The Gasman Cometh - Jeffrey Lewis

The train now standing on platform four

What will you do when the gas taps turn?

Where will you be when the bodies burn?

Will you just watch as the cattle trucks roll by?

Pretend it isn’t happening?

Turn a blind eye?

See the army convoys quietly passing by?

Heard the helicopters in your little bit of sky?

Have you seen the squad cars packed with boys in blue?

Have you ever wondered what they’re there to do?

To ashes at Auschwitz, it’s just a small leap

When power is threatened life is cheap

Don’t think that they won’t do it, cos they already do

But this time 'round the pawns are me and you

Pictures in the paper of soldiers in the street

Pictures in the history books of rotting human meat

Auschwitz’s now a tourist spot for the goggle-eyed to pry

Still in working order just for you and I

Photos of the victims, of gas, of gun, of bomb

The inheritance of violence in the bookshelves of your home

Don’t wait for it to come to you, cos come it surely will

The guardians of the state are trained to search, destroy and kill

To ashes at Auschwitz, it’s just a small leap

When power is threatened life is cheap

Don’t think that they won’t do it, cos they already do

But this time 'round the pawns are me and you

There’s people sitting at this moment, fingers on the trigger

There’s loyalty and royalty to make their violence figure

Allegiance to the flag, they say, as they lock the prison door

Allegiance to normality, that’s what lobotomies are for

God, queen and country, they say we’ve got the choice

Free speech for all if you’ve got no voice

Propaganda on the airwaves here’s the way to live

Not for you and me the alternative

They look for peace in Iraq with a thousand squaddy boys

Torture in their prisons is another of their ploys

They’ll keep us all in line and they’ll keep us on our toes

But if we stand against their power, we’ll see how violence grows

Read it in the paper about rebellious youth

But it’s them that are so violent, it’s them that hide the truth

Stay in line, or pay the cost

Do you think they care when another life’s lost?

To ashes at Auschwitz, it’s just a small leap

When power is threatened life is cheap

Don’t think that they won’t do it, cos they already do

But this time 'round the pawns are me and you