Bob Dylan On War
by Jeffrey Rubin, PhD
Welcome to From Insults to Respect.
“Blowin’ In The Wind.” “With God On Our Side.” “Masters Of War.” These are songs Bob Dylan has written and performed expressing deep emotions about the wisdom of going to war. As I began to reflect on these songs, to my mind came the pounding of war drums, the cries of vicious insults emanating from a deadly divide, images of fear, pride, disgrace, bombs exploding, and thousands screaming in horror.
And then I found myself pulling up on the internet Bob Dylan’s Theme Time Radio Hour show, and clicking to hear his specific show on the theme of war. It’s available for free HERE.
The show provides a musical meditation on war, along with Bob’s comments and his reciting of little snippets of relevant philosophical thoughts and poetry.
For many, when the topic of war comes up, they see visions of glory. Bob’s show provides a far wider vision, incorporating thoughts and emotions we would be wise to incorporate into our considerations regarding the possibility of further escalations of violent conflict in the coming days. Here are some highlights from this show.
Highlights
The show begins with a series of brief audio clips of the sounds of a country at war–bombs going off as Marine helicopters are approaching a battle field, a news reporter describing the scene of burning tanks, the voice of President Lyndon Johnson committing an additional 20,000 troops to Viet Nam as that war was escalating, etc. Then we hear Bob introducing the show’s theme:
Back to Theme Time Radio Hour. As you know, we cover a lot of ground here, but this week the subject has a greater gravity than usual.
Plato once said, “Only the dead has seen the end of war,” and sadly it is as true today as it was then.
Edward Starr said, “War, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing.” That’s not true. War is good for the economy, and for medical and scientific advancements. What it is not good for is people. Blood is spilled too often for too little. Bertrand Russell said, “War does not determine who is right, only who is left.” As General Patton once said, “The object of war is not to die for your country, but to make the other bastard die for his.”
Today we are going to examine battles and beaches, skirmishes and embroglios, we are going to let loose the dogs of war, pay tribute to Mars in Aries, shed a tear for the widows and orphans. We’re mustering cadets, for Theme Time Radio Hour is going to war!
With this, we hear the explosion of bombs. Then Bob tells us, “It’s going to get heavy in here, so while we can, why don’t we start off on a lighter note.”
Johnny Mercer
He then introduces a rather lively, humorous song written by Johnny Mercer, titled, “The G. I. Jive” that makes fun of all of the abbreviations used in the military.
A little later, Bob plays a song by Roy Acuff, “Searching for a Soldier’s Grave.” It’s a real heartbreaker:
Somewhere here among these many soldiers
Of Americans who all died true and brave
That’s where I know I’ll find him resting
So I’m here I’m searching for his grave.You ask me stranger why I made this journey
Why I crossed three thousand miles of rolling waves.
Like many others my darling’s killed in action
That’s why I’m here I’m searching for his grave
Somewhere here among.When I come to this far where he’s sleeping
I know it will cause more heartaches inside
But I long to be by his side once more and tell him
Tell him that I love him and will until I die.
When I was a young man I carried me pack
And I lived the free life of the rover
From the Murray’s green basin to the dusty outback
I waltzed my Matilda all over.
Then in 1915 my country said: Son,
It’s time to stop rambling, there’s work to be done
So they gave me a tin hat and they gave me a gun
And they sent me away to the war.And the band played Waltzing Matilda.When the ship pulled away from the quay
And amid all the tears, flag waving and cheers
We sailed off for Gallipoli.It well I remember that terrible day
When our blood stained the sand and the water
And how in that hell they call Suvla BayWe were butchered like lambs at the slaughter.Oh those that were living just tried to survive
In that mad world of blood, death and fire
And for ten weary weeks I kept myself alive
While around me the corpses piled higher
Then a big Turkish shell knocked me arse over head
And when I awoke in me hospital bed
And saw what it had done, I wished I was dead
I never knew there was worse things than dyingOh no more I’ll go Waltzing Matilda
All around the green bush far and near
For to hump tent and pegs, a man needs both legs
No more waltzing Matilda for me.And the Band played Waltzing Matilda….
There’s quite a bit more tear soaked lyrics to this song, but you get the general idea.
At one point in the show, Bob shares a particular dislike about one aspect of wars:
Some say war is a game that men play using boys as the tools. Truth to tell, you don’t see many men in battle, but you see a lot of boys. Wars used to be fought by men and I think that fairer. Men are the ones waging the war, they ought go out and fight it.
