excerpt from an article about littlesteven.com:
Go and read, absolutely read, all the essays on all the albums. Little Steven wrote them specifically for the site. He reports on an epiphany he had, just before he started his solo career, when a "German wise-ass" accused him of putting missiles in his country. At first he tried to distance himself from his country's foreign policies, but then, he says, "I reluctantly came to the conclusion that I was an American citizen and maybe some responsibilities went with that. So okay I'm putting missiles in this guy's country and I start reading books to see what else I've been doing since World War II." But Little Steven wasn't content with reading damning essays about US foreign policy. Before he wrote his songs, he went out and met those who were affected. His essays--compelling reading, every one--talk about crossing from West to East Germany ("It was the first time I ever missed advertising on billboards. There was no color."), negotiating for his life with South African revolutionaries ("The topic of conversation for the first hour was whether or not they should let me live."), and meeting Nicaraguan President Ortega's wife ("After you spend a little time in politics you learn where the power is and try to get to it as quickly as possible. In politics, as in life, the wife is usually a good place to start.")
full article at Tribal Soul Kitchen.