System of Down’s John Dolmayan Says It “Shouldn’t Be a Shock to Anybody” That He and Serj Tankian Have Differing Political Views
System of a Down drummer John Dolmayan has responded to fans’ recent expression that he and SOAD vocalist Serj Tankian have divergent political views.
The duo’s difference in beliefs came to light earlier this week, after Tankian called for Donald Trump to resign, while Dolmayan praised Trump as “the greatest friend to minorities.”
In a new video 14-minute shared on social media, Dolmayan explains:
“We have differing opinions in System of a Down. That shouldn’t be a shock to anybody, because you have four individuals — we’re not always like-minded and don’t always agree on everything. But you’d be surprised at how civil our conversations are, especially between me and Serj, who seem to have the most diverging opinions on things. I have a lot of respect for Serj and his opinions, although I don’t agree with them very often these days. And that’s okay. We expand each other’s horizons — I like to think that he learns from me and I learn from him.”
The drummer continues:
“Some of you have been sending me messages — in fact, quite a few — saying that you are thankful that I get out there and I put out a viewpoint that’s a little bit different. Others of you have been upset, disappointed, and have voiced their disappointment in different ways — some have been positive and some negative.
“I take everything really lightly and I really don’t get too bothered by it. But I have had some dialogue with some people and I’ve enjoyed that — people that think differently, have a different perspective, and I really like getting that perspective.
“Look, guys, a lot of you are very young, and as you gain experience in life, you will have different ways of looking at things and different perspectives, and it won’t mean as much to you to fit into certain boxes that people set for you. And I guess in a lot of ways that’s what’s happened to me, although I’ve always tended to think more conservatively.”
Dolmayan goes on:
“People shouldn’t sit there and allow their moral superiority in their heads — because you really aren’t morally superior to anyone, although you may think you are; you really aren’t. Especially if you don’t know the other person — you don’t know every aspect of their life, their motivations for things. And also, generally speaking, you’re basing things based on your experiences without taking into consideration that your experiences are limited to you and they don’t represent everybody.
“I see a lot of very famous people saying a lot of things, and I’m not sure if it’s coming from the heart. But I will always fight for what I think is right. Even if I’m later found out to be wrong, I will judge it then, and I am not afraid to change my position on things. But there’s just a lot of hypocrisy happening.
“Don’t believe everything the famous people tell you — they don’t know anything for the most part. I don’t know anything for the most part. I don’t know why things happen and what reasons the government has for doing things. All I know is they have to think a lot further down the road than we do, generally speaking — they have to think, like, 50 years in the future and how this country’s gonna survive and what our place is gonna be in the world. And they’re people and they’re gonna mistakes. It’s just that usually we’re the ones — private citizens like us — that pay for it. And I’m deathly afraid that the middle class is getting hit the hardest here, as they always do. And the middle class is very important here in the United States, as it is in most countries. Most countries try their hardest to develop their middle class, because something like 90 percent of the gross national product is consumed and created by the middle class.”
You can watch Dolmayan’s entire video below.
[via]
