Politics
Many bands took left wing political stances and were vocally against Republican U.S. President Ronald Reagan, who served in office from 1981 to 1989. Reagan's policies, including Reaganomics and social conservatism, were common subjects for these bands. Shortly after Reagan's death in 2004, the Maximumrocknroll Radio Show composed an episode made up of anti-Reagan songs from the 1980s including material by Dead Kennedys, Government Issue, DRI, Youth Brigade, Crucifucks, Wasted Youth, Dayglo Abortions, Reagan Youth, T.S.O.L., The Fartz and others.
Similarly during the 2001–2009 presidency of George W. Bush, a number of bands actively espoused anti-Bush stances. During the 2004 United States presidential election, artists and bands including Brian Baker, Jello Biafra, Mike Watt, Bad Religion, Rise Against, Circle Jerks, Ensign, Sick of It All, The Unseen, Western Addiction, and Youth Brigade involved themselves with the anti-Bush political activist group Punkvoter.
A minority of hardcore artists were more right wing, such as Antiseen, whose guitarist Joe Young ran for office in North Carolina as a Libertarian. Former Misfits singer Michale Graves also infamously appeared on an episode of The Daily Show, voicing his support for George W. Bush.
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Famous quotes containing the word politics:
“If politics is the art of the possible, research is surely the art of the soluble. Both are immensely practical-minded affairs.”
—Peter B. Medawar (1915–1987)
“The Germans—once they were called the nation of thinkers: do they still think at all? Nowadays the Germans are bored with intellect, the Germans distrust intellect, politics devours all seriousness for really intellectual things—Deutschland, Deutschland Über alles was, I fear, the end of German philosophy.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)
“In politics people throw themselves, as on a sickbed, from one side to the other in the belief they will lie more comfortably.”
—Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe (1749–1832)