Born And Raised In The U.S.A.

“America’s future rests in a thousand dreams inside our hearts. It rests in the message of hope in the songs of a man so many young Americans admire: New Jersey’s own Bruce Springsteen.” These were the words Ronald Reagan used at a stump speech in Hammonton, New Jersey to appropriate the patriotic fervor that he hoped would resonate with those rock and roll kids back in 1984. The Great Communicator was referencing the hit song, "Born in the U.S.A." The one that starts:
Born down in a dead man’s town
The first kick I took was when I hit the ground
You end up like a dog that’s been beat too much
‘Til you spend half your life just covering up
Bruce responded by saying, "The President was mentioning my name the other day, and I kinda got to wondering what his favorite album musta been. I don't think it was the Nebraska album. I don't think he's been listening to this one,"just before he launched into "Johnny 99," the story of an about an auto worker who gets laid off in Mahwah, New Jersey and shoots and kills a night clerk while drunk. For the record, the Boss didn't work and play well with the other side either, giving a cold shoulder to Walter Mondale as well when his camp came calling.
A quarter of a century later, Springsteen has become much more overt in his politics, campaigning for Barack Obama four years ago and appearing at his inauguration. Now it's 2012, and the ghost of Ronald Reagan has been rattling his chains loud and clear on the Republican side, and Bruce has just released a song whose refrain goes: "Wherever this flag's flown,
We take care of our own." Feel free to take these words in any context you will, but know that they aren't the only lyrics. Having appeared on the cover of AARP magazine, I suspect his demographic may have shifted some in this new century, but the opportunity to be misread still exists. I'm not sure if President Obama is ready to take this one on as his new jingle, either.
From Chicago to New Orleans
From the muscle to the bone
From the shotgun shack to the Superdome
We yelled "help" but the cavalry stayed home
There ain't no-one hearing the bugle blown