Morgan Wallen

When are we gonna let this guy out of jail?

This dude has the biggest album of the year, hovering in the Top Ten all the while, without the sales tricks of those who get all the publicity, with their vinyl and multi-CD packages, and yet you can’t even say his name. HUH? Furthermore, his album is GREAT! Just as listenable as Chris Stapleton’s big award winning record, and far superior to those in pop country, like Luke Bryan, never mind the rest of the wankers, but everybody is too afraid to touch him. Is that the country we now live in, where people are afraid of doing what’s right?

Yes, the agent booked a tour (thank god Wallen is going on the road, and he’ll do boffo at the b.o.), and there’s incredible blowback saying he said he wouldn’t, that he was done with Wallen. CAN NO ONE CHANGE THEIR MIND? Are we really living in a zero tolerance society?

Seems like it.

So this ignorant punk uses the N-Word. He’s so dumb and uninformed that he doesn’t realize only Black people can utter it, like Dave Chappelle at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. But Wallen, like the rest of young America, has listened to a zillion rap songs, he’s invested in the culture, because hip-hop is American culture, but since he’s living in the boonies he doesn’t know how to behave, what he can say or what he can’t. It’s not like he used the N-Word as a put-down, in fact it was as a term of endearment. That doesn’t justify its use, but the penalty here far outweighs the crime.

Marilyn Manson is not censored by the Grammys, and Morgan Wallen can’t even get a nomination, never mind winning the award he deserves, Album of the Year. If Harvey Mason, Jr. had any cojones, he’d have Wallen OPEN the damn Grammy telecast, demonstrating the organization is a big tent, and everybody is included. Hell, Pee-wee Herman opened the VMAs and he was caught red-handed!

If you commit a faux pas in the future, deny it. Because those who admitted the offense got the same punishment as those who did not. Harvey Weinstein is an enemy of the people, but Louis C.K? Come on, he’s a COMEDIAN!

And don’t be holier-than-thou, all we have to do is subpoena your Google search history. Yes, they sued for the use of pornography in Utah but then it was revealed from TV records that everybody in the Beehive State watches it and the case was dropped. Ain’t that America, HYPOCRITES!

Imagine if you stole a cookie from the jar and could never have a cookie again! That is what this is like, better to deny your action. And sure, there’s video in this case, but what kind of jerk films his neighbors late at night? These are the gotcha people, no different from Project Veritas. Mark Zuckerberg puts a stake in the heart of democracy and he skates. But Zuckerberg is a Harvard dropout, who is a billionaire. What are Wallen’s bona fides? ONLY THAT HE CREATED A HIT DOUBLE ALBUM! And that’s harder to do than to create Facebook. If you study inventions/discoveries, you know they’re in the air. Darwin’s theory would have been named something else, as a matter of fact they’re still discussing if he deserves the credit a hundred and fifty years later!

And forget the right wing rednecks, how about the left wing elite? Which has contempt for Morgan Wallen just for the fact he sings country music. He’s considered a rube. I hate to tell you, but you can grow up in the country, in the south, and still be smart. You might have an accent, but it doesn’t affect your intelligence.

But I guess college students are triggered by Walden. Well, in that case America must be remade so the scores of things that trigger me are eradicated. I mean nobody should be shot, but are we now protecting feelings? All this anti-bullying crap, you never hear the bullied speaking up, because they know there’s no way you can get rid of it, the only way is to stand up to your oppressors. Want to beat the bullies? Don’t coddle your kid and speak to the school’s administration, give him karate lessons, teach him how to fight back.

I know that’s politically incorrect. I’d love it if women could wear cutoffs and halter tops in a construction zone with no hoots, no blowback, but come on, that’s not the way things are. But there’s no reality anymore, it’s all theory. All the life lessons my parents taught me are out the window, because what…society is going to protect me, the law? Yeah right.

As for those on the right… I don’t even want to get into Fox News and Tucker Carlson, but I will say most of those on the right are reasonable and the best way for the left to make progress is to embrace them, and get them to hear reality, as opposed to alternative facts. I’m not saying to pander, I’m just saying let’s have some humanity, some decency. Not for all, not for those stirring the white nationalist plot, but that’s not everybody.

Meanwhile, Trump breaks the law ad infinitum and not only has he escaped punishment, most of the Republican party thinks he won the election! Wallen’s “crime” pales in comparison to those of Trump, but he’s the one paying the price.

