The Song (Unfortunately) Remains The Same

As readers of this blog will already know, I've been reexamining some of the psychedelic soul of my childhood days. In the course of doing so, I've been struck by how many of the lyrics from these Vietnam era songs seem to be completely relevant to the current situation in Iraq. Just a couple of striking examples:

WAR - Written By Eddie Holland and Norman Whitfield; recorded by many artists, the hit version was by Edwin Starr.

War! huh-yeah
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Uh-huh
   
War! huh-yeah
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Say it again y'all
   
War! huh good God
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me?
   
Ohhh? War! I despise
Because it means destruction?
Of innocent lives
   
War means tears
to thousands of mothers eyes
When their sons go to fight
and lose their lives
   
I said - War! Huh Good God y'all
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Say it again
   
War! Whoa, Lord ...
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me?
   
War! It ain't nothing but a heartbreaker
War! Friend only to the undertaker
War! It's an enemy to all mankind
The thought of war blows my mind
   
War has caused unrest in the younger generation
Induction then destruction-
Who wants to die?
   
Ohhh? War Good God y'all
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Say it, Say it, Say it
   
War! Uh-huh Yeah - Huh!
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me?
   
War! It ain't nothing but a heartbreaker
War! It's got one friend, that's the undertaker
War has shattered many a young mans dreams
Made him disabled bitter and mean
Life is much to precious to spend fighting wars these days
War can't give life, it can only take it away
   
War! Huh Good God y'all
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing
Say it again
   
War! Whoa, Lord ...
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me?
   
War! It ain't nothing but a heartbreaker
War! Friend only to the undertaker
Peace Love and Understanding;
tell me, is there no place for them today?
They say we must fight to keep our freedom
But Lord knows there's got to be a better way
   
War! Huh Good God y'all
What is it good for?
You tell me
Say it, Say it, Say it
   
War! Huh Good God y'all
What is it good for?
Stand up and shout it.
Nothing!

And...

WHAT'S GOING ON - Written by Renaldo Benso, Al Cleveland, and Marvin Gaye; recorded by many artists, the hit version was by Marvin Gaye.

Mother, mother
There's too many of you crying
Brother, brother, brother
There's far too many of you dying
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today

Father, father
We don't need to escalate
You see, war is not the answer
For only love can conquer hate
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today

Picket lines and picket signs
Don't punish me with brutality
Talk to me, so you can see
Oh, what's going on
What's going on
Ya, what's going on
Ah, what's going on

In the mean time
Right on, baby
Right on
Right on

Father, father, everybody thinks we're wrong
Oh, but who are they to judge us
Simply because our hair is long
Oh, you know we've got to find a way
To bring some understanding here today
Oh

Picket lines and picket signs
Don't punish me with brutality
Talk to me
So you can see
What's going on
Ya, what's going on
Tell me what's going on
I'll tell you what's going on

40 years down the road and, seemingly, we, as a country, haven't learned anything. Yes, sadly, The Song Remains The Same!