re: Chicago Cop (Bama Fan) is disciplined for playing Sweet Home Alabama

Yes

quote:

---

actually I believe in the song they boo the governor?

---

Correct ... A line in the song condemns Gov. Wallace ...

"In Birmingham they loved the governor ... Boo Boo Boo ... Now, we all did what we could do.
Now, Watergate does not bother me ... Does your conscience bother you? Tell the truth ...

"Sweet Home Alabama" is actually anything but racist. Much as Springsteen's "Born In The U.S.A." was incorrectly interpreted as being a patriotic rock "anthem," Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama" has been wrongly accused of having racist connotations over the years. That is not the intent, by any means, of the writers, particularly, Ronnie Van Zant. ... This is a great article that gives an accurate, in depth description of the song, the true meaning of the lyrics, & the reasons the members of Lynyrd Skynyrd wrote it ...

LINK Neil Young & Lynyrd Skynyrd - "Sweet Home Alabama"

Skynyrd wrote "Sweet Home Alabama" in response to two of Neil Young's songs - partly "Southern Man," but mainly "Alabama" which was widely understood to be a slam on the state. Most people think it's a "retaliation" song to Young's "Southern Man" because of the lines ...

"Well, I heard Mr. Young sing about her. I heard ol' Neil put her down. Well I hope Mr. Young will remember, a southern man don't need him around anyhow."

Even Neil Young, himself, actually admits that his song, "Alabama," was "poorly written" because it can easily be "misconstrued" as an insult to the state. Of course, he doesn't go all out and say that it really was, but anyone who can read can see that it is. Young also says Ronnie Van Zant told him his song "Alabama" is the reason he wrote "Sweet Home Alabama" - to dispel the sheer exaggerations & bullshite about the state that Young wrote about in his song. ...

quote:

---

In his book "Waging Heavy Peace: A Hippie Dream" Young stated that Lynyrd Skynyrd wrote "Sweet Home Alabama" not in response to "Southern Man", but rather to Young's song "Alabama". Young noted that Lynyrd Skynyrd's implied criticism was deserved because Young's lyrics to Alabama were condescending and accusatory, that he does not like how he used his words in the song, and the lyrics were not fully thought out and too easy to misconstrue.[3]

---

The accusations of Skynyrd being racists that have come about over the years truly piss me off and are baseless. Because they were told by their record company to use the confederate flag as a marketing strategy back in the 70s when southern rock bands were becoming all the rage, they all of a sudden have become a symbol of racism with no grounds for it whatsoever, and is something that bothered the remaining band members until their deaths (Only one original is still alive, Gary Rossington, along with the second drummer, Artemis Pyle, who played with them for the majority of their existence.) Ronnie Van Zant, by all accounts, was anything but a racist according to anyone who ever knew him. He wrote one of their best songs which depicts this.

LINK Ballad of Curtis Loew

And now that everyone is schooled on Skynyrd, Neil Young, & "Sweet Home Alabama" ...
I think the cop was out of line blasting any music through a loud speaker from an official law enforcement vehicle while he was on duty. That was unprofessional, and frankly, just ridiculous, as was his reason for doing it. If he was so excited for the SEC championship game, he could've cranked up "Sweet Home Alabama" on the way to work & back home when he was off work. Idk if he was trying to piss off anyone or not, but it was just stupid, unprofessional, poor judgment. I don't think he should be fired, but should be reprimanded for being ridiculously unprofessional. ... I also think people are way too sensitive about trivial shite, jump to conclusions about things much too quickly, and form opinions based on conjecture, assumptions, hearsay, & their own biases, not facts, which is never a good thing & always leads to bullshite.

If you think 'sweet home Alabama' is racist then there's a 89.671% chance you're a dumb Negro.

People are such pussies these days. I blame Obama and Facebook.

Hell I'm starting to think the south might have the edge these days in the common sense department.

Roll Tide.

I think the cop was out of line blasting any music through a loud speaker from an official law enforcement vehicle while he was on duty. That was unprofessional

Yup, no way I'd want one of my deputies doing something that childish. Racist, no way. Stupid, absolutely.

quote:

---

That said, why was this dumbass playing it during a protest?

---

Comic relief.

I'm sure tensions were high.