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Bloodshed is glorious - a draftee's delusion Fostered by Hollywood and faith in the union He packed up his scrapbook, said farewell to his mother Now he had not a home, just a new band of brothers Sam was his new Lord, whose mercy was phony A carbine his lover, the trigger her quoniam Blue waters shrank beneath as Wagner resounded Yet he was only a pawn, in servitude grounded Dear young Rebel, bow to your uncle Raise up the flag, support it from underneath Don't worry, Rebel, they'll bring you back home soon Parades and medals for your platoon Letras de canciones What are we doing here? He started wondering With the natives never tiring, the weapons always firing From somewhere in the distant brush; the Rebel swore he'd had enough If only he knew what was coming Deep in the jungle his company was creeping They saw up ahead a yellow boy weeping A soldier moved in, and the little boy ran It was too late by then; they saw the black on his hands On top of a land mine the soldier was broiled By gunpowder made on American soil From the charred melted flesh came a series of cries Like Have mercy, Lord! and Sweet Jesus Christ! Oh, dear Rebel, war sure ain't pretty But you must remember the investments of Washington D.C. Those who die are heroes, but those who run are rotten Hang in there, Rebel, and you'll never be forgotten That same night, the orders came through From a faceless man over the radio: There's a little town about a mile west Take supplies, burn the buildings down, and you know the rest Well, the Rebel knew it wasn't his choice A gear in a machine doesn't get a voice The soldiers conserved their ammunition And slit every yellow throat in sighta successful mission It's a funny thing, killing those you've never met So the Rebel laughed aloud as his insides wept, screaming, All you yellow bastards, I hope you've seen what we can do When you fuck with freedomthere'll be red, black, and blue Oh, dear Rebel, I'm afraid you're going mad When killing gets personal, you know it's getting bad You see, war's a business and your country needs control Of your mind, of your body, of your heart, and your soul Don't you get nostalgic for your welcome mat's allure 'Cuz home ain't coming soon, you got another tour More rounds exchanged, wounds exchanged, and deaths exchanged The birds exchanged glances, and declared men insane Morale was getting low on the good guys' side The Rebel fighting merely to save his own life Well, the reaper was so busy collecting all the souls, That he overlooked dear Rebel, but war still took its toll You could see the skull behind his eyes, and his words were but a few When the men in suits shook his hand and said I'm proud of you A nation polarized, each side holding its own Some blindly waving flags, some blindly throwing stones The Rebel watched and wondered if there'd ever be a point In crying out for peace as long as man was minting coins Oh, dear Rebel, men will be men The important thing right now is to get back to your friends And your aging mother too, I'm certain she misses you Try to smile wide for her, don't you let her see inside The Rebel didn't smile when the landlord gave the news His mother was evicted when she couldn't pay the dues So he interviewed the neighbors, their answers only varied Yet he found what he was looking for in a brief obituary A widow, fifty-two, died from cancer of the lung Fighting bravely overseas is her single loving son And he's been feeling sorry ever since Can only place the blame on the Charlies and the Dinks Those people passing by on winter afternoons They curse him for his laziness, and drop a dime or two Once he earns eleven-fifty, he can buy a fifth of whiskey A temporary blanket from the ever-icy stares He isn't proud of killing men, but content with killing time He doesn't need your pity, only money for cheap wine Dear old Rebel, keep telling your tale Passing sighs and pickup lines, slurred words that seem to sail It don't matter where your eyes are, glazed and robbed of rest, When your mind's drifting to a dusty heaven in the warmth of the Southwest From Letras Mania