cine + octo = boo

this Labor Day weekend comprised of a long road trip out to Visalia for a family gathering. road trips = music, and since my daughter has been on such a They Might Be Giants kick lately i decided to spool up anything from the self-titled pink album all the way through their latest release, Here Comes Science. (incidentally, if you haven’t listened to the new album yet, it’s excellent).

at some point along the way home we were knee deep into John Henry when I Should Be Allowed To Think popped on. inadvertently, i thought of work — specifically how the song relates to online community entitlement issues.

here are the lyrics:

I saw the best minds of my generation
Destroyed by madness, starving, hysterical
I should be allowed to glue my poster
I should be allowed to think

I should be allowed to glue my poster
I should be allowed to think
I should be allowed to think
I should be allowed to think
And I should be allowed to blurt the merest idea
If, by random whim, one occurs to me
If necessary, leave paper stains on the gray utility pole

I saw the worst bands of my generation
Applied by magic marker to dry wall
I should be allowed to shoot my mouth off
I should have a call-in show

I should be allowed to glue my poster
I should be allowed to think
I should be allowed to think
I should be allowed to think
And I should be allowed to blurt the merest idea
If by random whim, one occurs to me
If necessary, leave paper stains on the gray utility pole

I am not allowed
To ever come up with a single original thought
I am not allowed
To meet the criminal government agent who oppresses me

I was the worst hope of my generation
Destroyed by madness, starving, hysterical
I should be allowed to share my feelings
I should be allowed to feel

I should be allowed to glue my poster
I should be allowed to think
I should be allowed to think
I should be allowed to think
And I should be allowed to blurt the merest idea
If by random whim, one occurs to me
But sadly, this can never be

I am not allowed to think
I am not allowed to think
I am not allowed to think (I am not allowed to think)
I am not allowed to think (I am not allowed to think)
I am not allowed to think (I am not allowed to think)
I am not allowed to think (I am not allowed to think)

Give it a listen over on Blip.fm:

i’m certain that Linnell didn’t have the sort of self-entitlement we deal with in online communities in mind when he wrote this song, but ultimately online self-entitlement stems from the same place as the self-entitlement Linnell chides in the song. after all, online communities are rooted in the same DNA as their real world counterparts — and this is community-centric song.

back in 1994 there were several city-wide ordinances aimed at improving the quality of city living that began cropping up on both coasts (New York and Seattle both come to mind). essentially, several garage and indie bands were subject to these ordinances because they were now restricted from promoting their shows by pasting fliers in public places (read: gray utility poles).

of course, many reacted to these cases by citing “freedom of speech” and likening these ordinances to censorship. naturally, the attempt to keep these posts off of public property had no connection whatsoever to the subject matter of the individual posters, or the ideological views of the bands, their art, or any statement they wished to have. we are faced with this, time and time again, in online communities. the misuse of “freedom of speech” is an ongoing struggle for CMs the world over. of course, it’s amplified by the instantaneous and anonymous nature of the web, but that’s somewhat moot. the bottom line is, all communities (whether real world or online) have boundaries. some reside within the confines of written laws, others revolve around set guidelines and terms of use online.

before anyone starts misappropriating the words of Alan Ginsberg, remember this: you may not be able to glue your poster, but you’re always allowed to think.