Jesse Welles gave us this gem in 2024. Listen carefully, and read the lyrics. You will get the point. This is an anti-war song for our time rooted in the traditions of protest songs from ages past.
War isn’t murder, good men don’t die
Children don’t starve and all the women survive
“War isn’t murder, ” that’s what they say
When you’re fighting the Devil, murder’s okay
War isn’t murder, they’re called casualties
There ain’t a veteran with a good night’s sleepLet’s talk about dead people
I mean a-dead people
The dead don’t feel honor
They don’t feel that brave
They don’t feel avenged
They’re lucky if they got gravesCall your dead mother, ask her when she died
It’s a deathly silence on the other line
The dead don’t talk, but the children don’t forget
So in 20 short years, you could live to regret thatWar isn’t murder, there’s money at stake
Girl, even Kushner agrees it’s good real estate
War isn’t murder, ask Netanyahu
He’s got a song for that and a bomb for you
War isn’t murder, it’s an old desert faith
It’s a nation-state sanctioned, righteous hateLet’s talk about dead people
I mean a-dead people
War isn’t murder, it’s the vengeance of God
If you can’t see the bodies, they don’t bloat when they rot
And the flies don’t swarm, and the children don’t cry
If war isn’t murder, good men don’t die
So in a short 20 years, when you vacation the Strip
Don’t think about the dead and have a nice tripWar isn’t murder, we should all give thanks
I saw it all in a movie, give it up for Tom Hanks
War isn’t murder, they don’t ship out the poor
And the bullets they fire aren’t part of the cure
War isn’t murder, land is a right
But the banks called dibs, it’s something you can’t fightLet’s talk about dead people
I mean a-dead people
The dead don’t feel honor
They don’t feel that brave
They don’t feel avenged
They’re lucky if they got gravesWar isn’t murder, ain’t a river of blood
Stretching all-through time and raining down in a flood
It’s a dark sacrifice, made on your behalf
So get down on your knees and thank the sweet Lord that
War isn’t murder
Find out more about Jesse Welles, “War Isn’t Murder,” and other protest songs:
Other “Songs of Peace” in this series:
- “Love and War” by Neil Young
- “Holy War” by Alicia Keys
- “Blowin’ in the Wind” by Bob Dylan
- “War Pigs” by Black Sabbath
- “Fussing and Fighting” by Bob Marley and the Wailers
- “Bulls on Parade” by Rage Against the Machine
- “Ohio” performed by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
- “Zombie” by The Cranberries
- “Hero of War” by Rise Against
- “Give Peace a Chance” by John Lennon
- “Sunday Bloody Sunday” by U2
- “One Love” by Bob Marley
- “War” performed by Edwin Starr
- “Imagine” by John Lennon
November is Peace Month at your School Library
Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary School Library 