"Masters or War". Bob Dylan.

[maveric]

Come you masters of war
You that build all the guns
You that build the death planes
You that build the big bombs
You that hide behind walls
You that hide behind desks
I just want you to know
I can see through your masks

You that never done nothin'
But build to destroy
You play with my world
Like it's your little toy
You put a gun in my hand
And you hide from my eyes
And you turn and run farther
When the fast bullets fly

Like Judas of old
You lie and deceive
A world war can be won
You want me to believe
But I see through your eyes
And I see through your brain
Like I see through the water
That runs down my drain

You fasten the triggers
For the others to fire
Then you set back and watch
When the death count gets higher
You hide in your mansion
As young people's blood
Flows out of their bodies
And is buried in the mud

You've thrown the worst fear
That can ever be hurled
Fear to bring children
Into the world
For threatening my baby
Unborn and unnamed
You ain't worth the blood
That runs in your veins

How much do I know
To talk out of turn
You might say that I'm young
You might say I'm unlearned
But there's one thing I know
Though I'm younger than you
Even Jesus would never
Forgive what you do

Let me ask you one question
Is your money that good
Will it buy you forgiveness
Do you think that it could
I think you will find
When your death takes its toll
All the money you made
Will never buy back your soul

And I hope that you die
And your death'll come soon
I will follow your casket
In the pale afternoon
And I'll watch while you're lowered
Down to your deathbed
And I'll stand o'er your grave
'Til I'm sure that you're dead

[annabanana]

1. I blast this through the windows when I do errands...

(also Steppenwolf's Monster/America)

[speedoo]

2. There are many videos on youtube.

Here's one that I just came across, from a 1994 concert in Praque.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SOGiF5yfig&mode=related&search=

I really like it... very interesting acoustic version.

[Cabcere]

3. The first time I heard this song...

was my freshman year of college (2004), and it scared the sh*t out of me. It was as if Bob Dylan had written the song for this war and this president, instead of 40 years ago...freaky. :scared:

Also, I'll probably get in trouble for this, but at my friend's funeral in February, that last verse kept echoing in my head as they lowered his casket into the ground. He was a 19-year-old Marine, killed in action in Iraq, and I kept thinking back to that song and how appropriate it was for his commander-in-chief. :cry:

[speedoo]

4. I'm sorry you lost your friend.

Here's a very powerful rendition, by Eddie Vedder...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8GHBk_HSXg&mode=related&search=

[Hekate]

6. I was in college when I first heard it too, & had no idea its impact would deepen with the years

Forty years is a long time... in the busyness of my life the song became a vague memory for me.

When Masters of War resurfaced for me at DU, I was astonished at the power and truth of the words. I got chills -- the older I am and the more I know, the truer that song is. Now it's in the soundtrack of my brain.

I'll never forget its message again, especially now that I have new faces to go with it: Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and the rest.

I'm so sorry for the loss of your friend. :hug:

Hekate

[ljm2002]

5. Thanks for posting...

...they're such powerful lyrics, aren't they?

"And I'll stand o'er your grave
'Til I'm sure that you're dead"

Oh yeah.