We've been asking questions of everyone we meet
People that we've known for years, neighbors down the street
How did it happen, how were we played for fools?
Gamblin' with our children's lives in a game that knows no rules
We need an answer, a reason why
The rulers wage the wars, but our children fight and die
Mothers and fathers, you're charged with your children's lives
It's up to you to cull between the truth and all the lies
Is there a parent, livin' on this earth
Who doesn't realize what their children's dreams are worth?
We need an answer, a reason why
The rulers wage the wars, but our children fight and die
Did you ever think about the pain in the night
Of the mother whose child was killed in the bloody fight?
Or the young veteran who comes home, but not the same
Did you ever wonder how it feels to have that pain?
Presidents and dictators, tyrants and the shahs
Order you to go to war according to their personal laws
But don't blame your mothers and your fathers, or your feelings inside,
Cause you're all the victims of generations of lies
When it comes right down to it, it's up to you
The future of the world depends on what you do.
People that we've known for years, neighbors down the street
How did it happen, how were we played for fools?
Gamblin' with our children's lives in a game that knows no rules
We need an answer, a reason why
The rulers wage the wars, but our children fight and die
Mothers and fathers, you're charged with your children's lives
It's up to you to cull between the truth and all the lies
Is there a parent, livin' on this earth
Who doesn't realize what their children's dreams are worth?
We need an answer, a reason why
The rulers wage the wars, but our children fight and die
Did you ever think about the pain in the night
Of the mother whose child was killed in the bloody fight?
Or the young veteran who comes home, but not the same
Did you ever wonder how it feels to have that pain?
Presidents and dictators, tyrants and the shahs
Order you to go to war according to their personal laws
But don't blame your mothers and your fathers, or your feelings inside,
Cause you're all the victims of generations of lies
When it comes right down to it, it's up to you
The future of the world depends on what you do.
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È stata infine incisa da Scott McKenzie (ricordate? "If You're Going To San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Some Flowers In Your Hair)") e inclusa alla fine di un documentario dal titolo "My Generation---The '60's Experience". Tuttavia si tratta di una canzone molto attuale.
Riportiamo il commento tratto dal sito di Scott McKenzie
First, some background on this unrecorded song:
When John's youngest son became old enough to serve in the military, the whole world had pretty much accepted the inevitability of war between Iraq and the United States, that it was only a matter of time.
Even though John knew that the draft no longer existed, the idea of his son going to war weighed heavily on his heart and mind. He thought that a song about it might help and then composed "We've Been Asking Questions," which was the only song about war - or any political or social issue -- he ever wrote, with one possible exception:
In the song "Safe in My Garden" (now available in Creeque Alley: The History of the Mamas and the Papas), Phillips did address the Los Angeles Watts riots of 1965. But even this song is as much an ode in praise of the beneficial effects of a benign plant (still illegal!) as it is a protest against violence.
John and I planned to record "We've Been Asking Questions" in the same way we recorded "San Francisco", but we were never able to. Unlike the 60's, these times do not lend themselves to such songs, and you can get in trouble for asking certain questions.
(Scott McKenzie)