I predict a riot ...

There is a lot of crap going on in England at the moment. I'm looking forward to escaping from it for a few days and immersing myself in metal at Bloodstock. I am quite willing to leave the thugs, thieves and low-lifes for the police to deal with.

The other day, though, a song appeared on my iPod's shuffle that I've not listened to for a while. I think it conveys my thoughts of our crass culture of celebrity, commercialism and material wealth. Glittering starlets are pushed, as they always have been, but also people who are, ostensibly, just like "normal" people. Except not.

Rather than low-quality housing and lack of employment prospects these "celebrities" have sex, money, expensive clothes, HDTV, bitches, hoes. There is a culture of misogyny, drugs, violence and pure selfishness the pervades and strangles and destroys morality. It's all about "me", and "what I have" versus "what everyone else has". Stemming from this is an entitlement culture; an obvious divide between those who have and those who have not, with no real divide between how much each party deserve their lot.

I think this song sums up how I feel about this hijacking of common decency. Pain Of Salvation - Cribcaged:

The only cribs that we should care for
Are the ones that we are here for
Ones belonging to our children
That do what we do, scar from our wounds

The only cribs that make a difference
Where the magic really happens
Don't come with a Mercedes Benz
Or a wide screen showing nothing
Showing nothing...

I'm sick of home control devices
Sick of sickening home designers
Sick the drugs and gold and strip poles
Sick of homies, sick of posers

Despite the nodding staff that serves you
Despite the name on the clothes and perfume
Despite the way that press observes you
You're just people...

Successful people
Dressed up people
Smiling people
Famous people
Red Carpet people
Wealthy people
Important people
But still just people

So fuck the million dollar kitchen
Fuck the Al-Pacino posters
Fuck the drugs the gold the strip poles
Fuck the homies, fuck the posers
Fuck the walls they build around them
Fuck the bedroom magic nonsense
I don't want to hear their voices
As long as they've vote with their wallets 

Fuck the silly "throw you out" joke
Fuck the framed cigar DeNiro smoked
Fuck their lack of originality and personality
Fuck this travesty

Fuck this new norm
Fuck comformity
Fuck their Kristal
Fuck their sordity 

Fuck the way they fuck equality
Fuck their freebie gear
Fuck the ones they wear
You're just people..

Successful people
Dressed up people
Smiling people
Famous people
Red Carpet people
Wealthy people
Important people
But still just people

Messed up people
Shallow people
Stupid people
Plastic people
Meta people
Theta people
Therapeople
Entropeople 

Oh, fuck the ones they wear
I'm cribcaged 

The only cribs that we should care for
Are the ones that we are here for
The ones belonging to our children
That do what we do, scar from our wounds