When Rhetoric Dies

Boy Sets Fire

we raise the flags and statues to our mission

we've spoken out in slogans and campaigns

talked and talked on almost every issue

where oppression of the masses is the constant theme



but what does this mean to a little town in iowa

where the jobs have gone downstream down south down and out

where thier fingers used to work to the bone all day

profits rise and fall and starvation is a game



where is the food that used to cover the table

where is the sense of pride at the end of the day

to the face of the thriving corporation

what could a dying family possibly say



on the face of every american worker

is the constant fear that their job won't remain

as the c.e.o. is planning his vacation

to kill or be killed is the nature of the beast



where is the food that used to cover the table

where is the sense of pride at the end of the day

to the face of the thriving corporation

what could a dying family possibly say



stand in line take a number

you sell your soul

then watch it crumble

into a pile of rubble that used to be

your job

your life

your family's daily bread

dry and stale malnourished kids

the house is sold for a degrading bid

do we continue to talk

or do we take a hammer

to their chains

to their chains