Get Your Filthy Hands Off My Desert

NO no no no no

Everyone is just scanning the surface of this song!! Do you think Roger Waters would waste a track to give us an obscure history lesson?? This is an important album track!

Look CAREFULLY at the diction he uses, (or listen, you'll hear it too!): "And maggie,over lunch one day, took a cruiser [croissant] with both hands, and didn't give it back."

COMEON people look at the title. Desert is a commonly misread word. It is confused with Dessert! (two s's). By doing this parallel, Waters is showing how taking over a desert has become as trivial as stealing someones lunch dessert!! Its just a political move to gain advantage in war, and now, we as people completely ignore the cultural upheavals we create as a result of our 'chess moves.'

"Get your filthy hands off my dessert/desert" applies to both meanings, and it has EXTREMELY ironic connotations when applied to someone 'taking' a desert,' like they would a croissant. The way the melody is played almost hints that this song cannot be taken literally and reeks of dry British sarcasm. This is surely how Roger Waters feels about the war! After he says this, still on this track, he hums the reprise from the first song which goes "what have we done". What have we, as human beings, done that we have such low regard for human life. It's not like the real reason we are fighting is to control a barren wasteland.

This song is NOT suppose to focus on taking a cruiser in the 4th line (although that's what it LITERALLY says and is historically accurate.) Rogers is discussing the irony of war and asks them again "what have we done?" The theme of the album

Dubya took Afganistan, and Olmert Took Beiruit...

"Maggie over lunch one day took a cruiser, with all hands..." In 1982 the UK sunk The ARA General Belgrano, an Argentine cruiser, during the Falkland War, resulting in significant loss of life and no shortage of controversy. Waters suggests that the order to sink the cruiser was given by Thatcher like she was simply picking up a magazine from the local store on her lunch break. No deep thought to the act, just another thing on her to-do list .

First off, the British flag IS called the Union JACK, not Union Jag.

Second, this was written in 1982, so it has to do with fighting around that time.

Third, it is definitely about the Falkland Islands war between Britain and Argentina.

Fourth, the line about Brezhnev took Afghanistan had to do with Russia invading that country. (Which the Americans, in turn, boycotted the 1980 Olympics in Russia, as well as gave weapons and training to the Afghans... Who, as we now know, had a young man named Osama Bin Laden fighting for them...)

has anyone listened closely to the begining? he says "get your filthy hands off my desert". you just have to turn it up really loud, you'll hear it.

the title is a reference to the stupidity of it all. Desert being a desolate wasteland, of no use to anyone. Keep your filthy hands off being a nationalist rage that someone dare try to take my desert. Useless to me, but mine all the same damn ya! Waters' dad died in WWII, this event formed his feeling towards war in general and the likes of the Falklands war when young lives were again lost for what was no more than a pissing contest over a remote island community really got him going. And trust me, I was in the uk at the time and NOONE had heard of the Falklands until the Argentines landed!

Soviet invasion of Afghanistan One of the wars involving Israel And the war going on at the time that Waters hated the most, the Falkland Island War

IT'S ABOUT THE FALKLANDS, YOU BUNCH OF HEATHENS!!!

For some reason I have an image of Pink Floyd in the desert, with a violin, and the explosion is the sound of a piano falling infront of them.

The piano explodes in a cascade of splinters, while the band plays on. Yeah, I don't know what this means either.

The song was written in 1982 and states the current world scene. The Soviets had moved into Afghanistan, but were never able to quell the Taliban (sound familiar?). Israel, under Menachim Begin, took control of all of Lebanon (a widely criticized move, even Reagan told them to pull out) and Galtieri invaded the Falklands (took the Union Jack).

The whole album gives Waters a chance to denounce the militarism of the Thatcher/Reagan/Breznev era. No wonder Waters has such little tolerance for W now.

You can't understand this song outside of the context of the whole album. That is the point of an album. They can be more than just a collection of individual songs. The entire album means more than just the sum of its individual songs.

One of the main themes of the album the betrayal of the post WWII dream. People like Waters' father gave their lives so there wouldn't be any more stupid wars but, obviously, that didn't happen. The lyrics and their phrasing drive home the point that the people starting modern wars seem to do so casually. Like, "Oh, lets invade that country. Yes, why not?" A decision you might make over lunch one day. Nothing of consequence, etc.