The line is from Planet of the Apes, where the main rule among those crazy apes is that they can't kill another ape, no matter what. The song makes me think of living under some sort of dictatorial rule (the first two lines). But the guy never said he agreed with the dictator, so he wouldn't be breaking any agreement by killing him. The dictator may have come to power after having much success as a soldier ("a hero"), maybe freeing the country, which would render it vulnerable to totalitarian rule. He is disappointed as he looks around him and beholds the fattened masses (or maybe himself) just sitting there going along with the dic because he's keeping them fed. There is some sort of "procedure" through which the dic pics people who don't go along with his plan, like loyalty tests and the like, so he can kill them and prevent a domino effect. The dictator says that his people shouldn't kill each other, but he kills the ones he doesn't like. This may be why the singer merely says his thoughts as opposed to acting on them. The last verse remains elusive, but it seems to fit with the rest of the song. And as the last line states, it's always the system getting us down.
The line is from Planet of the Apes, where the main rule among those crazy apes is that they can't kill another ape, no matter what. The song makes me think of living under some sort of dictatorial rule (the first two lines). But the guy never said he agreed with the dictator, so he wouldn't be breaking any agreement by killing him. The dictator may have come to power after having much success as a soldier ("a hero"), maybe freeing the country, which would render it vulnerable to totalitarian rule. He is disappointed as he looks around him and beholds the fattened masses (or maybe himself) just sitting there going along with the dic because he's keeping them fed. There is some sort of "procedure" through which the dic pics people who don't go along with his plan, like loyalty tests and the like, so he can kill them and prevent a domino effect. The dictator says that his people shouldn't kill each other, but he kills the ones he doesn't like. This may be why the singer merely says his thoughts as opposed to acting on them. The last verse remains elusive, but it seems to fit with the rest of the song. And as the last line states, it's always the system getting us down.