If you’re rich and connected, you skate. If not, good luck with the public defender!

And once again, I’m not defending Wallen, I’m just saying the penalty now outstrips the crime, BY FAR! Turns out we didn’t kill is career. He was only more successful, and if it wasn’t in the grooves it wouldn’t be so, the right couldn’t make the “Let’s Go Brandon” songs a hit.

But it’s easier to sit on your duff and stay out of the fray.

But it’s not only with Wallen, it’s with all female issues. Men can’t have a seat at the table. Yes, men are the offenders, but not all of them! Talk to a man, unlike Morgan Wallen he knows what he can’t say, but that does not mean he believes it. Meanwhile, so much of what’s on the hit parade denigrates women, HUH?

I don’t know Morgan Wallen, I’ve got no stake in his career. There are much worse crimes than using the “N” word. But killers go free and Wallen remains in jail?

Well, maybe metaphorical jail, but if you even mention Wallen’s name to a non-fan they put you down, even though they’ve never listened to the music. Isn’t this behavior exactly what the left is decrying on the right?

You should listen to “Dangerous,” it’s far superior to most of the records nominated for awards today. And it’s got a better chance of lasting. It’s full of melody and hooks, the building blocks of music, and each song wasn’t written by twenty people. Get enough people involved and no one gets the blame, do it yourself and you’re a target. Imagine if Zuckerberg didn’t have the infrastructure, the troops of Facebook behind him. HE’D BE OUT OF BUSINESS!

And it’s not like the right is even supporting Morgan Wallen. Everybody has moved on but the fans. The music sells itself in a world where what is a hit is jammed down people’s throats, talk about an accomplishment!

So one of these days eyes are going to turn to you. You’re gonna screw up, everybody does. But imagine if the punishment far exceeds the crime. And no matter what you do, you can’t recover, you must atone forever. Give Wallen credit, because so many other acts would have busted out by now. Just shutting up is a punishment, in a world where even wannabe celebs are communicating with their fans online 24/7.

The sixties were about fighting injustice.

Today it’s all about tribes. You can’t violate the mores of the tribe. You can’t criticize it. That’s even worse than Wallen using the “N” word. But get big enough and you can elude punishment.

Nothing is gonna happen because nobody wants to take the risk.

Musicians used to be famous for taking risks, but now if you want the truth you’d better fire up Netflix. Because musicians are mostly cartoons. I mean at least Morgan Wallen spoke his truth in his lyrics. He wasn’t endlessly boasting, busy becoming a brand.

At least the CMAs allowed “Dangerous” to be nominated. It’d be like creating a list of the best films and leaving out the “Godfather” and “Citizen Kane.” WAIT, they went for “Gone With the Wind” and even Abraham Lincoln!

Have we lost our minds? Is rationality out the window? Is it all tit for tat? One strike and you’re out?

Don’t call your friends, don’t get involved in groupthink. I ask, sitting at home, alone, reading this, do you think Morgan Wallen has paid enough and the restrictions should be lifted? And if not, at least listen to “Dangerous,” once. Don’t drop the needle and scowl, check it out, it’ll draw you in, IT’S JUST THAT GOOD!

Thank You Songs Playlist

https://spoti.fi/3r5r2KK

Songs with “thank” in the title and/or lyrics (start at listed times to hear the word within thirty seconds, although it does not appear in “Thank You”):

My Thanksgiving-Don Henley – from 4:05

Thank You Led Zeppelin and Tori Amos (Tori Amos version -from :40)

You’ve Made Me So Very Happy-Blood, Sweat & Tears – from: 1:48

Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) – Sly & The Family Stone – from: 52

I Thank You-Sam & Dave – from :11

& ZZ Top – from: :17

Bonnie Raitt: from the top

Thank You-Dido – from 2:40

Thank You For Being A Friend-Andrew Gold – from the top

Thank You Girl-Beatles – from :06

Thank God I’m A Country Boy-John Denver – from the top

Thank U Alanis Morissette – from: :50

Kind and Generous-Natalie Merchant – from 2:44

How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You) – Marvin Gaye – from: :36

Suffragette City-David Bowie – from 2:24

Spending My Time-Roxette – from: :21

Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise) –
The Beatles – from: :44

I Love You-Climax Blues Band from: 2:40

Magic Bus-The Who – from: :42

Wonderful-The Beach Boys – from 1:48

Sweet Virginia-Rolling Stones – from 1:29

People Get Ready-Rod Stewart/Jeff Beck – from: :39

Someone Saved My Life Tonight-Elton John – from 2:29

Child’s Song-Tom Rush – from 2:32

Sunny-Bobby Hebb – from: :31

When the Daylight Comes-Ian Hunter – from 2:21

Champagne Jam-Atlanta Rhythm Section – from 2:04

Farmer’s Daughter-Beach Boys – from: :28

Your Smiling Face-James Taylor – from :47

Far Away Eyes-Rolling Stones – from :34

Leader of the Band-Dan Fogelberg – from 2:46

Narcos: Mexico-Season 3

It’s educational.

