Megadeth: Amerikhastan Meaning

Amerikhastan Lyrics

Recruiting the ill-fated for "The War"
A legion of uneducated, bankrupt souls
With a lust for revenge, answering the call
From New Yorqatar to Califarabia

Desperation provides fertile ground for religious extremism
This glorious...

1. anonymous

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   Jan 16th 2009 !⃝

   The song Amerikhastan by Megadeth, offers a unique and interesting set of views on the United States’ involvements in the Middle East. Although the lyrics do focus on the more typical views on the issue (which are mostly based around on the use of the Bush Doctrine and oil) they also stretch outside this format, and additionally focus on the manipulation and effects of citizens in the homeland. These effects include the bigotry and brainwashing that have become ever more prevalent with U.S. citizens.
   
   The song starts with the line “recruiting the ill-fated for ‘The War’”. This use of quotations starts the song off with a blatant attack on the U.S. government for having the audacity to call this a legitimate war. The next few lines read “A legion of uneducated, bankrupt souls. With a lust for revenge […]”, stating that after 9/11, U.S. citizens became so incredibly clouded by hate and the need for revenge, that they were willing to ignorantly agree with whatever action the government decided on.
   
   The song then states “desperation provides fertile ground for religious extremism;
   this glorious brainwashing where prejudice lies like a crouching tiger”. What this means is that the U.S. Has a need for a common enemy in times of crisis. In this case the enemy would take the form of Islamic extremists. This then created a breeding ground for bigotry against the religion and anyone of Arab descent. This is what the song is describing with the lyric “when God versus god; the undoing of man”, implying that to many Americans, this is not a war on terror, but rather a war on the Muslim religion. This is precisely what the song implies with the title: that the U.S. Is slowly being brainwashed into having a similar mindset to those we are fighting.
   
   The song then goes on to speak satirically from the point of view of a stereotypical conservative American. This sarcasm becomes apparent with the lyrics “And to beat violence, you must ignore the focus groups, you must send in the Mossad, turn off the BBC, CNN and don't look back”. This again, is a depiction of the ignorance surrounding supporters of “the war”, who refuse to listen to opposing view points regardless of logic. It then continues with a contrasting look at the alleged true reason for U.S. Involvement: oil. “These are your people Lady Liberty. Pull up your dress today and tattooed is "Property of the USA, a subsidiary of Halliburton". Here the song is describing the United States’ image of liberty and prosperity being used as a curtain (or in this case, a dress), to conceal the corporate ties of government officials to oil companies and other corrupt organizations. A similar idea is brought up with the line “all that you envision of what things will come to be, turns into a death knell when you look behind the scenes”, which once again refers to a smokescreen being set in front of U.S.’s eyes.

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