I really don't see how you can take this song to be anything but a critique of capitalism. It's all about how 'rock n roll' went from being anti-authoritarian and dangerous to becoming just another fashion for people to buy into and for the big corporations to make money off of. The idea is that people believe the propaganda and think that they're 'rebelling against society being outlaws' when in actuality they are just shelling out cash to the same thugs who own Disney, time-warner etc. Killing yourself with drugs is what they want, because it kills you and makes them money. (if you don't think that this song is about true rebellion then who is the 'they' in 'you're drinking what they're selling'?)
As for the Pepsi can theory I think that the "as long as there soda cans are red white and blue ones" refers to the workers stupidly continuing to manufacture guitars brainwashed into subservience by nationalism.
And the Einstein who thinks that computers are a purely capitalist invention might wonder how the USSR launched sputnik, MIRR etc. into space without computers.
I really don't see how you can take this song to be anything but a critique of capitalism. It's all about how 'rock n roll' went from being anti-authoritarian and dangerous to becoming just another fashion for people to buy into and for the big corporations to make money off of. The idea is that people believe the propaganda and think that they're 'rebelling against society being outlaws' when in actuality they are just shelling out cash to the same thugs who own Disney, time-warner etc. Killing yourself with drugs is what they want, because it kills you and makes them money. (if you don't think that this song is about true rebellion then who is the 'they' in 'you're drinking what they're selling'?)
As for the Pepsi can theory I think that the "as long as there soda cans are red white and blue ones" refers to the workers stupidly continuing to manufacture guitars brainwashed into subservience by nationalism.
And the Einstein who thinks that computers are a purely capitalist invention might wonder how the USSR launched sputnik, MIRR etc. into space without computers.