In 1980， a Washington DC hardcore punk band called Minor Threat released some music whose message and inspiration would begin a new movement in youth culture.

Instead of singing about thenaughty government and how unpleasant everybody is， Minor Threat's frontman， Ian MacKaye， chose to write songs about the pressures of youth culture. On Minor Threat's first album was a song entitled Straight Edge ， whose lyrics describe the band's approach to drugs.

I'm a person just like you

But i've got better things to do

Than sit around and fuck my head

Hang out with the living dead

Snort white shit up my nose

Pass out at the shows

I don't even think about speed

That's something I just don't need

I've got the straight edge

——Straight Edge， by Minor Threat

In their most simplistic forms， the ideas behind straight edge are summed up in the words of \"Out of Step\". Minor Threat did not do anything they considered addictive or to be bad for them， physically or mentally. They did not require a metaphoric crutch in order to get through life.

The straight edge ideals of Minor Threat， and fellow straight edge bands such as Gorilla Biscuits and State of Alert， promoted freedom of thought. Some people make these ideals out to be stringent \"anti-fun\"， but there are no actual rules. The lifestyle is entirely down to the discretion of those who choose it. Ian MacKaye became so agitated with people's misinterpretation of \"Out Of Step\" as a list of rules， that Minor Threat re-released it with the words \"this is no set of rules， I'm not telling you what to say or do...\" spoken during an instrumental section.

Minor Threat soon developed a cult following of like-minded individuals， who called themselves \"straight edgers\" and were distinguished by a black \"X\"worn on one hand. The black \"X\"， now a sign synonymous with straight edge (which is often shortened to \"sXe\")， is said to have originated in the Washington club scene. Many punk and rock shows were \"all age\"， so even children were allowed in. However， to prevent underage kids buying alcohol， they were marked with an \"X\" on their hand in permanent marker at the door.

Straight edge people of all ages began marking their hands with a black X， to distinguish themselves from the rest and as a mark of their ideals.

Straight edge has now become， to some people， more than just a way of describing their lifestyle. To them， it is a label - you've either got the edge or you haven't. If you slip up， you're found drinking alcohol for example， then you run the risk of being shunned by an \"elite\" group who will no longer accept you as straight edge. Others think that to be straight edge， you must also wear certain types of clothes， and like only one particular type of music. What was once a name for individual thinking and a way to avoid hurting yourself and others has， in some places， become the very thing that the philosophy once challenged.

Another group of people have taken straight edge to their choice of food， too. Vegans are a large section of the straight edge subculture， prompted by bands such as Earth Crisis. While veganism isn't part of the established straight edge lifestyle， it is often associated with it. Straight edge Vegans say that this is because once you begin to study what you put into your body， veganism is a logical progression from the choices you make in being straight edge.

Other people take the \"no drugs\" aspect so far that they do not take any medication (arguably a very silly idea， indeed) and others abstain from even moderately addictive substances such as tea and coffee.

Straight edge offers teenagers an opportunity to break out of the destructive cycle of peer-directed sensibility， and enables them to realise that they have the ability to control their lives and a responsibility to look out for those around them. The ideals of the philosophy have been partly tainted by the narrow-mindedness of a few individuals， but the ideals themselves are still viable.

1980年，華盛頓特區(qū)一個(gè)名為小兇兆的硬核朋克樂(lè)隊(duì)推出了一些歌曲，其所傳遞的信息和靈感掀起了一個(gè)年輕人的新文化運(yùn)動(dòng)。

小兇兆樂(lè)隊(duì)的主唱伊恩·麥克凱耶并沒(méi)有在歌曲中抱怨政府是多么地?zé)o用，也沒(méi)有提及大家是多么地不快樂(lè)，而是以年輕人文化中存在的一些壓力為主題創(chuàng)作了一些曲子。在小兇兆樂(lè)隊(duì)的第一張專輯中，有一首名為《直刃》的歌曲，闡述了該樂(lè)隊(duì)對(duì)毒品的態(tài)度。

我像你一樣是個(gè)普通人，

但是我找到了更好的事情可以做，

而不會(huì)無(wú)所事事地荒度時(shí)日，

也不會(huì)和那些行尸走肉在一起混沌一氣。

我不會(huì)用鼻子吸食那白色的毒品，

以致昏死在演出中。

對(duì)于可卡因，我甚至連想都不想，

那種東西，我根本不需要，

因?yàn)槲矣形业闹比?(直尺坐標(biāo)精神，

象征認(rèn)定目標(biāo)就朝著一個(gè)方向努力，

堅(jiān)持再堅(jiān)持的人生態(tài)度)

——《直刃》小兇兆樂(lè)隊(duì)

