Although I respect most people's choices ofwhat music they listen to, there is a place where I draw the line. Ihave absolutely no respect whatsoever for sell-out punk. In case you'venever been enlightened, sell-out punk is personified by two bands: TheOffspring and Blink 182. Of these two, I detest Blink the most.

Ihave, regrettably, heard Blink's breakout CD, "Dude Ranch," aswell as the popular singles off their new record. With this experience,I can safely say they have the cumulative playing and songwriting talentof a pile of rocks. This may seem harsh, but I honestly think it's true.The songs I've heard sound almost exactly the same, and the lyrics aremeaningless and not particularly funny when they try to be. I'm notsaying that all other punk and ska bands are bursting at the seams withtalent, but at least their songs are, for the most part, musicallyinteresting and/or meaningful.

I'm sure some will contend thatBlink makes fun of pop music, but I disagree. It seems to me that theband - and, dare I say, its fans - recognize the absurdity of popculture but don't have the guts to reject it wholeheartedly. It is as ifall decent, valid jokes at pop's expense are immediately followed by theinevitable "just kidding!" I am offended by Blink's insistenceon referring to themselves as punk.

I'm pretty sure I didn'tdissuade any Blink fans from liking that horrid music, but I hope Istruck a chord with other punks out there. Real friends don't letfriends listen to Blink!