23 Meanings
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The Shortest Straw Lyrics

Suspicion is your name
Your honesty to blame
Put dignity to shame
Dishonor
Witch hunt, modern day
Determining decay
The blatant disarray
Disfigure
The public eye’s disgrace
Defying common place
Unending paper chase
Unending

Deafening
Painstaking
Reckoning
This vertigo it doth bring

Shortest straw
Challenge liberty
Downed by law
Live in infamy
Rub you raw
Witch hunt riding through
Shortest straw
The shortest straw has been pulled for you

Pulled for you
Shortest straw
Pulled for you
Shortest straw
Pulled for you
Shortest straw
The shortest straw has been pulled for you

The accusations fly
Discrimination, why?
Your inner self to die
Intruding
Doubt sunk itself in you
Its teeth and talons through
You’re living Catch-22
Deluding
A mass hysteria
A megalomania
Reveal dementia
Reveal

Secretly
Silently
Certainly
In vertigo you will be

Shortest straw
Challenge liberty
Downed by law
Live in infamy
Rub you raw
Witch hunt riding through
Shortest straw
This shortest straw has been pulled for you

Pulled for you
Shortest straw
Pulled for you
Shortest straw
Pulled for you
Shortest straw
Shortest straw has been pulled for you
Shortest straw
Pulled for you
Shortest straw
Pulled for you
Shortest straw
Pulled for you
Shortest straw
Shortest straw has been pulled for you

Behind you, hands are tied
Your being, ostracized
Your hell is multiplied
Upending
The fallout has begun
Oppressive damage done
Your many turned to none
To nothing
You’re reaching your nadir
Your will has disappeared
The lie is crystal clear
Defending

Channels red
One word said
Blacklisted
With vertigo make you dead

Shortest straw
Challenge liberty
Downed by law
Live in infamy
Rub you raw
Witch hunt riding through
Shortest straw
The shortest straw has been pulled for you
Pulled for you
23 Meanings
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It's not about Cliff. Only a title may seem to be linked with his accident. But it's like saying that "One" is about an alienation.

Maybe it's about communists but I think it is about people or media, especially tabloids, looking for any sensation. They accuse people just to provide entertainment to their audience. So if you'll do something that may be controversial they'll make a witchhunt, telling people that you are what you're not. And they can accuse almost anyone so this is like drawing straws.

PS. @sheppo: they played "Orion", that was Cliff's favourite song, on his funeral, not "To Live is To Die".

My Interpretation
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that is right weaselfierce. This song is about blacklisting during the 50's when americans hunted down any communist believing human. This fits well on this album because it is obvious disorder of our nation. This disrupted the very ammendment that founded our nation, the first ammendment. Freedom to assembly. People were paranoid and did "witchhunts" like during 1600's - searching for the different.

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It's basically about McCarthy-ism and even some of todays attacks on people who are brave enough to make their controversial thoughts public.

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It is about Metallica's firt bass player Cliff Burton. All of the band members drew straws one night to see who would get the top bunk on the tour bus. That night the bus got in a crash and he died. That is what this song is really about.

Song Meaning

No its not, Kirk and Cliff drew cards, Cliff won with the ace of spades and said to Kirk "I want your bunk"

@sandta88 plus a common mistake is always made by Metallica fans. Clifford Lee Burton was actually their 2ND bassist. The ORIGINAL bassist (before kill 'em all was released) was Ron McGovney. No Joke.

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About how in the old days like the 40's or 50's people were imprisoned if they had different beliefs. This is the one song that got me to start listening to Metallica. Love that Kick-ass solo!

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This song is about blacklisting....if ur looking for a loud, fast hardcore Metallica song....or ne kind of song like that......this is it

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This song is downright awesome. It rocks and the lyrics are good.

From what i read somewhere, it was about the communist-hunts (witchhunts almost) in the US during the cold war.

But the theme and song is valid to this day

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blacklisting every1 nailed it

great song

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this song is my favorite (lyrical) song (orion beats it by far, but this song still captivates me) and GREAT solo (i'm in the process of learning it and its going to take a little more than a bit)

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my english aint so good, so plz explain what blacklisting means

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