FRANK ZAPPA ON CNN'S CROSSFIRE, 1986

From Crooks and Liars:

Zappa: The biggest threat to America today is not communism; it's moving America towards a fascist theocracy and everything that has happened during the Reagan administration is steering us right down that pipe.

Click here for a link to the video.

Wow, that's almost prophetic at this point. This was shortly after FZ testified before Senate hearings, which were spurred on by a special interest group composed of Senators' wives, about obscenity in rock music lyrics. If you don't already know the story, the long and short of it is that Zappa proved himself to be a capable orator and brilliant debater--indeed, FZ spearheaded the music industry's defense against what was then a very real possibility of government censorship of lyrics, and was probably the biggest factor in diffusing what appeared to be a growing senatorial mob of political self-righteousness. Hot off his debate win on Capitol Hill, Frank took his newfound debating skills on television. In short, he kicks these pundit guys' ass. These days, and probably then too, one rarely hears an absolutist free speech point of view so well articulated in the mainstream media. This video is well worth watching, not only for its entertainment value, but also for the argument itself. Go check it out.



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