no recession says something important about me. I would venture to guess that it says more about me than any two words could, if you also care to read the following explanation.
As most of you might know, the title comes from an old song by the Carter Family that was redone on the groundbreaking first album (also titled No Depression) released by Uncle Tupelo in 1990. The group, which disbanded in 1994, is generally credited as being the fathers of the Alternative Country movement (later well-known groups include Whiskeytown, the Jayhwks, Richard Buckner, to name a few) This song later became the title of a magazine that covers the Alt. Country scene, and kind of a tag line associated with the movement itself. Reason #1 for choosing the title is that I happen to be a fan of all things Uncle Tupelo, and most things Alt. Country. Of the many different kinds of music I listen to on a regualr basis, I probably enjoy alt country on the deepest level, and have invested more time in its appreciation than any other.
The chorus to the song goes like this:
i'm going where there's no depression,
to a better land, that's free from care.
i'll leave this world of toil and trouble,
my home's in heaven, i'm going there.
While I cannot speak for the personal convictions of those that have performed the song, as a Christian, I agree with the sentiment, if not the eschatology, of those words. The toil and trouble of this world are not part of my eternal home, but I'm not so sure that it won't be here in this world. I believe in a more restorational eschatology, with the New Heavens and the New Earth being renewed in ths place in much the same way as they were in Noah's day, though of course, not with water. So the second reason for my choice of title is what it says about my Christian faith.
That leads me to reason #3, which is that I have chosen to invest my life in the study of economics, though I am just beginning my graduate studies at the University of California, Davis. I love this world that God has given us, and I believe in the value of sinking our hands into its soil and making it a better place. That's why I think a world with "no depression" isn't a high enough goal. At least in the US, we have already achieved that goal, and we are a far cry from heaven. My goal as an economist is to help create a word with no recssion, no hunger, no poverty, which of course will only fully be realized when the kingdom has arrived in all of its fullness. But God has called me to work to that end, and in the end, my home's on earth, I'm staying here.
Posted by Matthew Pearson at August 6, 2003 10:01 AM | TrackBackI can't figure out how to insert the damn links into the text. What URL button?
You need to do this:
(a href="http://www.google.com")Google.com(/a)
Only, instead of parentheses, you need to use the greater than/less than sign (shift comma and shift period). So essentially, you might do the following like this:
I use Google.com
The /a closes the tag and so is necessary to tell the browser that the link has ended.
Posted by: scott cunningham at August 6, 2003 11:18 AMahh, thanks, it worked!
I love that Uncle Tupelo song. It's so interesting to read the lyrics contrasted with the genre of music - that old soulful, gospel sounding song. It's so modern and pre-modern. The old singer/songwriters talked about the toils of this world, and the looking towards the future, but they didn't talk about it in psychological, modern terms like "depression." It's kind of interesting to hear the melody and genre of music pick up this more contemporary verbiage like that.
Posted by: scott cunningham at August 6, 2003 01:59 PMThe song only gets better, when sung by a talented musician friend, in a local pub, 4 beers into the evening, with everybody in the place singing along at the top of their lungs.
Posted by: JosiahQ at August 7, 2003 09:12 AMoh, the memories of singing this at the cabin on the hiwassee river last April on my colege friends' annual fishing trip. This is one of the best sing-along songs, for sure.
Posted by: Matthew Pearson at August 7, 2003 09:17 AMMatt, is this your first time in Cali? I lived about an hour and a half from where you are now, up in the Sierra's. I can totally hook you up with some sweet places to go. You could also go to my Dad's church if you wanted.
Posted by: JosiahQ at August 7, 2003 09:20 AM