If you want to know what is going on with the drug war, you’ve got to read the Sam Quinones books. Start with “Dreamland,” which delineates the beginning and growth of the opioid epidemic, from rural Kentucky to south of the border, and his new one, “The Least of Us,” which is all about today’s fentanyl epidemic, as well as the meth story. One of the bottom lines is Quinones believes the surge in meth use is causing a surge in schizophrenia. Actions have consequences. You may survive a Covid-19 infection, but fifty percent of the infected have ongoing symptoms, I know two people who still don’t have a sense of taste and smell eighteen months on. So beware. Then again, we live in a country of “winners,” and if you fall by the wayside, either through some misstep of your own or sheer luck, you’re forgotten. Hell, you don’t see the vaccine deniers supporting those who’ve been infected, never mind died, and you don’t see the anti-health insurance troops coming out in support of those whose families have gone bankrupt as a result of illnesses they had no hand in causing,

Ain’t that America.

And if you know the story, heroin exploded in America because everybody got hooked on opioids, doctors were handing them out like candy. Purdue Pharma said OxyContin wasn’t addictive when nothing could be further from the truth, and then when the hooked could no longer get scripts for legal opioids, they turned to the illegal one, heroin. Which for years has been a far cry from the street drug you were afraid of in the last century. Heroin is cheap, and it’s delivered to your door, but too often now it’s laced with fentanyl…a super-powerful synthetic opioid that can kill you right after you’ve taken it, just ask Tom Petty. Oh, that’s right, you can’t. Fentanyl is a boon for those truly in pain, but if you’re taking the street version, you’re truly taking a risk. Well, the truth is you think you’re taking something else, but it’s got cheap, powerful fentanyl in it and you die. The cartels love the economics of fentanyl, but those won’t help you if you’re lying dead in bed.

So, the first three seasons of “Narcos” were the well-known Pablo Escobar story. They dragged it into a third season, but it was pulpy and entertaining and…

That’s not “Narcos: Mexico.” The story of the Mexican drug cartels is much messier, with more people involved and constant clashes. And unlike in the Colombian/Escobar version, the star of one season doesn’t necessarily make it into the next one, BECAUSE THEY’RE DEAD!

That’s what “Narcos: Mexico” does so well, demonstrate not only the risks of being a drug dealer, but the collateral damage of their business.

So, the third season is a bit hard to understand, unless you’ve read “Dreamland.” You see the cartels have different “plazas,” with different entrances into America, and they’re fighting over access and supply, constantly.

But it gets even better, BECAUSE IT’S REAL!

They constantly interlace historical footage amongst the TV series drama. This all happened. These families were at war. The government was corrupt and…

This is where we’re heading in America. Believe me. And also believe me there will be collateral damage. This is what happens when you lock out opportunity for the underclass, they find a way to get rich.

And believe me, the drug dealers love the adrenaline of the action. But when they’re not doing business, they’re partying. Seems like a sad life if you went to college, if you’re an educated person. But that’s not who these people are. If you want to get rich so you can party, I feel sorry for you. That’s a very empty life. I’m never going to underestimate sex, it makes the world go round, it’s more important than any business, any amount of money, but when it comes to drinking and drugging, it gets very old very soon, and the conversation attendant to it…may be novel at first, but then it’s endless repeats.

And the truth is that’s why today’s musical stars are seen as second class by the cognoscenti. They’re not that rich, and they’re not that educated, and all they want to do is party. So they can be manipulated by the rich when needed, and dropped thereafter. That’s right, you can get a sponsor, a private, but if you think you’re ripping off the man you’re sorely mistaken, your pay is a pittance to them and if you don’t toe the line you’re out, and chances are your window of dealmaking is very short, your fame doesn’t last, whereas the corporation is forever and the execs get paid double digit millions year after year after year.

