I pretty much agree with the above poster when he/she says that soldiers are also responsible for the war by choosing to be in the military. Though, nowadays I guess it's not unheard of..that there are soldiers actually opposed to the war, possibly in the military beforehand, and hope to, an ongoing war that they can't single-handedly stop, serve in an honorable way and minimize civilian casualties/etc.. But I guess they are still responsible, and being rather self-conflicting and hypocritical by staying in the military, probably choosing to stay in the military because of financial reasons. Though I guess with the say that system is set up nowadays, many are "trapped" once they sign up, unless they are wounded, or do something to get themselves discharged.
I really like this song, and I admire this band for making such bold statements in a time like this-- when questioning america's policies would often get you eaten alive... but I think some of the lines of the song are a bit cruel and vindictive; "There's fresh meat in the club tonight / God bless our dead marines" I interpret that as him sardonically saying he's looking hit on newly-deceased soldier's girlfriends/widows. But I could be misinterpreting that. I guess the band members believe that soldiers killed in an unjust/unneeded war got what they deserved, and I understand where they are coming from. but to me it seems a little conflicting to wish for peace and for the world to be pacifistic, but at the same time sort of gloat over the deaths of those who you oppose.. Though, again, I can see why one would believe that the soldiers themselves are as guilty as George Bush or whomever.
I guess I don't know for sure if the band themselves consider themselves pacifists. I've read before that most of them would consider themselves anarchists, and I guess true anarchy would probably require violent revolt by the people. I guess with so much conflict and war in the world, it's easy to be come disillusioned to the point where you wish those willing to fight for unjust reasons to "thin their own ranks" so to speak.. but the band often seems to have very positive/peaceful messages at one point, then make sort of barbed statements like the one I mentioned.
I guess I would consider myself a pacifist, but I don't believe that is always the answer, and sometimes conflict or war is the lesser of two evils .. WWII or the civil war for example. I think in WWII the atrocities happening could not have been resolved in a peaceful way... though one could argue that Germany was left in shambles because of WWI.. I guess evil begets evil, and it's unrealistic and overly idealistic to expect that all evil in the world will just vanish because of wishful thinking.
I personally think the allied forces were the rather rare example of 'war heroes'.. my grandfather for example was in one of the first groups of american soldiers to enter the concentration camps, and I assume, saw the most awful things that most anyone could ever imagine. He never bragged or told 'war stories' and I am sure he was not proud of killing other men, but felt it needed to be done for the greater good of the German/Jewish people and the world in general.
I would love to hear Efrim's take on this topic (I'm assuming he's the one who wrote the songs lyrics)... especially considering the fact that he is of Jewish ancestry... and it's possible that he might be here if no one stepped in intervene in WWII.
Anyway, I really love this band, and mean no disrespect to them, or what they stand for. I am glad that there is a band out there with enough guts to say something powerful like this, and get people such as myself thinking about the state of affairs and really questioning the morality of what their country is doing with their tax dollars and military.
I pretty much agree with the above poster when he/she says that soldiers are also responsible for the war by choosing to be in the military. Though, nowadays I guess it's not unheard of..that there are soldiers actually opposed to the war, possibly in the military beforehand, and hope to, an ongoing war that they can't single-handedly stop, serve in an honorable way and minimize civilian casualties/etc.. But I guess they are still responsible, and being rather self-conflicting and hypocritical by staying in the military, probably choosing to stay in the military because of financial reasons. Though I guess with the say that system is set up nowadays, many are "trapped" once they sign up, unless they are wounded, or do something to get themselves discharged.
I really like this song, and I admire this band for making such bold statements in a time like this-- when questioning america's policies would often get you eaten alive... but I think some of the lines of the song are a bit cruel and vindictive; "There's fresh meat in the club tonight / God bless our dead marines" I interpret that as him sardonically saying he's looking hit on newly-deceased soldier's girlfriends/widows. But I could be misinterpreting that. I guess the band members believe that soldiers killed in an unjust/unneeded war got what they deserved, and I understand where they are coming from. but to me it seems a little conflicting to wish for peace and for the world to be pacifistic, but at the same time sort of gloat over the deaths of those who you oppose.. Though, again, I can see why one would believe that the soldiers themselves are as guilty as George Bush or whomever. I guess I don't know for sure if the band themselves consider themselves pacifists. I've read before that most of them would consider themselves anarchists, and I guess true anarchy would probably require violent revolt by the people. I guess with so much conflict and war in the world, it's easy to be come disillusioned to the point where you wish those willing to fight for unjust reasons to "thin their own ranks" so to speak.. but the band often seems to have very positive/peaceful messages at one point, then make sort of barbed statements like the one I mentioned. I guess I would consider myself a pacifist, but I don't believe that is always the answer, and sometimes conflict or war is the lesser of two evils .. WWII or the civil war for example. I think in WWII the atrocities happening could not have been resolved in a peaceful way... though one could argue that Germany was left in shambles because of WWI.. I guess evil begets evil, and it's unrealistic and overly idealistic to expect that all evil in the world will just vanish because of wishful thinking. I personally think the allied forces were the rather rare example of 'war heroes'.. my grandfather for example was in one of the first groups of american soldiers to enter the concentration camps, and I assume, saw the most awful things that most anyone could ever imagine. He never bragged or told 'war stories' and I am sure he was not proud of killing other men, but felt it needed to be done for the greater good of the German/Jewish people and the world in general. I would love to hear Efrim's take on this topic (I'm assuming he's the one who wrote the songs lyrics)... especially considering the fact that he is of Jewish ancestry... and it's possible that he might be here if no one stepped in intervene in WWII. Anyway, I really love this band, and mean no disrespect to them, or what they stand for. I am glad that there is a band out there with enough guts to say something powerful like this, and get people such as myself thinking about the state of affairs and really questioning the morality of what their country is doing with their tax dollars and military.