I'm from Germany and as pikabooon quoted Randy, we didn't like the USA very much at some times (especially during Bush Junior's presidency) and many still don't today. It often felt like watching our spoiled younger brother walking around pulling other children's hair and destroying their sand castles, generally being a giant dick and getting away with it. And then we tend to go on and rant about that stupid idiot. So it's good to have this song to remind us that while he may be an unbearable brat, he's still our brother and should have a reliable friend in us. Also it's a quite unpleasant but all the more necessary reminder what a bunch of aggressive spoiled brats we used to be so there's no justification for patronizing.
He's still a pest sometimes, but "hardly the worst this poor world has seen".
Also the USA as a country might have done some terrible things but that does not mean, that the US-Americans as a people are bad or mean.
So when I find myself or a fellow German rant about the USA I listen to this song to ease my mind.
@martinberard: That's the whole point of that line. You think you know worse examples. But you'd be hard pressed to actually name one. Leopold stands for all the European tyrants, we have forgotten.
When Randy says "he owned the Congo", that's not just a figure of speech. The Congo was not a colony of Belgium but of Leopold. And in the 20 years he owned it, he squeezed as much rubber and ivory out of it as possible.
For the Congolese that meant constant slavery, torture, rape and murder.
After 20 years 10 million, half the population had been slaughtered.
I don't want to go into details, because I didn't come here to preach. You can look it up yourself.
I'm from Germany and as pikabooon quoted Randy, we didn't like the USA very much at some times (especially during Bush Junior's presidency) and many still don't today. It often felt like watching our spoiled younger brother walking around pulling other children's hair and destroying their sand castles, generally being a giant dick and getting away with it. And then we tend to go on and rant about that stupid idiot. So it's good to have this song to remind us that while he may be an unbearable brat, he's still our brother and should have a reliable friend in us. Also it's a quite unpleasant but all the more necessary reminder what a bunch of aggressive spoiled brats we used to be so there's no justification for patronizing. He's still a pest sometimes, but "hardly the worst this poor world has seen". Also the USA as a country might have done some terrible things but that does not mean, that the US-Americans as a people are bad or mean. So when I find myself or a fellow German rant about the USA I listen to this song to ease my mind.
@martinberard: That's the whole point of that line. You think you know worse examples. But you'd be hard pressed to actually name one. Leopold stands for all the European tyrants, we have forgotten. When Randy says "he owned the Congo", that's not just a figure of speech. The Congo was not a colony of Belgium but of Leopold. And in the 20 years he owned it, he squeezed as much rubber and ivory out of it as possible. For the Congolese that meant constant slavery, torture, rape and murder. After 20 years 10 million, half the population had been slaughtered. I don't want to go into details, because I didn't come here to preach. You can look it up yourself.