Tag: Deja Vu

It’s Like Deja Vu All Over Again

The invasion of Ukraine has left many of us asking how we got to this point, what we can do, and some of the questions John Fogerty raised in the song “Deja Vu (All Over Again)”

As we watch events unfold in Ukraine, there is a feeling of helplessness around the world. Those who hope for a better world and wish for more to be done to stop the senseless killing, may understand the logistics of the world standing by. But it is a sad reminder of the state of affairs of humanity throughout history.

In 2004, John Fogerty released a song comparing the U.S. invasion of Iraq with the Vietnam War. He explained that the song, “Deja Vu (All Over Again),” was not meant to be political but about the sadness of the destruction caused by war. Not surprisingly, considering the name of the song, as well as the flow of history, the song unfortunately remains relevant today.

So tonight as I watch the humanitarian crisis unfolding, like many others I feel helpless in that I only am offering up a small prayer, finding a small bit of solace knowing that other humans around the world have the same feelings of despair and the same unanswered prayers.

Day after day another Momma’s crying;
She’s lost her precious child,
To a war that has no end.

Did you hear ’em talkin’ ’bout it on the radio?
Did you stop to read the writing at The Wall?
Did that voice inside you say,
I’ve seen this all before;
It’s like Deja Vu all over again.

Did That Voice Inside You Say I’ve Heard It All Before?

woods I am starting to feel overwhelmed with all of the news reporting of the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.

Did you hear ’em talkin’ ’bout it on the radio,
Did you try to read the writing on the wall?

There are all of the arguments about gun control. There are the media interviews with the people who knew the troubled briefcase-carrying kid who became the shooter, Adam Lanza, although I know we probably will not use the information about him to gain any new understanding about helping kids like him before these tragedies occur. There are the Internet rumors, where I see over and over again on Facebook and Twitter how Morgan Freeman wrote an essay about the tragedy when it was so obviously a hoax (but he eventually had to waste his time telling us it was a hoax). Others question whether there will be copycat shootings. And then there is the struggle to give some meaning to the fact that around the same time a mentally ill man in China attacked kids at a school with a knife, injuring 22 students.

Day after day another Momma’s crying,
She’s lost her precious child

And there are the heartbreaking stories about all the kids and adults killed in the shooting as the funerals begin. I keep thinking how many of those families go home every night to a Christmas tree with wrapped presents that no longer have a recipient. And then I cannot take any more and I turn off the TV for awhile.

But we also realize that we have been here before, and not only do I not have any answers, nobody else does either.

Did that voice inside you say
I’ve seen this all before?
It’s like Deja Vu all over again.

Creedence Clearwater Revival’s John Fogerty released “DeJa Vu (All Over Again)” as a title track on his album of the same name in 2004, apparently taking the title from the great baseball philosopher Yogi Berra. The song was written to point out similarities between the Iraq war and the Vietnam war, and it stands as one of Fogerty’s best songs in recent years.

Unfortunately, the song’s lyrics fit more than just the war, including the recent tragedy.

Maybe fake Morgan Freeman was right that we should just turn off the news for a little while, perhaps while we crank up the music.

Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • It’s Like Deja Vu All Over Again
  • “The Voice” Brings Out Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” For Sandy Hook Tribute
  • In a School, a School, a Place Where We Send Our Precious Children
  • John Fogerty and Family Gift Us “Green River” from the Campfire
  • John Fogerty Rocks One More Time for Letterman
  • Pop Culture Roundup (Mid-January 2012)

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)