Still, what a difference an era makes. Bob Dylan helped to shape the Sixties with songs, many of them beautifully written. Songs like "Blowin' in the Wind," "Masters of War," and "Chimes of Freedom" helped to express people's concerns, fears, and hopes. Many of Dylan's songs were much too long to fit on a 45 rpm record; they were sometimes condensed for recording.
Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
Today, however, song has mostly vanished from the political arena. Political rallies simply take hit songs off the play lists and blare them out to the crowd over shrill sound systems. Instead, this campaign is being waged on Twitter. It's easy to shout out a quick thought in 140 characters, but no one can explain and defend a position that way. Political issues are complicated, and the new media don't make much room for complicated things.
Speeches and debates are our natural ways to work out political differences. I don't mean show debates with two-minute questions that feature gratuitous insults. I mean actual, reasoned debates. We need to speak; we need to listen; we need to be open to some degree of rationality. And, as Dylan reminds us, songs express our deepest emotions.
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