harry." When I play with these other bands, it's not uncommon for somone to approach and inquire about the bass-drum stencil. (Standard question: "Is that FDR?"). These exchanges inevitably lead to a sort-of awkward conversation, wherein I explain the other band I play with, and their name, and that, no, it's not (at least not directly) a reference to the president, but you know, it's cool and junk, you know? Okay, great.
At the recent gig in Farmburg, however, the exchange was somewhat different:
Dude: Is that Harry Truman?
Me: Yep.
Dude: Hmph. Better be careful with that. People 'round here don't much like Democrats.
Me: Oh. Well, he did drop the bomb. On Japan. Twice.
Dude: Oh, was that him? Well, shoot. Musta been one of them good Democrats.
Me: [nervously] Heh. Musta been...
Why did I do that?! I seemingly endorsed the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, just to placate this guy. I hate it when I do that—say something to smooth over the ripples, even when it's something I don't fully agree with. And yet it's something I do fairly often, even when there are other readily available arguments at-hand (e.g., "well, he did desegregate the military").
No convictions, this one…
posted by Stanley at 14:26
3 Comments:
Well shit! That totally explains all the evil looks I got when we played in Texas and South Carolina! It's because they thought I was a democrat, and not because I'm colored! I feel so much better now.
-Jon Bray(blogger won't let me into my account for some reason)
don't worry about it stan. it pales in comparison to all the times you deliberately say something wildly inappropriate and dickish just to stir it up.
Now entering Farmburg: Democrat don't let the sun set on you here.
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