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Eyes Wide Open
Raised to ignore all that surrounds
Apathetic to the horror
Pens and cages - festering in filth
Only to end in brutality
Eyes open mouth shut
Turn and walk away
Eyes open mouth shut
It will all just fade away
Raised to ignore all that surrounds
Apathetic to the horror
Cannot ignore - eyes wide open
We can no longer walk away
We are raised in a consumer based society that completely disconnects us from how our cold cuts and our chicken fingers are transformed from beautiful sentient beings that are birthed into a living hell on factory farms, fed a minimally nutritional diet of scrap and antibiotics, penned into cramped conditions with appendages snared and broken within the wire mesh or bars of their confines, and then finally brutally slaughter to be processed for us to feed upon. We are raised to believe that eating meat is necessary for good health. We put on blinders and we swallow what we are told. God tells us meat is good. Authority tells us meat is good. The media tells us meat is good. And in turn our parents tell us meat is good. Animals think and feel just as we do and we see their lives as merely something to be exploited and shit out. We have been lied to. We no longer need meat to survive, it is not the healthier choice, and animals are not soulless vessels put on this Earth for our consumption.
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2. |
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Faded Ideals
Idealism left behind
Getting too old for choosing sides
Growing up there is just no time
Past ideals shoved aside
(Verse x2)
“Just didn’t care”
“It didn’t mean as much”
The fight didn’t leave
You left the fight
(Chorus x2)
You left the fight (x4)
So tired of the same old story
Another quiter - you just gave up
How you could feel so strongly
And now you couldn’t give a
couldn’t give a fuck
A common perception is that idealism is some sort of folly of youth and that as we get older and wiser we will see that we no longer have the time or inclination to be interested in causes and lifestyle changes. I was told that when I got older and I was worried about the pressing issues of job and family that my ideals would all just slip away. I think that is a completely bullshit mentality. If you strongly believe in something, there is no reason in shouldn’t carry with you to later stages of life. And if you truly believe in making this world a better place and making yourself a better person, there is no reason why you cannot be open to new ideas and fresh fights. This is about something much greater than breaking Edge or ceasing to be vegan/vegetarian. This is about selling out your soul like a fucking coward.
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3. |
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Bible Stories
Deities and saviors
Myths and fables
Prophesies and prophets
Lies upon lies
Contrived to control
Fiction as truth
Broken trust
Lies upon lies
Stories told
Morality imposed
Fiction unearthed
Hatred exposed (x2)
Bring them in
Sheep to the flock
Feed them all
Lies upon lies
Deities and saviors
Myths and fables
Prophesies and prophets
Lies upon lies (x2)
Lies upon lies upon lies
For many religion provides solace, inspiration, belonging, understanding, and forgiveness in what can be an unforgiving world. Despite the benefits it bestows on some - even upon many that I know and love, I cannot sit idle as tenants of hatred are passed off as morality. I cannot keep my mouth shut as you spread fiction and centuries of embellishment and tout it as truth. Shepard the faithful, shout your commandments from the pulpit, or spread the wisdom of your prophet - we will always stand firm to undermine you. We will challenge your truths, whisper doubts, and promote the ever evolving answers that scientific analysis provide. We will base our morals on reason, not on ancient tomes written by men bent on controlling the populace and bending them to their own whims. We are not sheep. We will not be led. Fuck your god and your book of truths. Until your religion embraces all races, genders, and sexual orientations as equals, until you can look me in the face and tell me that you understand the origins of these tales and that you can read between the lines and only extol the interwoven virtues of love and acceptance - we will stand before you and call out your belief system for the two faced controlling doctrine of intolerance that it is.
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4. |
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Hundreds put to death every fucking day
Nationwide panic we all take the bait
Terrifying menace - the population steered
Media exploitation fueling our fear
Laws enacted taking the lead
Efforts made to eradicate a species
Sanctioned genocide where does it stop?
What will be the next scapegoat when this one's gone?
Tales of men, women, and children being mauled by beasts are timeless. The media loves to latch onto these tales of horror, and the public loves to eat them up - hanging on every word and giving into fear. The world has been systematically cleansed of predators that border our islands of civilization in order to make us safe, so in order to capitalize on these sort of stories the media seize every opportunity to publicize a new enemy at the gates, or worse still - within our borders. Menace was written about the completely fucked up portrayal of the American Pit Bull Terrier that the media has forced down our throats and the ensuing genocide taking place as laws are put in place to cleanse our cities and suburbs of these loving, intelligent, misunderstood dogs. It could just as easily be about countless other animal genocides taking place around the world. Maybe they are baiting and shooting deer in your suburb, or they are hunting down wolves or coyotes in your rural town. There is always an accident or attack to be blamed on an animal, a reporter to turn it into a spectacle, and a politician looking to exploit it for easy votes. Sadly, we are guilty of swallowing it all hook line and sinker.
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5. |
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You spend each day oblivious
Unaware of your impact made
Your hand in hidden atrocities
Attention to your complicity never paid
You act in blissful ignorance
Flaunt your apathy with pride
Its easier to remain unaware
Than to have to choose a side
Oblivious - you’re oblivious (x4)
It’s a rare day when you meet someone who looks at the big picture - the connection between our collective action and inaction and its direct global repercussions. People are so caught up in the triviality of their day to day lives that they selfishly ignore any greater impact they may have. You try to bring up politics or social justice and they will tell you they have no interest or they have no time. They have no clue that their beliefs, their consumption, and their apathy all have an impact. They have no interest in knowing how meat gets to the super market, how purchasing certain food products supports big tobacco or the American military complex, how their favorite beer company can be bank rolling the religious right and reactionary political candidates, or that thousands of animals were blinded and burned to ensure their detergent will get your whites bright without leaving chemical burns on your skin. We live in a fucked up world and we gleefully let everything slide until it directly affects us. Its time to step up and take a side.
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6. |
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7. |
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8. |
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Born and raised to ignore our surroundings
Born and raised to never question
We consume and shit and we never think
"My actions cause immense suffering"
You would never beat an animal for fun
You would never torture an animal for sport
But you'd close your eyes and you'd turn your back
When faced with the realities of factory farms
Pens and cages, festering in their own filth
Pens and cages, restricting their movement and instinctual behavior
A life of torment and discomfort is all they know
"And you say turn it off, I don't want to know."
You absolve yourself of this injustice
You absolve yourself from guilt
"That animal was going to die anyway!"
You didn't torture these animals
You didn't wield the killing knife
You didn't fire the bolt gun
You didn't take their lives
But as you look to your table
You should be asking yourself,
"Who's to blame?"
Who's to blame?
Who's to blame?
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9. |
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10. |
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Undermine
Complacent inaction yet internally enraged
Granting them power by not being politically engaged
Easy to control - just as easily ignored
Nothing to fear from our fractured horde
Undermine
Undermine
The time has come to make our demands
No more sitting back on our idle hands
Contempt constrained for far too long
Rise up against all that's wrong
Together we will
Together we will
Together we will
Undermine
The assumption exists that we will not fight
Aimless degenerates with no foresight
Underestimated we lurk underground
And with bricks and hammers we will tear them down
Mired
The neighborhood writhes and heaves
More shots fired no time to grieve
Juvenile felons teen pregnancy
A constant struggle to meet basic needs
Corner stores peddle processed waste
Junk food, cheap booze, beer by the case
Fuel for survival amongst poverty and guns
Immersed in a culture of gangs and drugs
Mired in poverty - the system falls short
Mired in violence - we all fall short
Mired in poverty - the system falls short
Mired in violence - we all fall short
A constant struggle to meet basic needs
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11. |
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released May 26, 2011