The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
We request to negotiate
We come to you unarmed
We desire to communicate
You cannot do us harm
They want sacrifice
They hatch schemes and ask me to follow their path to the afterlife
I've got an appetite
For nice things and pipe dreams that my enemies could be blasted by
New metaphors
View that are better for you can't survive if I'm your competitor
Rise together or fight separate wars
I pray I'm never forced to be a predator
Spectres spectate
We wont last
They glad to hate
When gladiators
Breathe their last
Scream en masse
When the dreams do clash
Like the swords in the wars
Let me bleed on that
But they feed on that
Say we need strong backs
Call us weak
If we don't redeem contracts
But the feast wont last
When this beast attacks
The sons and the fathers
Will be free at last
This is love this is not treason
They see sharks in the estuary
They claim the arc's Bartholomew's
They say war is necessary
But we say war is child abuse
We'd rather make our children martyrs than murderers
We'd rather make our children White Flag Warriors
Core-to-core
Were the ones
We've been waiting for
We hold steady
Steadier than stevedores
Not tevias or matadors
On matters of what came before
Forgive the debts
To settle scores
Test the mettle
Either ore
Whats your plan got to do with me
If the bell tolls let freedom ring
And find new ways if we must be King
Instead of leading the young to our suffering
We pass testaments down scream back at heaven
For testing us like Wednesdays at eleven
Wanna recruit and train us to act evilly?
Save it for the shooting range and smack DVDs
Won't study war no more this millennium
It's never again to me or anyone
So think harder when you refer to us
Rather make our children martyrs than murderers
They shell dwellings to quell the shelling
They lift taboos to seduce the cowards
They say we're too yellow-bellied
But we say we're the new superpower
We seek waivers to not be liable
We claim to speak for a higher truth
We stand opposed to the homicidal
We tell you you're fireproof
We come to you unarmed
We desire to communicate
You cannot do us harm
They want sacrifice
They hatch schemes and ask me to follow their path to the afterlife
I've got an appetite
For nice things and pipe dreams that my enemies could be blasted by
New metaphors
View that are better for you can't survive if I'm your competitor
Rise together or fight separate wars
I pray I'm never forced to be a predator
Spectres spectate
We wont last
They glad to hate
When gladiators
Breathe their last
Scream en masse
When the dreams do clash
Like the swords in the wars
Let me bleed on that
But they feed on that
Say we need strong backs
Call us weak
If we don't redeem contracts
But the feast wont last
When this beast attacks
The sons and the fathers
Will be free at last
This is love this is not treason
They see sharks in the estuary
They claim the arc's Bartholomew's
They say war is necessary
But we say war is child abuse
We'd rather make our children martyrs than murderers
We'd rather make our children White Flag Warriors
Core-to-core
Were the ones
We've been waiting for
We hold steady
Steadier than stevedores
Not tevias or matadors
On matters of what came before
Forgive the debts
To settle scores
Test the mettle
Either ore
Whats your plan got to do with me
If the bell tolls let freedom ring
And find new ways if we must be King
Instead of leading the young to our suffering
We pass testaments down scream back at heaven
For testing us like Wednesdays at eleven
Wanna recruit and train us to act evilly?
Save it for the shooting range and smack DVDs
Won't study war no more this millennium
It's never again to me or anyone
So think harder when you refer to us
Rather make our children martyrs than murderers
They shell dwellings to quell the shelling
They lift taboos to seduce the cowards
They say we're too yellow-bellied
But we say we're the new superpower
We seek waivers to not be liable
We claim to speak for a higher truth
We stand opposed to the homicidal
We tell you you're fireproof
Lyrics submitted by PossumCuber, edited by Doube
White Flag Warrior Lyrics as written by Jamie Laurie Andrew Guerrero
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Bluewater Music Corp.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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the message is i'd rather make my kids die for a reason rather than die for peace than fuel war which is pretty much useless, and to all the people calling it cowardice, they already knew you would call them cowards and they put in their songs, "They say we're too yellow bellied, But we say we're the new superpower". And who is the USA to decide what the "evil of the world" is? we're bad enough, we don't have to play global policeman.