michael edwards [music]

From the esteemed SongMeanings.net, a bastion of critical insights into the meanings of songs and lyrics, comes user LadyMidnight’s magnificent discussion of the conflicted poetry of Cohen’s classic song, Hallelujah:

This song, one of my favourites, is a straightforward but deeply moving Biblical narrative about King David. It refers also to Batsheva (“saw her bathing on the roof…”). And there’s some stuff about sex and love and faith in there somewhere. This is the first of at least a couple of versions of this song, with Cohen changing the lyrics on a live album. (Not to mention the multitudes of cover versions.)

My favorite part was when she said “And there’s some stuff about sex and love and faith in there somewhere.” Also, see more about the name Batsheva before you start envisioning some kind of superhero / vigilante in a bat costume.

(takes off sarcasm mask)

Ok, this is awful. This is part of what happens on the internet when anyone can comment on anything. We get YouTube comments and Yahoo! Answers and SongMeanings.net. I understand that there are advantages to an open, ubiquitous communication platform over a restricted, draconian, Orwellian censored platform. I’m not intending to get into all that.

This sort of thing is the internet’s biggest argument against itself (an echo of the common voter being a prominent argument against democracy). I’m glad for democracy, but half of our population is below average intelligence… that’s just math.