The Sound of Silence

My wife and I were in the car and heard it announced on the radio that Paul Simon would soon be singing "Bridge over Troubled Water" at the 9/11 memorial.

I said that it would be more appropriate for him to sing "Sound of Silence".

Imagine my surprise when I sat down to watch Paul Simon sing on TV, and he sang "Sound of Silence".

The reason I found his earlier song to be the more appropriate one, is that I thought it was a song which explores the "why" of such an incomprehensible occurrence, one which tries to plumb the despair and suffering which could induce 19 young men to deliberately end their lives in order to end the lives of thousands of others.

Whatever picture the media and those in power try to portray of the world, the truth -- and the future -- are told by the oppressed. It is in their vineyard that the "grapes of wrath" are stored. "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls... tenement halls..."

The reason this is important is that today, millions of people are starving, while billionaires think of ways to privatize drinking water and destroy public education.

We need to fight man's inhumanity to man. We need to fight to make things right. We need to heed Simon and Garfunkel's clarion call to overcome the sound of silence. We need to listen to the whispers of the voiceless. We need to speak out.

Or else, in the words of Malcolm X, "the chickens are coming home to roost".

Here are the lyrics to "Sound of Silence"

A piece from NPR's website: "Musical Moment: Paul Simon Sings 'The Sound Of Silence'"