The War Room

THE WHITE STRIPES : PRO LIFE?

New York Magazine seems to think so. Apparently a version of their new album was leaked and the song in question is called "Effect and Cause". A portion of the review:

"..."Effect and Cause," a country number that would seem to definitively out White as a social conservative. Luckily, in between are a few of the rudest, most amplifier-melting blues explosions the band has ever committed to tape. The White Stripes: wrong on abortion, right on rocking. "

The official album and lyrics are not out until June 19, but they performed the song, a mid-tempo country-blues track, in Britain on Jools Hollands' show.

A sampling of the lyrics based on that performance indicates that the song is definitely about taking responsibility in life for one's own actions.

The reference to abortion would seem to be the line:

"You can't blame a baby for her pregnant ma".

Is that pro-life? Digging a little deeper, it seemes Jack White, aka John Gillis, was raised as part of a large Irish-Catholic family and was very involved in his parish growning up as an altar boy. He once considered being a priest. Both his parents worked at their local parish and he has mentioned meeting Pope John Paul II as a boy.

In addition, other interviews and articles mention his Catholic upbringing and his ongoing studying of the philosophies of St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Augustine. Other songs on the upcoming album reference St. Andrew and martyrs.

Taken into account, the pro-life angle seems to have more validity.

I have always loved The White Stripes regardless of politics. One should obviously not limit oneself to only consuming art that agrees with their worldview. That is silly. But if one can find art that agrees with their worldview and is quality, one should definitely endorse it.

I have always suspected there were more of us, in the entertainment industry than people would like to admit, but were afraid to come out, as it were.

The White Stripes play The Molson Amphitheatre on July 5. I look forward to it.

posted by Nicol DuMoulin @ 8:25 AM