It is 1:41 a.m. and I have just returned from hearing Joe Lally perform live in Chicago and there is only one thing on my mind:"The word is not the thing / we say war when we really mean rape and murder / The word is not the thing / we say war when we really mean makin' some money / The word is not the thing / we say war when we really mean ideas above people."
The bassist for legendary punk band Fugazi stands in a circle surrounded by a crowd of four dozen people, holding his stomach and singing a cappella. Not something I expected to see. Not something I expected to hear. I was drawn to the music but more importantly to his lyrics, which he sang with complete confidence and understanding in the meaning he was looking to convey.
Was he quoting Polish-American philosopher and scientist Alfred Korzybski with the intention that I search him out on the internet? He might have simply heard the phrase repeated once before and liked it. Either way, it has me entranced. The word is indeed not the thing but it certainly helps to define how we feel...
p.s. no hyperlinks here. I guess anyone reading this will have to mine the ether that is the interweb...
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