"Better to die on your feet than to live on your knees": (to chrisb1) General Franco was a far right dictator, so he has certainly never said theses words, related to the left revolutionary "tradition" (from Spartacus to Che Ghevara). And the Spanish Civil War, which took places during the 1930's, opposed these two sides:
republicans, socialists and anarchists as Durruti
VS
conservative catholics and fascists as Franco.
The first ones where supported by the Soviet Union, the second ones by the Nazis (you know ? this bad guys, famous during the 1930's and 1940's)... THIS WAR HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH US IMPERIALISM (please read a little of History before writing such bullshits): US imperialism get to a worldwide scale at the end of WWII.
About the meaning of this song (for me): sickness of "too much sunshine", too much comfort and illusion provided by consumption society, makes you forget the real political stakes. You have fun, you feel free and well though you live on your knees; when you realize the illusion "It's enough to make you wann cry".
"Better to die on your feet than to live on your knees": (to chrisb1) General Franco was a far right dictator, so he has certainly never said theses words, related to the left revolutionary "tradition" (from Spartacus to Che Ghevara). And the Spanish Civil War, which took places during the 1930's, opposed these two sides: