I think this song is about sticking up for yourself when things get tense and chaotic. It seems like the song was written about a real life situation, and the repeated reference to the "little men" refers to the crowd or the bystanders. Sometimes in group fights, you get a situation where multiple people express one side of it, piling down on a defenseless person because there's a window to do it. However, the winner is the one who can take on multiple people at once, and emerge from the fight with no regrets or remorse:
"Beat me all the way I'll take it all night
Kick him when he's down
Hey, don't worry, I'll get along home alright"
Dexter Holland is blending the singular first person view as the one being "kicked when they're down" with the view of the angry mob, the second person view. It's as if his survival in a dog-eat-dog world depends on looking for a good opportunity to strike his enemies. It's probably a song about planning revenge.
[Edit: chorus line is second person, not plural 3rd person.]
I think this song is about sticking up for yourself when things get tense and chaotic. It seems like the song was written about a real life situation, and the repeated reference to the "little men" refers to the crowd or the bystanders. Sometimes in group fights, you get a situation where multiple people express one side of it, piling down on a defenseless person because there's a window to do it. However, the winner is the one who can take on multiple people at once, and emerge from the fight with no regrets or remorse:
"Beat me all the way I'll take it all night Kick him when he's down Hey, don't worry, I'll get along home alright"
Dexter Holland is blending the singular first person view as the one being "kicked when they're down" with the view of the angry mob, the second person view. It's as if his survival in a dog-eat-dog world depends on looking for a good opportunity to strike his enemies. It's probably a song about planning revenge.
[Edit: chorus line is second person, not plural 3rd person.]