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Oppositional Defiant Disorder

from Live in Boulder by David Rovics

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about

One of the members of the little record label that put out my 2003 CD, The Return, was abducted in Vermont and forcibly taken to a mental hospital in Utah. This song originally appeared on Songs for Mahmud.

lyrics

Alex is a member of my record label
Teenager though he is
He joined the Ever Reviled Records collective
And the indy music biz
Well his parents didn’t like such turns of events
So they sent off a couple of thugs
To bring him back to Utah, lock him up
And pump him full of drugs
They say he’s got problems with authority
Yes this is what they claim
And their psychiatric analysis
Has even got a name

Oppositional Defiant Disorder
I think I got it, too
Oppositional Defiant Disorder
He’s sick and so are you

If you think the average politician
Is a scoundrel and a liar
If you fantasize about setting
Your local Wal-Mart on fire
If you don’t like Wolf Blitzer
And you think he’s full of it
And you feel that a Rush Limbaugh punching bag
Might be kinda fun to hit
If bombing other countries
Makes you feel appalled
You have got a problem
And this is what it’s called

Chorus

If you think school is boring
And your teacher is a fool
If you don’t like your congressman
And you called him a corporate tool
If you were not standing
To sing save the Queen
If you turned down hamburgers
And ate rice and beans
We’ve got a diagnosis
No matter whether you agree
Just do what the doctors tell you
And thank God for psychiatry

Chorus

credits

from Live in Boulder, released August 3, 2023

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David Rovics Portland, Oregon

Singer/songwriter, writer, podcaster (on Spotify, Substack & Patreon), anarchist, dad, lover of life.

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