Weak Character
Words and Music by Benny Mann
Fall 1999

The idea for the chorus of “Weak Character”, around which the song is constructed, came from a conversation in which my sister and I were discussing our disappointment in a mutual friend. The conclusion of the conversation was that the ills of our world were most often due to the indiscretions and minor character flaws of the common citizen, rather than the larger machinations of evil and diabolical individuals. It is so very hard to make the right decision sometimes. We are often drawn into the darkness not by our malevolent nature, but by our own personal weaknesses. We are the source of our own suffering.

I do not exclude myself from this criticism.

This song soon became a criticism of the growing apathy of the American public. Too many people I meet remain unaware and unconcerned about the world around them. If we falter and become an uninvolved and ignorant citizenry, we endanger the freedoms that we propose to hold so dear. The lush gardens of democracy bloom and bear fruit only under the constant care and cultivation of a vigilant people familiar with the tenuous nature of freedom. We must remain watchful lest the seeds of indifference take root spawning the hearty weeds of injustice, discrimination, and intolerance.

I have targeted some sources of my scorn and frustration in the verses: the media, the government, and the nation’s aristocracy. On the other hand, I have tried wherever possible to maintain the objectivity of my message by refraining from advocating a political perspective. No matter which side you are on, if you have thought about your position, researched your facts, and developed your understanding of the situation you are on the right track.

We are all to blame for the state of our world today, however.

The seats of power do not draw their authority from some nebulous dimension, but from the investment of confidence we have afforded their office. The problems of our civilization rise not from the scourge of a deity, but from the significance we choose (or fail to choose) to place on the challenging issues of the 21st century. We can empower ourselves with the knowledge of our world and the details necessary for our growth and development, or we can blindly lament our situation continuing to stumble ahead reproducing the blunders of our history to the end of time. Even then, we will be the final source of our joy or our suffering.

From the simplest action of dropping a candy wrapper on the ground to the contemplation of war, the choice begins and ends with the involvement or indifference of the common person.

You can get angry and walk away or you can start picking up the garbage…