Silver spoon in hand

"Some folks are born made to wave the flag
Ooh, they're red, white and blue
And when the band plays "Hail to the chief"
Ooh, they point the cannon at you, Lord
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no senator's son, son
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no

Yeah!
Some folks are born silver spoon in hand
Lord, don't they help themselves, oh
But when the taxman comes to the door
Lord, the house looks like a rummage sale, yes

It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no millionaire's son, no
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no

Some folks inherit star spangled eyes
Ooh, they send you down to war, Lord
And when you ask them, "How much should we give?"
Ooh, they only answer More! more! more! yoh

It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no military son, son
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, one

 

 It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate one, no no no It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate son, no no no "

                        - Creedence Clearwater- Fortunate Son

 

 

 

A deeper meaning~~

 

We all know this famous political song by Creedence and Clearwater, a song that screams out the ugly truth, opening the fellow Americans eyes back in the late 60's.  To me this song is an anthem for Americans in the late 60's who finally came to the realization that the Vietnam war was a terrible mistake. It's an impassioned statement against the Vietnam War and the political establishment in late-1960s America. It's saying that America is this golden land with golden hero's (the troops) but NO THANKS I don't want to be anything like them because I'm not blinded and dim-witted, I see what war is doing to us, to its people, and instead of being like everyone else who is pro-war I'm going to be against it, not because they want to be "original" but because they want to prove a point and a deeper meaning that just "war is bad let's leave it at that." . Creedence Clearwater Revival, even more than other antiwar musicians of the era, were able to give voice especially to the class-based grievances let loose by the Vietnam War. "Fortunate Son" was an anti-Vietnam War protest song, sure. Like Springsteen's "Born in the USA," Creedence's "Fortunate Son" has often been misheard as a simple, un-ironic, patriotic anthem. Just as many fans hear Springsteen's spar-spangled chorus and totally miss the bitterness of the words in "Born in the USA," here many tune out after the opening lines, "Some folks are born made to wave the flag/ Ooh, they're red, white and blue." Many then miss the strong anti-establishment message that follows. Both artists also work in a style drenched in Americana, making it easy to assume that the lyrics contain messages that are patriotic or even jingoistic in viewpoint. The entire song is built upon the idea that there is as unbridgeable divide that splits the fortunate sons and the unfortunate sons in America. For the fortunate sons, "born with silver spoon in hand," life is good. Protected by class privilege and a discriminatory military draft system that favored the wealthy and well educated, they will never have to serve a tour of duty in Vietnam. They have the luxury of seeing the war as nothing more than an abstract idea, something they hear about on the news. They're free to support the war without having to face the consequences.

But for the unfortunate sons of America, who have no inherited wealth or privilege to protect them, the draft is likely to send them off to the jungles of Vietnam to fight and maybe die in a seemingly pointless war against an intractable enemy. Fogerty's lyrics argue that it is the fathers of the fortunate sons—"senators," "millionaires"—who got America entangled in Vietnam, but it is the sons of the powerless—disproportionately poor, black, and brown—who have to pay the ultimate price.