He set up a man of straw with an authoritarian aura And everybody thinks he’s some kind of warrior for the Lord Stepping on some toes that he does not know And calling down fire on what he don’t understand
Straw men, straw men Set them up for a fall when you can Straw men, straw men Everybody loves to knock down straw men
He sees the masses dancing so he sternly reprimands them A reduction of their stance to some kind of earthly hell He don’t know how to be tender can’t appreciate beauty or gender It’s this pious anhedonia that he loves so well
Straw men, straw men Set them up for a fall when you can Straw men, straw men Everybody loves to knock down straw men
If true communication were ever to bless this congregation And everyone knew just what it’s like to be somebody else And no words were hasty and all thoughts were thought through Might our anger not find a better target than ourselves?
Straw men, straw men Set them up for a fall when you can Straw men, straw men Everybody loves to knock down straw men
- Mark Heard, 1984