I’m an atheist. I have always been an atheist. I was raised an atheist. My kids are being raised as atheists. I will die an atheist.
I don’t think “In god we trust” is an appropriate motto for The United States of America, a nation founded squarely on the seperation of church and state.
When I say the pledge of allegiance, I do not include the 1954 revisionist phrase “under god.”
John Lennon’s Imagine is one of the great atheist anthems of my generation. At least it was until Cee Lo Greene got his grubby religionist paws on it.
Hey Mr. Green. Just sing the song as written, don’t try to “improve” it.
Charged with singing Lennon’s famous solo-era tune on NBC’s New Year’s Eve show shortly before the ball dropped in Times Square , Green changed the lyrics from “Nothing to kill or die for, And no religion too” to “Nothing to kill or die for, And all religion’s true.”
Thank you for completely changing the meaning of the song, Mr. Green. Lennon wrote “no religion” and he meant “no religion.”
From a 1980 interview John Lennon gave to Playboy, this is what he said about Imagine.
Sheff: On a new album, you close with “Hard Times Are Over (For a While)”. Why?
Lennon: It’s not a new message: “Give Peace a Chance”—we’re not being unreasonable. Just saying “give it a chance.” With “Imagine” we’re asking, “can you imagine a world without countries or religions?” It’s the same message over and over. And it’s positive.
What Green did to John Lennon’s Imagine quite disrespectful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Q0Eyw3l3XM
People change songs all the time. Why is it this offends you so much? It’s just a song and he’s just an entertainer.
I do agree…God/religion has no place in our government.
When someone takes it upon themselves to change a word or two in order to tranform the meaning totally away from the original intent…it is a criminal action as far as I am concerned…if Cee Lo Green don’t like the sentiment don’t perform the song.
That’s the point I was going for. Changing a word or two isn’t the issue. Changing the meaning is wrong.
It reminds me of the Frankenstein veto…
Wow…you all take your music very seriously…. 😉
Dude (or Dudette), it’s John freakin’ Lennon. You don’t mess with that… 🙂
Yeah, I’m not a huge John Lennon fan. He may have been a great musician but he wasn’t much of a father to Julian. He sure didn’t practice what he sang…
Maybe John should have written a song about “Imagine if all the fathers loved and took care of their children”….
I don’t believe Mr. Lennon’s parenting skills was the topic of the post.
Good for you, Rich.
I also am an athiest, and I hope to live to see the day that “In God we Trust” is changed back to the original “E Pluribus Unum” – From Many, One. That is a beautiful, true and inspiring national motto for a country of immigrants (and the few native peoples we allowed to remain) like the U.S.