“直刃”背后的思想，用最簡(jiǎn)單的語(yǔ)言可以總結(jié)為“步調(diào)不一致”。小兇兆樂(lè)隊(duì)的人從來(lái)不做任何能使人上癮的，或有害于他們身體和精神的事情。他們不需要比喻意義上的“拐杖”才能生活下去。

小兇兆樂(lè)隊(duì)以及其他一些崇尚“直刃”精神的樂(lè)隊(duì)，例如Gorilla Biscuits和State of Alert，都倡導(dǎo)思想的自由。有些人將他們的目標(biāo)錯(cuò)解成嚴(yán)苛的“反娛樂(lè)”，但實(shí)際上，“直刃”并沒(méi)有什么規(guī)則。那些做出選擇成為“直刃”的人，個(gè)人的生活方式完全取決于自己。人們將“步調(diào)不一致”錯(cuò)解為一系列的條條框框，對(duì)此麥克凱耶十分不安。于是小兇兆樂(lè)隊(duì)在重新推出這首歌的時(shí)候，在歌曲的奏樂(lè)部分添加了一些旁白：“這里并沒(méi)有什么規(guī)則，我并沒(méi)有告訴大家應(yīng)該說(shuō)什么或者做什么……”

小兇兆樂(lè)隊(duì)很快就有了一批具有相似思想的崇拜者，他們自稱為“直刃人”，并在一只手上標(biāo)有黑色的X記號(hào)以區(qū)分于其他人。黑色的X現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)成為“直刃”的代名詞了（“直刃”經(jīng)?？s寫為“sXe”），據(jù)說(shuō)這個(gè)標(biāo)志起源于華盛頓的俱樂(lè)部。很多朋克及搖滾樂(lè)演出都是沒(méi)有年齡限制的，所以小孩子也可以參加。因此，為了防止未成年人買酒喝，俱樂(lè)部就在入門處用洗不掉的染料在他們的手上標(biāo)上X的記號(hào)。

由此，各個(gè)年齡段的“直刃人”都在自己的手上標(biāo)上了黑色的X記號(hào)，以區(qū)分于其他人，并表明他們的理想。

現(xiàn)在，對(duì)于一些人來(lái)說(shuō)，“直刃”已經(jīng)不僅僅用來(lái)描述生活方式了。對(duì)于他們來(lái)說(shuō)，這是一個(gè)標(biāo)簽——你屬于這個(gè)群體，抑或在其之外。如果你稍不留神，比如說(shuō)，被人發(fā)現(xiàn)在喝酒，那么你就冒著被一個(gè)“精英”群體排斥其外的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)，他們將永遠(yuǎn)不接受你為“直刃”一族了。還有一些人認(rèn)為，要成為“直刃”的成員，你必須穿特定樣式的服裝，喜歡特定類型的音樂(lè)。因此，這個(gè)原本倡導(dǎo)個(gè)性思維，避免傷害自己和他人的名字，現(xiàn)在在一些地方，反而成為這一理念曾經(jīng)反對(duì)的事物了。

還有一些人將“直刃”思想貫徹到他們對(duì)食物的選擇中?！爸比小钡膩單幕邪艘粋€(gè)很大的群體，那就是素食主義者，像Earth Crisis等樂(lè)隊(duì)就是這種文化的倡導(dǎo)者。盡管素食主義并不是“直刃”原本生活方式的一部分，但它還是經(jīng)常與直刃相聯(lián)系?！爸比小钡乃厥痴叻Q，這是因?yàn)橐坏┠汩_(kāi)始研究吃進(jìn)身體里的那些東西，素食就是“直刃人”所做出的各種選擇中合乎邏輯的進(jìn)步。

還有一些人，將“拒絕毒品”這一理念貫徹得如此之深，以至于他們不吃任何藥物（實(shí)際上是一種非常愚蠢的想法），另外一些人把具有輕微上癮性的一些東西，例如茶和咖啡都戒掉了。

“直刃”給青少年們提供了一個(gè)機(jī)會(huì)，讓他們打破對(duì)同齡人壓力敏感的枷鎖束縛。讓他們意識(shí)到有控制自己生活的能力，并有照顧周圍人的責(zé)任。盡管一些人的狹隘思想部分地玷污了這種理念的目標(biāo)，但是這些目標(biāo)本身仍然是切實(shí)可行的。

倒譯如流

out of step

這里指的是與當(dāng)時(shí)的娛樂(lè)文化（例如吸毒、酗酒等）步調(diào)不一致。

拐杖

這是硬核朋克一個(gè)老套的說(shuō)法，將毒品和酗酒等比喻成支撐生活的拐杖。

★編輯：譚添夏