Bob also has a heart that aches for the soldiers who come home from battle and need a helping hand, showing this by playing for us a song titled, “The Forgotten Soldier.” Here’s a few of its lines:
I’m just a poor ex-soldier that’s broken down and blue,
Fought out in the Great War for the old red, white, and blue.
I left my parents and my girl I loved,
To France did go.And fought out on the battlefield through hunger, sleet, and snow.
I saw my buddies dying, and some shellshocked and torn.
Although we never faltered at the battle of Amarne
And we were told when we left home we’d be heroes of the land,
So we came back and found no one would lend a helping hand.
About half way through the show, Bob tells us:
One staple of songs about war is the letter. Sometimes it’s the letter that the guy writes from the battlefield. Other times it’s from home. But the worse kind of letter of all to receive was one written by a military chaplain. It usually had a line in it, something like, “You would be delighted to know that your son died a hero.” It’s a nice sentiment, but I doubt it was really any solace.
Tom Waits recently wrote a song about a letter to a soldier. Here it is, “The Day After Tomorrow.”
Here’s a few of its touching lyrics.
I got your letter today
And I miss you all so much here
I can’t wait to see you all
And I’m counting the days here….I close my eyes every night
And I dream that I can hold youThey fill us full of lies,That everyone buys
‘Bout what it means to be a soldierI still don’t know howI’m supposed to feel
‘Bout all the blood that’s been spilled
Will God on His throne
Get me back home
On the day after tomorrow
You can’t deny
The other side
Don’t want to die
Any more than we do
What I’m trying to say,
Is don’t they pray
To the same God that we do?Tell me, how does God choose?
Whose prayers does he refuse?
Who turns the wheel?
And who throws the dice
On the day after tomorrow?
Peace to the world
I see a baby in a crib
Reaching up for Mama’s arms
Love is rising in their hearts, oh yeah.There is a man standing on the street
Shouting loud above the crowd
Saying amen to everyone around, oh yeah.I see a man who loved his land
Laying lifeless on the ground
He said the time is now
To bring peace to the world
Say yeah, yeah, yeah
Peace to the worldWe build a wall of stone
As high as the trees are tall
Higher then the mountains
Stronger then us all, oh yeahSome day that wall will crumble
Tumble and fall, the sun will shine
And bring peace to us all.
Conclusion
An American flag waving in the breeze along with stirring patriotic music; this can be a fitting end to a Hollywood movie, but before we go marching once again into war, there is far more to consider.
Bob’s show provides us a magnificent musical, literary march through many of the consequences of war too easily ignored. In the end, Bob has us turning our attention toward promoting peace.
In a recent post (see HERE) I describe five factors that have led to the human race dramatically decreasing its use of violence to settle conflicts. I then describe how a president can coordinate all five of these factors to bring about a more peaceful international situation. It is my deeply felt hope that countries, in coming years, will seek to elect leaders that have the wisdom to utilize these factors for the benefit of not just all of us, but for all of the children yet to come.
Some people will enjoy reading this blog by beginning with the first post and then moving forward to the next more recent one; then to the next one; and so on. This permits readers to catch up on some ideas that were presented earlier and to move through all of the ideas in a systematic fashion to develop their emotional intelligence. To begin at the very first post you can click HERE.
As long as people see great things in Sun Tzu’s “The Art of War”, even transferring its content to, for instance, doing business, there will be war.
As long as there’s nationalism, there will be war.
As long as there’s patriotism, there will be war.
As long as there’s “us-against-them”, there will be war.
War is not an art. War is stupid and a pest. And so are many humans. (Einstein is my witness 😛)
Thanks for the comment, Roald. Although we may continue to have wars, I do believe the human race has made progress by learning to resolve many of our conflicts in more peaceful ways.
Dr. Rubin, thanks for your thoughtful comments on war and international peace. They are sorely needed in today’s world where Einstein’s comments has never been more prescient:
“The only thing more dangerous than ignorance is arrogance.”
In addition, as I have enjoyed your posts for a number of years, I thought perhaps, for a future post, you might consider this quote from one of your favorite people, Dr. William James in 1899, speaking to teachers on psychology:
“All our life… is but a mass of habits,- practical, emotional, and intellectual,- systematically organized for our weal or woe, and bearing us irresistibly toward our destiny, whatever the latter may be.”
Hi John Whyte.
Always a pleasure to hear from you. I love the Einstein and William James quote. I’ve been thinking about using some more of William James’s writings as a jumping off point for a future blog post, and your quote is adding, irresistibly, toward my destiny.
My Best,
Jeff