Don't Blame Me
Don't you blame me
It wasn't my fault
Don't you blame me
Don't you dare!
I didn't start the war
I didn't invent the guns
I didn't fill them with bullets
Or snap the bayonets onto the barrels
And tell the soldiers to shove them in somebody's guts
No ifs or buts
And watch their insides drop down into the dirt
And see the blood spurt
I didn't ask for all those men to be hurt
I didn't make all the bombs
That kill and maim, and shatter both body and mind
I didn't invent the gas that causes men to retch up their guts
And makes acid rain in their noses and throats
And takes away all sense of taste and smell
Forever
I didn't kindle that carnage from Hell
It's all very well to want to find a scapegoat
But don't pick on me
I didn't build the camps
Where men are locked up, and treated like cattle
Most of them limp, or taut, with battle fatigue
I didn't string up the wire
And bathe them with permanent flares
And hold them by force with blows, kicks, and savagery
Most of the inmates would never have thought of
And mostly didn't deserve
Not even the pervs
I didn't keep the men all cramped up
And hungry, and lonely, and scared
Desperate for love, for signs of affection
Willing to undo a lifetime's conditioning
Just to hold another warm body close
Just to be held, feel wanted and treasured
And maybe find that physical pleasure
Transcends the idea of a man, and a woman, together
I didn't send the survivors Back without any aid or assistance ‘Counselling? Therapy? What good are those To decent men who are sane, whole and capable? Didn't we win? Only the beaten are cursed with the sin of mental disease Not any of these brave heroes They'll go to their wives And pick up their lives, and rebuild their families Just you wait and see.’ Well, don't you blame me! I didn't do a thing to make anyone mourn I wasn't yet born And a few years later on I didn't egg him on I didn't encourage his ardour; Or scheme, and flirt, to buy his affection I'm not a whore who shouldn't complain If she gets more than she bargained for Dressing like that! Inflaming men's passions Tarting around in a short dress, and frilly lace drawers Babies want holding; they don't ask for fucking Babies want love; they don't cry for sex I was a baby. I wasn't a grown-up I had no choice in the way I was treated I didn't have access to courts, the police, or the law And you don't think of ringing the papers until you are four! So, don't you blame me It wasn't my fault Don't you blame me Don't you dare!
I didn't send the survivors Back without any aid or assistance ‘Counselling? Therapy? What good are those To decent men who are sane, whole and capable? Didn't we win? Only the beaten are cursed with the sin of mental disease Not any of these brave heroes They'll go to their wives And pick up their lives, and rebuild their families Just you wait and see.’ Well, don't you blame me! I didn't do a thing to make anyone mourn I wasn't yet born And a few years later on I didn't egg him on I didn't encourage his ardour; Or scheme, and flirt, to buy his affection I'm not a whore who shouldn't complain If she gets more than she bargained for Dressing like that! Inflaming men's passions Tarting around in a short dress, and frilly lace drawers Babies want holding; they don't ask for fucking Babies want love; they don't cry for sex I was a baby. I wasn't a grown-up I had no choice in the way I was treated I didn't have access to courts, the police, or the law And you don't think of ringing the papers until you are four! So, don't you blame me It wasn't my fault Don't you blame me Don't you dare!