Angry Young Man

I've always enjoyed this particular song, something from his earlier catalog, for it's dynamic piano-driven opening and for the pace of the lyrics. But while driving into work today, with thoughts of the current political climate running through my head , this started playing on my iPod. It was perfect timing. These words eloquently echo my own thoughts about the upcoming election, as well as my many own opinions about government, religion, the media, science, and the dramatic reduction in the size of an ice cream 'drum-stick' over the last two decades.

There's a place in the world for the angry young man
With his working class ties and his radical plans
He refuses to bend, he refuses to crawl,
And he's always at home with his back to the wall.
And he's proud of his scars and the battles he's lost,
And he struggles and bleeds as he hangs on his cross-
And he likes to be known as the angry young man.Give a moment or two to the angry young man,
With his foot in his mouth and his heart in his hand.
He's been stabbed in the back, he's been misunderstood,
It's a comfort to know his intentions are good.
And he sits in a room with a lock on the door,
With his maps and his medals laid out on the floor-
And he likes to be known as the angry young man.I believe I've passed the age
Of consciousness and righteous rage
I found that just surviving was a noble fight.
I once believed in causes too,
I had my pointless point of view,
And life went on no matter who was wrong or right.And there's always a place for the angry young man,
With his fist in the air and his head in the sand.
And he's never been able to learn from mistakes,
So he can't understand why his heart always breaks.
And his honor is pure and his courage as well,
And he's fair and he's true and he's boring as hell-
And he'll go to the grave as an angry old man.

The bridge, in particular, sums up my overwhelming sense of futility at times, in the lines "I once believed in causes too, I had my pointless point of view, And life went on no matter who was wrong or right."

Sigh.

And yet as I age, interact with my own children and see them reflecting my own behavior, I long to ensure that I don't "go to the grave as an angry old man."