“But you and I will be undefeated
By agreeing to disagree.
No one wins but the thieves,
So why side with anything?”
--Jeff Tweedy in “Side with the Seeds”
Really, Jeff? Do you honestly think that is the answer to the problem?
It’s no secret that we humans disagree on the answers to the “big” questions. And it’s also no secret that this disagreement has caused us quite a few problems, the likes of which including, I don’t know, wars, genocide, discrimination, hatred, and the like. So I can certainly understand the reasoning behind Jeff Tweedy’s suggestion to just not take sides. After all, we, the postmodern (or post-postmodern, or post-post-postmodern, or post-post-post-postmodern) jury, are still out on the verdict of whether or not our old friend “objective truth” actually exists.
But honestly, I think that Jeff’s proposal that the best way for humanity to reach harmony is to discard all strongly held beliefs (a mindset that seems to be going by the name of ‘tolerance’ these days, although it isn’t all that tolerant) is kind of a copout. And after I saw Wilco play in Jacksonville, Florida a couple weeks ago, I think he secretly agrees with me—even if he doesn’t want to. Here’s why:
At the concert, the actions of two thirds of my fellow audience members caused me to become irate. The majority of the crowd seemed to think that proper behavior at a rock concert involves remaining in one's seat and taking in the show much like one might take in an episode of Letterman, sitting on a couch eating Doritos too late at night. Some even felt that it was appropriate to throw small objects at the two brave, young music fans on the front row who decided to stand up. My friends, there could be no behavior more antithetical to the purposes and assumptions of a rock concert. Seeing a band perform live is a completely different experience from the solipsistic activity of listening to one's iPod. A rock concert is a) an inherently communal event, requiring the understanding that the individual is a part of an audience united by the love of a particular type of music, and b) an inherently physical event, requiring the physical participation of those involved through standing, dancing, singing along, etc.
So, given my strong opinions on the teleology of the rock concert (perhaps I should spend my time formulating strong opinions on other things . . . like politics), I could not sit idly by and let my errant fellow audience members fail to experience the concert to its full potential. In my righteous anger, I yelled at the top of my lungs, "EVERYBODY STAND UP!" during a lull in post-song applause. Mr. Tweedy promptly provided commentary on my passionate call for action, as is his custom regarding obnoxious fans who yell ridiculous things from the audience, by saying something along the lines of, "Now, I'm not going to get involved with the whole sitting versus standing debate; I've learned my lesson on that. You all just figure that out amongst yourselves, and, in the end, everyone will do the right thing for themselves" (this is, of course, a paraphrase).
The crowd cheered in approval for Tweedy's diplomatic response, and I sheepishly conceded the point, recognizing his authority over his own concert. The band kicked in to "Forget the Flowers," and I sang along happily, relishing the fact that I had actually engaged in discourse with Jeff Freaking Tweedy. Before beginning a rousing rendition of "Hate it Here" directly afterward, however, a magical thing happened: Jeff returned to the microphone and said, "Alright. You all might want to stand up for this one." Words cannot describe the joy I felt at this vindication of my request. The crowd happily stood up and began enjoying the music properly, and, to my knowledge, almost everyone remained standing for the rest of the show. Order was restored to the universe, or at least the part of it inside the Florida Theater.
Now, it doesn't take a master logician to realize that Mr. Tweedy's encouragement of the crowd to stand before "Hate it Here" completely contradicts and nullifies the stance he took in his previous statement. And what's interesting about such a disparity is the fact that Tweedy's original response to my imperative is more in line with the ideals he seems to espouse than his subsequent petition of the crowd to stand up. And that’s my point. His pluralistic approach to solving the “why-can’t-we-all-just-get-along?” problem does not work. And he knows it.
Think about it. The way I see it, there are both appropriate and inappropriate types of behavior in the environment of the rock concert. The two main schools of thought seem to be that one should either remain seated out of consideration for those around him/her or that one should feel free to enjoy himself/herself by standing, dancing, singing, etc. because that’s just what you do at a rock concert and everyone should realize that when they buy their tickets. I obviously fall into this second camp. But I recognize that there are people who disagree with me, and though I think they are utterly wrong, I recognize their right to their own opinions. Furthermore, I think that both sides can and should engage in civilized discourse in order to come, at the very least, to a mutual understanding if not an agreement.
In this way, it is possible for both sides of a disagreement to maintain respect for each other as fellow human beings—respect enough to recognize each other’s right to believe strongly in something. And while this mutual respect is most certainly difficult to cultivate, it’s the only way that we can achieve harmony. Jeff Tweedy’s pluralistic suggestion to forfeit one’s ideals for the sake of community, while perhaps an easier solution, is ultimately unacceptable because it undermines humanity’s inherent desire for truth. And his decision to take a definitive side in the sitting/standing debate proves that even he cannot live by the naïve notion that the way to avoid unhealthy conflict is to do away with all grounds for conflict in the first place.
Incidentally, if you disagree with my position on the proper rock-concert behavior, I’d be happy to hear your arguments. Perhaps you have some insight that I lack. But, for the record, Jeff Tweedy happens to be on my side.
