Dem punks iz aiight

"Punk is the remedy for my sickness". This quote from the movie The Punks Are Alright does a great job of summarizing how important punk is to the people that enjoy it. Punk isn't just about being loud and obnoxious, it's a way for people to express their anger and dissatisfaction with a system that isn't doing anything for them.

After watching this movie, it is clear that punk is a lifestyle used by those who have no other way to express themselves and their feelings. The movie highlighted two places that couldn't be farther away in terms of geography, but shared a lot of common traits including the popularity of punk music. In both Brazil and Indonesia, people lived in poverty stricken and religious environments. These people were economically challenged and held a great deal of anger for the system that had put them in this situation, capitalism. A lot of the people that live in poverty in those areas are against capitalism because it hasn't helped their lives. They want this system to change so that hopefully they can have a better life. To express their feelings of defiance to the way things are, many people turn to punk music. One of the things about music that will always amaze me is it's ability to connect people. There are people all over the world that are experiencing poverty and punk can be important to all of them. Brazil and Indonesia are two very different countries but they are united through their experiences and punk music.

Clearly, punk is used to show an opinion on political debates, but it can also be used in religious debates. Both Brazil and Indonesia have a high number of religious people. When someone is living in poverty, religion might be all that they have to hold on to. When they are counting on their religion, and the situation is not getting better, one might blame the religion or God. There are some punk songs that go directly against the religion that they had practiced their whole life. People feel as though their religion has betrayed them, let them down. Punk is used to rebel against things that have made people's lives worse.

This movie helped me to see that just because these people like a different style of music than me, that doesn't mean they're weird. I found a lot of similarities between myself and some of the characters. They were rebelling against a system and I think that just being a teenager in America makes a lot of kids rebellious as well. Another thing that the movie helped me to see was how connected this planet is. I had never really thought about how my decisions here in Indiana can have an impact on the lives of people living all across the world. I now see that every decision I make, has a ripple effect that can travel across the world.