When I was very young, one of the shows I loved was “West Side Story,” whose music was written by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. The music was magnificent and the dancing was wonderful and the songs were memorable. One of the most memorable songs was “Gee, Officer Krupke.” “ACTION” is one of the characters.<\/p>\n
ACTION
\nDear kindly Sergeant Krupke,
\nYou gotta understand,
\nIt’s just our bringin’ up-ke
\nThat gets us out of hand.
\nOur mothers all are junkies,
\nOur fathers all are drunks.
\nGolly Moses, natcherly we’re punks! <\/p>\n
ACTION AND JETS
\nGee, Officer Krupke, we’re very upset;
\nWe never had the love that ev’ry child oughta get.
\nWe ain’t no delinquents,
\nWe’re misunderstood.
\nDeep down inside us there is good! <\/p>\n
ACTION
\nThere is good! <\/p>\n
ALL
\nThere is good, there is good,
\nThere is untapped good!
\nLike inside, the worst of us is good! <\/p>\n
SNOWBOY: (Spoken) That’s a touchin’ good story. <\/p>\n
ACTION: (Spoken) Lemme tell it to the world! <\/p>\n
SNOWBOY: Just tell it to the judge. <\/p>\n
ACTION
\nDear kindly Judge, your Honor,
\nMy parents treat me rough.
\nWith all their marijuana,
\nThey won’t give me a puff.
\nThey didn’t wanna have me,
\nBut somehow I was had.
\nLeapin’ lizards! That’s why I’m so bad! <\/p>\n
DIESEL: (As Judge) Right! <\/p>\n
Officer Krupke, you’re really a square;
\nThis boy don’t need a judge, he needs an analyst’s care!
\nIt’s just his neurosis that oughta be curbed.
\nHe’s psychologic’ly disturbed! <\/p>\n
ACTION
\nI’m disturbed! <\/p>\n
JETS
\nWe’re disturbed, we’re disturbed,
\nWe’re the most disturbed,
\nLike we’re psychologic’ly disturbed. <\/p>\n
DIESEL: (Spoken, as Judge) In the opinion on this court, this child is depraved on account he ain’t had a normal home. <\/p>\n
ACTION: (Spoken) Hey, I’m depraved on account I’m deprived. <\/p>\n
DIESEL: So take him to a headshrinker. <\/p>\n
ACTION (Sings)
\nMy father is a bastard,
\nMy ma’s an S.O.B.
\nMy grandpa’s always plastered,
\nMy grandma pushes tea.
\nMy sister wears a mustache,
\nMy brother wears a dress.
\nGoodness gracious, that’s why I’m a mess! <\/p>\n
A-RAB: (As Psychiatrist) Yes!
\nOfficer Krupke, you’re really a slob.
\nThis boy don’t need a doctor, just a good honest job.
\nSociety’s played him a terrible trick,
\nAnd sociologic’ly he’s sick! <\/p>\n
ACTION
\nI am sick! <\/p>\n
ALL
\nWe are sick, we are sick,
\nWe are sick, sick, sick,
\nLike we’re sociologically sick! <\/p>\n
A-RAB: In my opinion, this child don’t need to have his head shrunk at all. Juvenile delinquency is purely a social disease! <\/p>\n
ACTION: Hey, I got a social disease! <\/p>\n
A-RAB: So take him to a social worker! <\/p>\n
ACTION
\nDear kindly social worker,
\nThey say go earn a buck.
\nLike be a soda jerker,
\nWhich means like be a schumck.
\nIt’s not I’m anti-social,
\nI’m only anti-work.
\nGloryosky! That’s why I’m a jerk! <\/p>\n
BABY JOHN: (As Female Social Worker)
\nEek!
\nOfficer Krupke, you’ve done it again.
\nThis boy don’t need a job, he needs a year in the pen.
\nIt ain’t just a question of misunderstood;
\nDeep down inside him, he’s no good! <\/p>\n
ACTION
\nI’m no good! <\/p>\n
ALL
\nWe’re no good, we’re no good!
\nWe’re no earthly good,
\nLike the best of us is no damn good! <\/p>\n
DIESEL (As Judge)
\nThe trouble is he’s crazy. <\/p>\n
A-RAB (As Psychiatrist)
\nThe trouble is he drinks. <\/p>\n
BABY JOHN (As Female Social Worker)
\nThe trouble is he’s lazy. <\/p>\n
DIESEL
\nThe trouble is he stinks. <\/p>\n
A-RAB
\nThe trouble is he’s growing. <\/p>\n
BABY JOHN
\nThe trouble is he’s grown. <\/p>\n
ALL
\nKrupke, we got troubles of our own! <\/p>\n
Gee, Officer Krupke,
\nWe’re down on our knees,
\n‘Cause no one wants a fellow with a social disease.
\nGee, Officer Krupke,
\nWhat are we to do?
\nGee, Officer Krupke,
\nKrup you! <\/p>\n
Music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.
\n\u00c2\u00a9 1956, 1957 Amberson Holdings LLC and Stephen Sondheim. Copyright renewed.
\nLeonard Bernstein Music Publishing Company LLC, Publisher.<\/p>\n
Bernstein and Sondheim in the fifties were poking fun at the inability of some people to understand that people are responsible for their actions. How we are brought up surely affects us, but ultimately, what we do with our lives is our choice. All of us have met people who bemoan their fate. No matter where they go and what they do, it seems to them that they are unappreciated, treated with disdain, and hurt. They are 50 years old and still blaming their parents for how their lives turned out. <\/p>\n
Likewise, we have all met people who suffered terrible traumas in their lives– people who survived the Holocaust, people who suffered the loss of a parent when young or serious injury or extreme poverty and they have nonetheless created for themselves good lives. In addition, many of them devote their lives to helping others, remembering how they themselves felt during their hard times.<\/p>\n
One of my favorite examples of the latter is Natan Sharansky who in his book “Fear No Evil” talks about his time in the Soviet prisons and how he decided that the Soviets may have control over his body, but they would never take control of his mind– who he was as a person. He describes in detail how he kept his sanity, by drilling himself on Biblical verses he remembered and playing mental chess. He was imprisoned, but he was always free. When he was finally released, he was a whole human being, ready to resume life with optimism.<\/p>\n
When I hear people trying to “understand” terrorists, I cringe. Terrorists are evil people. They want to kill innocent people, men, women, and children– the more, the better. They are not that way because they are poor (Bin Laden, for example, is a multi-millionaire). They are not that way because they are humiliated (ever try showering in jr. high school after gym class as an underdeveloped 13 year old girl?– I never even thought of putting on an explosive belt and murdering the girls who were mocking me.) Terrorists are humanoid (having human form) beings whose entire reason for living is to kill and destroy. Otherwise, they would not be willing– anxious to kill themselves in the act. The more we try to “understand” them, the more we mock the goodness in the world.<\/p>\n
I don’t want to “understand” a cancer cell for any other reason than to figure out how to destroy it. I don’t want to nurture it and see if maybe it will learn to behave. I want to be rid of it. <\/p>\n
I fear that our liberal thinking has in it the seed of our destruction and it is time to see things as they are and not as we wish them to be. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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