Not that the uneducated are inherently dumb. That’s what makes “Narcos: Mexico” so interesting, Amado and Chapo are so damn smart, especially the former!

You can reinvent the system, you’ve just got to be able to leap forward in thought and then convince the powers-that-be you’ve got a better way. When it comes to music, the creators of Napster didn’t even ask, and at this late date, more than twenty years later, those in power back then still haven’t gotten over this. Not the execs, they fired the high-paid boomers, replaced them with low-paid Gen-X’ers and Millennials, and got more from the acts as a result of 360 deals. But really, the labels were saved by Daniel Ek, and if you’re legacy talent you’re still bitching about this. But instead of complaining, you should look at today’s Grammy nominations. Recognize the names? Probably not, time is always marching forward, and time passes you by and then your time runs out.

So, drug dealing is a game. Which requires a lot of thought, a lot of mental effort, along with some muscle. You’ve got to get a supply. You’ve got to establish a chain that brings it to the ultimate customer. You’ve got to pay off law enforcement, and you’ve got to battle for turf with your competitors. And there is no court of last resort, this isn’t about fairness, but smarts and brute force. No one helps you win, it all comes down to you. But the price can be very high, your life. Then again, you can make so much money you could compete with third world countries. And with money comes all kinds of power.

So in this new season of “Narcos: Mexico” we have the stories of multiple plazas, and the evolution of their power. Amado gaining, the Arellanos losing. The Sinaloans going up and down and…

The whole story being chronicled in “La Voz,” which is true! And they, the cartels, kill not only their competitors, but journalists, elected officials, if you’re going against them, you probably won’t survive.

So the series is building up to the ultimate power of El Chapo, that will play out in coming seasons. But at first he’s got no way to get his drugs across the border and…

There are loyalties and alignments but can you really trust anybody? And if you’re further down the food chain, should you stay loyal to the end or at some point do you switch sides?

As for America and its DEA, it’s a fruitless effort. “Narcos” is the best advertisement for the legalization of drugs ever, but that won’t ever happen, because there’s too much money in it and the drugs themselves are vilified as opposed to the reasons for taking them. I mean if you’re uneducated, working a low level service job, never mind manual labor, what else have you got but getting high and hopefully sex? Nothing. And drugs are glorified by the entertainers and everybody is smoking cigarettes, especially in “Narcos.” You think you’re immune, that the actions of your youth will never catch up with you, but Billy Hinsche died of lung cancer over the weekend, all that smoking caught up with him, at 70, which may sound old to you today but when you get to that age, believe me, you’ll want much more time.

So, the third season of “Narcos: Mexico” is a commitment. There is an arc, but it is multifarious and confusing. But that’s life, it’s rarely linear and ordered like it is in a movie. And speaking of movies, they never go as deep as these extended streaming series do.

So…

Either you’re watching “Narcos” or you’re not. It’s one of the progenitors, not as early on the scene as “House of Cards,” but it predates “Stranger Things,” never mind “Squid Game.” “Narcos” arrived when people still thought movies were king, which is certainly no longer true.

And if you want fantasy, go see the Marvel epics. But if you want reality, which when done right is always stranger than fiction, always more educational than fiction, always more riveting than fiction, watch “Narcos.”

And if you’re caught up, if you watched season 2, I recommend season 3. It’s an investment as opposed to a delightful trifle. The stories are not as clean-cut. But they’re real, you’ll get a peek into the way it was, and the way it still is. It’s happening today, it looks like it will never go away. And you can rarely identify with the protagonists, as DEA agent Walt says, he’s not a good guy, but real life is not a comic book, it’s complicated, with many more losers than winners, and the truth is everybody wants to play the game and win at some level. Just like the Narcos.

I don’t like having to wait so long for a new season, but I’d rather they continue to take the time to get it right. “Narcos: Mexico” rings true, which is the most riveting and scary thing about it.

Thank You Songs-This Week On SiriusXM

Songs with “thanks” in the title and/or lyrics

Tune in tomorrow, November 23rd, to Volume 106, 7 PM East, 4 PM West.

Phone #: 844-6-VOLUME, 844-686-5863

Twitter: @lefsetz or @siriusxmvolume/#lefsetzlive

Hear the episode live on SiriusXM VOLUME: siriusxm.us/HearLefsetzLive

If you miss the episode, you can hear it on demand on the SiriusXM app: siriusxm.us/LefsetzLive