Phil Ochs: "Love Me I’m A Liberal"
“10 degrees to the left of centre in good times. 10 degrees to the right of centre if it affects them personally,” Phil Ochs.
Choosing a favourite protest song is like choosing a favourite ice cream. So many flavours, so little time. Public Enemy said “Fight The Power," the Clash warned against “working for the Clampdown” and Kendrick Lamar said “we gonna be alright." And though anger is an energy and reassurance is a necessity, one protest song has always resonated with me, "Love Me I’m A Liberal" by Phil Ochs. If you can get past Ochs’ square early '60s folk delivery you come to a very astutely sarcastic broadside against those who need to appear part of the solution while all the time bolstering the status quo. Liberalism is a bit like philanthropy — the optics are good and it’s nice in the short run but it tends to reinforce business as usual over the long haul.
Oh… and the revolution will certainly NOT be televised.