"just a mission and a gun to paint rainbows in vietnam
and a heart that always told you there's a madness in us all"
I think that the first verse has to do with americans thinking that the american way must be spread. we go in thinking yeah, we're so american we're badass everybody wants to be like us and if they dont want to be we'll show them how awesome we are with our guns and tanks till they want to be just like us.
we invade countries and try to pass on the american way.
"he may not be born of this land
but he was born of this world
he was born of all the mothers and the colors of our brothers
and the love that was taught to
you by the one they call jesus christ"
the second verse goes deeper than obama as thefoxkyle suggested. this verse is saying that america is a multinational nation. yet each of us has been guilty of hating our fellow brother due to his skin color, his nationality. we see somebody with dark tan skin and think 'is he a terrorist?' we look at foreigners with hateful eyes. we dont look at them as we look at ourselves, as human beings. however we know this to be false as they were born on this same planet of the love that is universal in every home.
"they said every one of you will never try to lend a hand
when the policemen don't understand"
i believe this has a personal, and group message in it. on a personal level, its saying that when we see for example, the police beating a homeless man to death, we wont stop the police. nobody will object or help. who will speak up against the police? maybe not the best example, its saying when we see our brother from india being hassled by an officer, being unfairly searched, just because of his pigment, that we will just let this slide, and chock it up to this is america. thats the american way.
"there's two eyes for every one of us
but somebody got there first and took them all"
we all have the ability to see these truths, but somebody blinded us in our childhood, taught us hate, and prejudice, taught us that our brothers were not our brothers because they believe differently or love differently or even just look differently. taught us that america is #1!!! and that we should push our ideals everywhere else we walk.
this song is just an attempt to wake a few people up. its a slap in the face at american idealism. and an attempt to remind you that jesus christ taught you to love everybody and that not one of us here in america remembers the parables we learned in sunday school
to mornings: Paragraph 8 hits a note few people see or really understand. Our views of life are shaped by those around us to such a degree that prejudices last through generations. And so many of these prejudices are ridiculous. If we could see the world through pristine eyes and without the shades that other folk have painted for us, I believe there would be less hatred and fear around us. Example: as long as Palestinian children are taught that his Jewish cousin has "horns" so will it continue as they in turn teach...
to mornings: Paragraph 8 hits a note few people see or really understand. Our views of life are shaped by those around us to such a degree that prejudices last through generations. And so many of these prejudices are ridiculous. If we could see the world through pristine eyes and without the shades that other folk have painted for us, I believe there would be less hatred and fear around us. Example: as long as Palestinian children are taught that his Jewish cousin has "horns" so will it continue as they in turn teach their children the same thoughts. Here's hoping people will search for the truth for themselves and not so easily accept all that they are taught.
"just a mission and a gun to paint rainbows in vietnam and a heart that always told you there's a madness in us all"
I think that the first verse has to do with americans thinking that the american way must be spread. we go in thinking yeah, we're so american we're badass everybody wants to be like us and if they dont want to be we'll show them how awesome we are with our guns and tanks till they want to be just like us. we invade countries and try to pass on the american way.
"he may not be born of this land but he was born of this world he was born of all the mothers and the colors of our brothers and the love that was taught to you by the one they call jesus christ"
the second verse goes deeper than obama as thefoxkyle suggested. this verse is saying that america is a multinational nation. yet each of us has been guilty of hating our fellow brother due to his skin color, his nationality. we see somebody with dark tan skin and think 'is he a terrorist?' we look at foreigners with hateful eyes. we dont look at them as we look at ourselves, as human beings. however we know this to be false as they were born on this same planet of the love that is universal in every home.
"they said every one of you will never try to lend a hand when the policemen don't understand"
i believe this has a personal, and group message in it. on a personal level, its saying that when we see for example, the police beating a homeless man to death, we wont stop the police. nobody will object or help. who will speak up against the police? maybe not the best example, its saying when we see our brother from india being hassled by an officer, being unfairly searched, just because of his pigment, that we will just let this slide, and chock it up to this is america. thats the american way.
"there's two eyes for every one of us but somebody got there first and took them all"
we all have the ability to see these truths, but somebody blinded us in our childhood, taught us hate, and prejudice, taught us that our brothers were not our brothers because they believe differently or love differently or even just look differently. taught us that america is #1!!! and that we should push our ideals everywhere else we walk.
this song is just an attempt to wake a few people up. its a slap in the face at american idealism. and an attempt to remind you that jesus christ taught you to love everybody and that not one of us here in america remembers the parables we learned in sunday school
to mornings: Paragraph 8 hits a note few people see or really understand. Our views of life are shaped by those around us to such a degree that prejudices last through generations. And so many of these prejudices are ridiculous. If we could see the world through pristine eyes and without the shades that other folk have painted for us, I believe there would be less hatred and fear around us. Example: as long as Palestinian children are taught that his Jewish cousin has "horns" so will it continue as they in turn teach...
to mornings: Paragraph 8 hits a note few people see or really understand. Our views of life are shaped by those around us to such a degree that prejudices last through generations. And so many of these prejudices are ridiculous. If we could see the world through pristine eyes and without the shades that other folk have painted for us, I believe there would be less hatred and fear around us. Example: as long as Palestinian children are taught that his Jewish cousin has "horns" so will it continue as they in turn teach their children the same thoughts. Here's hoping people will search for the truth for themselves and not so easily accept all that they are taught.