In a province of Indonesia, authorities took their dislike of punks to some great extremes, way past Footloose or Pump Up the Volume levels of “You kids better stay in line” grumpiness. At a recent concert, they rounded up 65 punks and have been subjecting them to 10 days of haircuts, praying, and what the Guardian calls “military-style drills aimed at instilling discipline.” Maury Povich must be proud — if one of his boot-camp episodes were turned into accepted government practice, this would be it.
The awesome part comes from the reaction of the punks: defiance. The Guardian‘s article quotes Yudi, a 19-year-old who only goes by one name.
“I can’t wait to get out of here,” he added. “They can’t change me. I love punk. I don’t feel guilty about my lifestyle. Why should I? There’s nothing wrong with it.”
Sounds like the beginning of some awesome songs to me. Let’s hope we get the chance to hear that someday.