Henry Rollins on the 2012 US Presidential Election and Same-Sex Marriage

Henry Rollins
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Northeast Florida's Folio Weekly recently published an interview with Henry Rollins (Black Flag, Rollins Band), conducted by Nick McGregor, in which the writer, broadcaster, actor, author, campaigner, and elder statesman of punk offered his views on the upcoming 2012 US Presidential Election, and the nation's opinion with regard to same-sex marriage. Rollins also commented briefly on why he stopped performing music.

On the 2012 US Presidential Election:

'You have a black president, so all kinds of veiled, encoded statements will be made. God, gays and guns — that’s how Republicans get their people emotional. But I don’t think any of them are electable. I think the smart money is looking at 2016, which the Republicans could very well take. This year, whether people like Obama or not, the troops have come home from Iraq. Osama Bin Laden is dead. More jobs are being created. Cash For Clunkers worked. The stimulus worked. Bailing out the auto industry was a great idea. That’s why Republicans are saying God, guns and gays, because they can’t talk about their accomplishments. All I hear is, "Obama’s bad, gays are bad, Muslims are bad and capitalism is good." Capitalism is fantastic, as long as it’s regulated. I like capitalism; it rewards me for my ambition. I don’t want Communism. I’ve been in Communist countries, and they suck.'

On public opinion turning in favour of same-sex marriage:

'To me, it’s never been anything more than a civil right. If two people are that crazy about each other, why don’t we just let ’em have a little happiness? I’ve always vociferously protested against those who would limit people’s civil rights and treat them like second-class citizens. Maybe some people are finally reading the Constitution. I read the front of the damn thing every day! All of this is covered by the 1st and 14th Amendments.'

On no longer performing music:

'I don’t know what else I could do that I haven’t done before as a younger, stronger man. I can’t bullshit people; I can’t even bullshit myself. Stopping music was very difficult, but at least it was honest. I’d rather be honest and missing it than on stage looking ridiculous at age 50-plus.'

You can check out the full interview over at Folio Weekly.