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Getting trampled under boots of progess
Ignore the pleading of the nameless faces
Now with our backs against the wall
How long til we fall?
Do away with all the underprivileged
their demographic doesn't fit your image
Turn your blind eye when duty calls
How long til we fall?
(In With The New)
This is something that you can't ignore
A simple thing worth fighting for
cuz now they're tearing down our doors
So she screams out the window,
"I've had it up to here"
So sick and tired of wondering
where I'll be next year...
Caring less about the homeless millions
All the petty problems that go with them
Reap the profit that reaps thier lives and
Tell me that it's fine
Throw them out and call it relocation
Lower-income-housing quick solution
A Generation lost
Now in the whirlwind of my life
Is where you presently reside
Can I pretend you don't exist
Maybe just for ten more minutes?
My hearts been broken into two
and rusted from years of disuse
So will you place upon it your hands
Will you help it beat again?
It seems the whole world's turned on me
(Bound and gagged) in the land of the free
Let's talk this over, this game is over
In with the new, out with the old
Hearts of the world have grown so cold
Let's talk this over, this game is over
Ignore the pleading of the nameless faces
Now with our backs against the wall
How long til we fall?
Do away with all the underprivileged
their demographic doesn't fit your image
Turn your blind eye when duty calls
How long til we fall?
(In With The New)
This is something that you can't ignore
A simple thing worth fighting for
cuz now they're tearing down our doors
So she screams out the window,
"I've had it up to here"
So sick and tired of wondering
where I'll be next year...
Caring less about the homeless millions
All the petty problems that go with them
Reap the profit that reaps thier lives and
Tell me that it's fine
Throw them out and call it relocation
Lower-income-housing quick solution
A Generation lost
Now in the whirlwind of my life
Is where you presently reside
Can I pretend you don't exist
Maybe just for ten more minutes?
My hearts been broken into two
and rusted from years of disuse
So will you place upon it your hands
Will you help it beat again?
It seems the whole world's turned on me
(Bound and gagged) in the land of the free
Let's talk this over, this game is over
In with the new, out with the old
Hearts of the world have grown so cold
Let's talk this over, this game is over
Lyrics submitted by rjbucs28
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In most Rise Against songs it seems there is many different things you can interpret from them. personally i think it is more to do with politics as thats what rise against generally sing more about.
i think its about how all the under-privaliged people (not just homeless) are getting 'trammpled' on and left behind because the government wants to progress and so they are just getting in the way and so they are just forgotten about i.e. "A generation lost".
The last part however is hard to pin down onto one view point. the fact that they say 'she' doesn't mean its related to a girl. 'she' is used to describe many things, for example a boat (not that a boat has anything to do with the song).
So the last part may be saying that people just dotn care about the under-privaliged anymore "Hearts of the world have grown so cold". also "Can I pretend you don't exist, Maybe just for ten more minutes?" could mbe saying that, can they pretend all this isn't true, just for short while. to remember what life used to be like.
This is my interpretation of it. im not saying its true, just my view point.
Proof:
"Getting trampled under boots of progess
Ignore the pleading of the nameless faces
Now with our backs against the wall"
the men dont want to go to war, but theyre forced to
"How long til we fall?"
the men are wondering how long it will last that people can be forced to go to war.
"Do away with all the underprivileged
their demographic doesn't fit your image"
those in college dont ever get drafted, and only the underprivileged cannot afford/dont have the resources for college
"Turn your blind eye when duty calls"
the rich look away when theyre supposed to be the ones going to war.
"(In With The New)"
they send in more and more troops, but they just keep dying. either that, or new officials in power.
"This is something that you can't ignore
A simple thing worth fighting for
cuz now they're tearing down our doors"
theyre tearing down our doors to get us go to war
"So she screams out the window,
"I've had it up to here"
So sick and tired of wondering
where I'll be next year..."
the girl's boyfriend or husband has gone off to war, and she keeps wondering where the hell she's going to be in a year, cuz he might die or whatever.
"Caring less about the homeless millions
All the petty problems that go with them
Reap the profit that reaps their lives and
Tell me that it's fine"
the government continues to go deeper and deeper into debt, helping themselves, while there are still millions of homeless. i cant really think of a way this ties into the rest of the song. it's weird.
