The Music Skipped

[Originally posted on May 11, ’02 at http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2002/05/10815.shtml ]
Propogandists should heed the fate of pop duo Milli Vinilli

I just caught VH1's "Behind the Music" featuring Rob and Fab from the infamous pop duo "Milli Vinilli." It teaches a sad lesson that those who propogate government lies would do well to heed.

For those unfamiliar with the group, Rob and Fab were the platinum selling pretty-boy dancing duo that took home a Grammy music award in 1989. This was the worst thing that could have ever happened to them, as they hadn't sung a single word on their critically acclaimed album. Shortly before they were presented with the award, their worst nightmare was realized ... during a packed concert in New England the song they were lip-syncing skipped. After pretending to sing the same line over and over again, one of the performers rushed off the stage in humiliation. Die-hard fans pretended that nothing was wrong, and the duo was persuaded to finish the show. Yet the seeds of doubt had been planted.

After receiving the award, the pair faced new scrutiny under which they couldn't hold up. After leaching millions from their hot looks and smooth moves, their preditory music label exposed them as frauds and threw them to the wolves. Music moguls and their lawyers laughed all the way to the bank, leaving the good-looking dance talents morally and financially destitute. One of the guys committed suicide. The other can't find work. There's a lesson for all of us in this.

America has come to a point in history where the music has skipped. Of course most Americans are die-hard fans of their government. They don't want to believe they are living and participating in a lie. But the damage has been done. I don't think I'm wrong in saying that full exposure is now inevitable. It's only a matter of time. What will happen when that time comes?

Rest assured the real culprits -- the world policy setters -- will do everything in their power to shunt off culpability to their contracted, pre-packaged "front men". A few of these sacrificial goats are reading this right now. To these people I say: watch out. You are being used. When heads start rolling over this, yours will be the first to go. You may think you are in too deep, as no doubt Rob and Fab did after they were locked into a wretched, non-disclosure contract that seemingly trapped them in what they called a "golden cage." But think about it. If Milli Vanilli had come clean before they were exposed by someone else, wouldn't they still have some dignity left today? Rob might have landed a modelling contract, Fab might have launched an acting career. We might have actually bought the album where they used their own voices. It's not too late to come clean, but you'd better hurry because it's about to hit the fan, my friends.

The rest of us, when the time comes, must foresake the temptation to lash out at the easiest, most visible targets. When the curtain is pulled back, the real puppet masters turn into cockroaches and scurry towards the darkest corner they can find. These are the people we need to go after, and we must not be distracted. As far as lip-syncing propagandists are concerned, knowing who they are and what they've done may well be punishment enough.