Blame is rampant across culture and politics, but who is to blame? The recurring cultural temptation is to stop at an explanation that preserves the identity, or authority, of the person telling the story. Popular music has been exposing that temptation for generations. In 1891, James Thornton‘s “Blame It On to the Girls” mocked men who attributed their spending, drinking, and domestic troubles to women. Industrialization was changing employment and household life, but the song’s men had a familiar explanation ready. In 1946, “Put the Blame on Mame“ enlarged the absurdity, making a woman’s sexuality responsible for fires and earthquakes. Changing circumstances could still be explained through an inherited suspect. The joke depended on the audience recognizing how convenient that was.