I would like to start out by saying that this song is written with the opinion that Kelley was murdered, whether he truthfully was or not. If he committed suicide, it was probably because of the overwhelming stress he underwent. The government caused his death either way. I think the line about being dispensed with when you become inconvenient is the main idea of the song. Thom is using the murder/suicide to deliver the point that we are helpless in the hands of the government. The "we think the same things at the same time, we just can't do anything about it" and "there are so many of us" show that there are a lot of people who are not okay with the government's overwhelming power, but they are powerless to stop it.
i think a lot of the time people shrug songs off and say they're about a book, about a movie, an event. Song writing is another form of expression. If songs were movies, books, or events made into listening material, then they wouldn't be art. Songwriters use these things to inspire and influence them, and to help them make their own point. I assure you my friends, Thom is an artist. He was trying to make a point, and in my opinion, he nailed it.
I would like to start out by saying that this song is written with the opinion that Kelley was murdered, whether he truthfully was or not. If he committed suicide, it was probably because of the overwhelming stress he underwent. The government caused his death either way. I think the line about being dispensed with when you become inconvenient is the main idea of the song. Thom is using the murder/suicide to deliver the point that we are helpless in the hands of the government. The "we think the same things at the same time, we just can't do anything about it" and "there are so many of us" show that there are a lot of people who are not okay with the government's overwhelming power, but they are powerless to stop it.
i think a lot of the time people shrug songs off and say they're about a book, about a movie, an event. Song writing is another form of expression. If songs were movies, books, or events made into listening material, then they wouldn't be art. Songwriters use these things to inspire and influence them, and to help them make their own point. I assure you my friends, Thom is an artist. He was trying to make a point, and in my opinion, he nailed it.