Letters to the Editor
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Conservative songs
There was a song in the late 70's that belongs on this list. I don't remember the exact title, but I believe it was called "Strange way to tell me you love me," which was the first line of the recurring chorus. The song is addressed to a depressed woman whose crying and sad moods have bummed out her lover. He advises her "If you just want to cry to somebody, don't cry to me." Now, having suffered from depression myself and also dealt with some depressed relatives and close friends, I would be the first to admit that depressed people can be a pain in the derriere. On the other hand, expressing your burnout in song is a rather odd choice. Songs usually proclaim their devotion to the loved one in good times and bad, promising to be a "bridge over troubled water" and inviting the other party to "lean on me when you're not strong, and I'll be your friend." So, I would say that "Strange way to tell me you love me" celebrates the ethos of encouraging self-sufficiency and of disclaiming one's own responsibility to help others. One could easily imagine Bill O'Reilly singing it to the victims of Hurricane Katrina.