Honour

This reminds me of the "Code and Measure" of the Solamnic Knights in DragonLance. Kinda says we have to fight, for it is our duty, it is our lives. We must not fail. Good stuff, and I really like VNV Nation

The way I like to interpret this song is as a motivational tool. Being an American, and witnessing the general public's passivism daily, this song has important meaning. People should stand up for themselves, their friends, family, and their beliefs so that they may continue on their chosen path. That, instead of letting everything slowly deteriorate because they've been manipulated by an external source into believing something false, or being convinced everything will be alright. Everything will not be alright if people just sit idly and observe. Stand your ground, this is what we've all been fighting for...Our spirits, our laws, our way of life. Don't wait for death to be free. Free yourselves now and let your voices be heard.

Screw the lyrics, I just want to see waldemar's face when he realises VNV Nation aren't about white power.

To me none of these definitons go nearly far enough. everything on the praise the fallen album has to be taken into account with the rest of the cd. That's already been mentioned though. Especially when mixing this one with solitude I get the impression that VNV isn't preaching just the battle of good and evil-but a whole third front which acts against both of them. All i've heard from his desire to forget the past seems to scream that all leaders (including god) who have come before us have misguided us...look at where he says "for heaven or hell we shall not wait." this song is all about taking salvation into your own hands, and not letting god or the devil dictate that to you. To not do this would be a slap in the face to all of those who died for freedom, because with god there is no freedom, we will have our fate's decided for us. He's saying that we are beyond god to truely fix things the way we want it to be fixed. this song is all about what happens as the end begins as prophecizded in 2012. all of this album very lightly seems to hint on a human driven resistance to both god and satan, though he never seems to come out directly and say it.

Quote from a VNV Nation interview with Ronan Harris.

"I mean there have been songs since I feel like a victory, but here I go using militaristic terminology, but the album was not about war and the people saw it like that, it’s like people who took Honor as a war song. Honor’s an anti-war song, it’s about a veteran if you will, because it’s a long dissertation. I didn’t ever want to write a simplistic album. It’s a long dissertation to explain to people what that metaphor, how it was being used. Like, one track, track 11 is a minute’s silence, it’s a symbolism of remembrance, because when on the 11th of November at eleven minutes passed eleven in most allied countries, there was a minute’s silence to remember the dead. It was called Schweigeminute because Germans, that's what they call a minute’s silence, they don’t have it at eleven minutes passed eleven on 11th November because they're, you know, dissuaded from honoring the war dead. To me it was a parallel between all the people I know who have struggled to be who they are and lost and failed."

I love this song.

I believe it's about a country at war, and how justice doesn't tend to have any part of it, we tend to "Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war"....not looking before we leap.

I think that this song is a combination of the two opinions of those above me (XorcistVAC and RayTracer) I feel that it talks about how there is no justice, or reason involved in war, but that in a situation like that, it is our duty to fight for our beliefs and for our children so that in the future, there will be no war

This song really makes me think about how our nation works with the world... when i say our nation i am referring to the united states. Though i am originated from britain, i am a US citizen... bloody american chaps are annoying...

To get a better understanding of the line, "Cry havoc! and let slip the dogs of war," refer to this URL: http://www.cs.rice.edu/~ssiyer/minstrels/poems/48.html

Summary: This line is taken from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. It is spoken as part of a monologue by Caesar's friend, standing over his grave, prophesizing hurtin' onto Caesar's conspiritors. 'Havoc,' in that time, meant "a military cry to general slaughter without quarter." Caesar is to rise from the grave with Ate (the goddess of vengeance) and cry "Havoc!" and let slip the dogs of war. Yummy.

I would also like to point out this song's relevance to the recent WTC events, and contrast its point of view to that of Solitary:

'Now' we are trying to destroy the Taliban and take vengeance for our loss: "Stand your ground, this is what we are fighting for ... Let slip the dogs of war."

But we will eventually realize that this is completely futile, and we will "sever the line to the guilty past, to the ones who brought us nothing [the government and this revenge mentality] who spoke of futures brave and proud and brought only hate and war. Lined the streets with hollow praise, marked the land with paper statues [basically, the whole idea of being against the Taliban and that they're evil and we're the pillar of hope and justice in the world] Shadows fell on their futile ways, and then there was nothing more [us realizing that this 'war' is trivial and pointless, and simply dropping it.]"

"Like all Brit's, they think they are born with a better pot to piss in." - Wall Street.

That's for you arsenic. Truth Hurts.