System of a Down – Prison Song

• 0
  General Comment:This is about how law enforcement wastes their time arresting people for stupid things and spend the money and taxes on other stupid things.

  Flag Magikarp1on September 25, 2012   Link

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• -1
  General Comment:its about the damn goverment, and how they're not doing everything they can to make this world as safe as possible.

  Flag Freakstellaon April 27, 2012   Link

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• +3
  General Comment:I think this song is an attempt to draw the listeners attention to the way in which criminal justice policy in the US has become increasingly punitive and removed from research recommendations in the last 30 or so years. In particuar, it expresses outrage at the rapid expansion of imprisonment since the 1980s (the US is now the world's biggest incarcerator - incarcerating people at a rate of about 750 for every 100,000 of the general population I think). Something tells me that its no coincidence that inequality has dramatically increased over the same period - as inequality increases governments need to use increasingly repressive measures to keep the poor in check. Anyway, as alluded to by SOAD, the main cause of this RIDICULOUS rise in prison numbers can be attributed to the so called "war on drugs" and the introduction of mandatory minimum sentences. Rather than reserving prison for dangerous (violent and sexual) offenders, it is now being used far more widely and innapropriately for large numbers of petty drug offenders, who as SOAD note - research has proven would benefit hugely from treatment rather than incarceration. The rapid expansion of imprisonment is also a HUGELY expensive way of dealing with petty drug offenders who tend to be socially excluded individuals ("all your taxes paying for the new non-rich") and has meant that the US now spends more on the prison system alone, nevermind the rest of the criminal justice system, than it does on education! So I suppose this song is really just an attempt to draw attention to this fucked up situation.

  Flag Santeria1on April 29, 2011   Link

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• +1
  General Comment:This song has a great bass.

  Flag mediocremurphyon January 21, 2011   Link

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• -1
  General Comment:i always listen to this song and feel as though the government is trying keep everyone in a prison inside society, not a prison with walls and barbed wire n shit. they do as they please and we just observe.

  Flag servant2serveon November 21, 2009   Link

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• +1
  General Comment:The most... 'frightening' song I've heard from them. I've heard these things. Drug runners bribe our dear sweet government and in turn, the government outlaws lesser or non-destructive drugs to direct more money to the black market so more drug money laces the pockets of their corrupt, pompous asses so they can sit on something soft while they make the "lesser men" seat themselves in hardass coffins called prisons.
  
  Bottom line, the government has no desire to stop corruption... they're as corrupt as three quarters or more of this blue but bloody little rock and they LUST for that money because they have a system...a loop... a spiral of twisted agony and laughter and they don't give a SHIT what happens to us!!!
  
  Taking the thought this far...it pisses me off. It ALL pisses me off!!!

  Flag CloudLevion November 17, 2009   Link

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• 0
  General Comment:they should legalize marijuana cause it causes less damage than alchohal and cigarretes combined. and to illegalize marijuana they could get money in lumber and not get a lot of money selling hemp. to show that the US is tough they will arrest for minor things to show they mean buisness when the person might be innocent

  Flag SOADFTW412on July 11, 2009   Link

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• 0
  General Comment: Amazing how a song written around 7 years ago is still pretty much telling us exactly what's going on in the world. There are corporations sponsoring dictators around the world. FACT! In fact, there are various corporations that are MORE POWERFUL than a handful of small countries.
  Hundreds of thousands of dollars are spent on security against "terrorists" that kill less than 60 Americans a year, while nothing is done to prevent things like Coronary Heart Disease which kill 400,000 Americans a year. True story.

  Flag Disgaeaon April 17, 2009   Link

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  My Interpretation:its i buy my crack, my smack, my bitch right here in hollywood
  which is sayin government obviosly cant do shit to stop us with drugs, n even prostitutes i spose
  but they put us away 2 make us look like there solving the problem
  Minor drug offenders fill your prisons
  You don't even flinch
  All our taxes paying for your wars
  Against the new non-rich,

  Flag chopsthestickon February 20, 2009   Link

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• 0
  General Comment:This song is about how the US Government introduced drugs into the population in order to imprison people. Oliver North is a good read on this subject...CIA flying cocaine into the States to finance secret foreign government takeovers in South America. Hence the "Utilizing drugs to pay for secret wars around the world, Drugs are now your global policy, Now you police the globe," line.

  Flag Freeman Webbon November 17, 2008   Link

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