Day 26, Song 38

Jimmy Eat World

My Enemy

Jimmy Eat World released their ninth album, Integrity Blues, on October 21, 2016.

There are dangerous and very real consequences for using fear of “The Other” to motivate a potential electorate. While that’s nothing new in politics, what is newly alarming in context of the current presidential campaign, is how seemingly effective that strategy has been for a certain candidate. That candidate used the low-hanging fruit of fearmongering to gain his initial momentum and continues to employ variations of it to sustain his place. The only way to steel yourself against that kind of manipulation is to do the real self-work in discovering and letting go of your own fears. While that pursuit is difficult because it means fighting against your own ego, it remains worth the effort—not just for what it can do for us as individuals but even more for what it can do for our collective society. Are you willing to accept that maybe, just possibly, what you feel as a threat, isn’t?

Lyrics

The story is common So plain we pass by often All motion defeated By endless what-if questions Obvious We own it Our anxious scars and bruises Heavy hands swing slowly With weight of our own choosing, now… Thirsty for comfort Too proud to ask for answers Libraries of suggestion The loudest voice is hidden Obvious So simple Action makes for removal Heavy heart Bad posture Collapse and falling under, now… We know but can’t believe it’s easy as it sounds We know but always told if we let go we drown You feel the tide is rising That water’s cold as hell Think enemies surround you Everyone, except yourself Your condition, Fake direction is no protection Know what you’re really afraid of