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Anthem for the Nation

You tell me I'm from Britain.
Well what the fuck is Britian?
MY DEAR, BRITAIN IS A FLAG.
Britain is a wrinkled, burnt out fag.
Britain is a skinny girl in a shinny mag.
Briatin is an overflowing rubbish bag.
So don't tell me Britain is a fucking flag.

MY DEAR, BRITAIN IS HOME.
Britain is an engaged dial tone.
Britain is the worship of a coin and a throne.
Britain is a spoilt child playing alone.
For who the hell is this home?

MY DEAR, BRITAIN IS YOUR PAST.
Then Britain is being taken without being asked.
Britain is a slave clinging to the mast.
Britain is a boy wainting to be gassed.
God, aren't you proud our history's so vast?

Listen up, people of Britain,
I'll tell you what we are;
We're the ocean's scar
We're America's side car
We're the missing page from a history book
We're a stiff upper lip and a dead-eyed look
We're the contrast between an estate and a box
We're a clique of hounds persueing a fox.

But its not too late,
For what you might call us.
If we give what we are given
If we are one of the eight
If we don't play alone;
One might deserve the title 'Great.'

Please feel free to leave your thoughts.

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Reviews


  • gnosisonG
    May 24, 2008

    Edit | Reply

    Rue Brittannia!

    Your 51 st state of America sentiments are well wrought here, Tanith, with some (for me) original asides, assosiations and comparative ironies.
    At times subtle but never obtuse.
    Especially liked:

    We're the ocean's scar
    America's side car

    And: the worship of a coin and a throne

    As a rant I felt that with such a strident start the ending might´ve concluded with a weightier exposition perhaps alluding to the fucking flag - the "Onion Jack" which has caused and causes so many tears. Either that or perhaps the aneurism inherent in the first stanza could toned down to enable a build up towards an indignant crescendo.
    Some rhymes here seem a bit forced and a couple of typos require correcting but otherwise this diatribe to Albion suffices!
    Another thing which might be mentioned is the HUGE portion of weapons manufacture and trade the Sceptred Isle partakes in worldwide which would doubly expose the hypocrasy that the powers that be care for environment, poverty or peace in the world.
    Then there´s the shocking level of surveillance by CCTV in Britain (more than any other country, despotic or otherwise), the continued class divide and...
    OOPS. Almost got me going there, Tanith.
    Lets just leave it at Nuke The City.

    Cheers

    gGodenslavethequeen.

  • tanith
    May 26, 2008
    Edit | Reply
    Cheers! Thanks for your comments. And glad to know someone out there shares my sentiments!

    Yeah, I know what you mean about the ending; the anger sort of peters out. This was originally intentional, beacuse it doesn't have to be all bad; if we weren't so jingiostic and if we start to think and act more globally. However, as an effective rant, I see your point. Haha, and yes definitely there is alot more potential for ranting...

    Nuke the city indeed.

  • mojojames
    May 27, 2008
    Edit | Reply
    This comes off like a call to arms. Being american I'm not real sure what's going on with Britain today, but they did go along with Bush, or at least your government did, so they must need a lot of work. And I just can´t believe that the british people were in with Iraq and the rest of it so there must be, in my unwritten book, some hope. Cheers, MJ

    . Rewarded 6

  • dave ochs
    May 27, 2008

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    hey tanith

    i absolutely loved this the tone, the directness and the content. nothing was more sickening than to see tony blair play Mussolini to bush's Hitler, they looked like two punks in suits. keep ranting.
    dave

    . Rewarded 4

  • tanith
    May 28, 2008
    Edit | Reply
    Cheers MJ, thanks for taking the time out to read and comment! Tanith.

  • tanith
    May 28, 2008
    Edit | Reply
    Thanks Dave! Yea I agree, and "two punks in suits;" I love that. Yea I will keep up the ranting, just try and stop me... Tanith.