"Throw them out and call it relocation
Lower-income-housing quick solution"
the gov't programs aren't helping
"A GENERATION LOST"
this generation just forgets about the homeless, so we're hopelessly lost.
"Now in the whirlwind of my life
Is where you presently reside
Can I pretend you don't exist
Maybe just for ten more minutes?
My hearts been broken into two
and rusted from years of disuse
So will you place upon it your hands
Will you help it beat again?"
seems like the song completely changes gears to a love song at this point
"It seems the whole world's turned on me
(Bound and gagged) in the land of the free
Let's talk this over, this game is over
In with the new, out with the old
Hearts of the world have grown so cold
Let's talk this over, this game is over "
the view of the soldier sent to war. the land of the free has turned on him. then the very end, the last line, is that his girlfriend or wife has left him. seems like this song is just the story of a soldier who's having a hell of a time in every aspect of his life.
essentially, i think this is a cry for the government to pay attention to the underprivileged, and a justification for their state of living. It's a cry for action: the government knows its there but wants to "pretend you don't exist, maybe just for ten more minutes"
"Getting trampled under boots of progess
Ignore the pleading of the nameless faces
Now with our backs against the wall
How long til we fall?
Do away with all the underprivileged
their demographic doesn't fit your image
Turn your blind eye when duty calls
How long til we fall?"
(line by line analysis)
Small businesses are completely wiped out by huge companies around the world
The government of course lets them suffer because the large businesses are a huge asset to the economy
People are pushed to the edge with their income, and its only a matter of time before they have to file bankruptcy or go homeless
Again, the government doesn't care about them because they aren't the ones benefiting the economy: their demographic is pushed to the bottom of the food chain
The government is aware of the growing problem, and knows the dire circumstances, but pretends not to notice
Many of the lines makes sense when put into a similar context
"Caring less about the homeless millions
All the petty problems that go with them
Reap the profit that reaps thier lives and
Tell me that it's fine
Throw them out and call it relocation
Lower-income-housing quick solution
A Generation lost"
Refers to for closure, perhaps
As for the "speech in the end"
I am convinced it takes on two view points
First: from the governments point of view:
"Now in the whirlwind of my life
Is where you presently reside
Can I pretend you don't exist
Maybe just for ten more minutes?"
This homless issue is a "whirlind" in their political life, its a negative aspect
As mentioned, they want to ignore the underprivileged
Second: from the homless point of view:
"My hearts been broken into two
and rusted from years of disuse
So will you place upon it your hands
Will you help it beat again?
It seems the whole world's turned on me
(Bound and gagged) in the land of the free
Let's talk this over, this game is over
In with the new, out with the old
Hearts of the world have grown so cold
Let's talk this over, this game is over"
Their heart is broken because of the impossible situation they are faced with
their heart could be a metaphor for several things: a, emotions b, love I am inclined to think the narrator person as resorted to prostitution "years of disuse"
next to lines: a plea to the government to help them
it seems like everyone is frowning upon homeless people, people attribute a lack of home with insanity
now it becomes clear that the whole thing is in the context of America, and the poverty there
corporate America and money is all a game: and they have lost
I am not sure what they are referencing...
everyone has turned away from homeless people or anyone who is under privileged
My hearts been broken into two
and rusted from years of disuse
So will you place upon it your hands
Will you help it beat again?
It seems the whole world's turned on me
(Bound and gagged) in the land of the free
Let's talk this over, this game is over
In with the new, out with the old
Hearts of the world have grown so cold
Let's talk this over, this game is over
Overall, its a criticism of the government/ all the people of America: ACTION MUST BE TAKEN. POVERTY SHOULD BE ENDED
Caring less about the homeless millions
All the petty problems that go with them
Reap the profit that reaps thier lives and
Tell me that it's fine
Throw them out and call it relocation
Lower-income-housing quick solution
A Generation lost
These are the issues of today. Homeless millions don't have to be in The US. The Sufferer And The Witness deals mostly with the mistreatment of the indigenous people all over the world. Just his tone seems like its Tim screaming at all of us to get up and do something hence: "Turn your blind eye when duty calls" doesn't really have to be about serving in the military just being proactive.
And as for the speech in the end I'm not sure why thats there but it really does make the song.