Alive (My Iraqi War Diary, Part 1)

Verse 1:
I hate the Shia, the Sunni, too
I hate what this war has reduced me to
I hate my government, I ain’t exactly loyal
I’m a killing machine just looking for some oil

I gotta fine girl back at home
we write letters, talk on my cell phone
I just hope when this is all through
I don’t end up hating her too

Chorus 1:
Salute me, prosecute me, why not just take my gun and shoot me,
Cause I don’t think I’ll make it out alive
You gotta help me make it alive,
Forgive me if I don’t make it alive
I got no business being alive, alive, alive

Verse 2:
Riding in my tank, I might call an air strike
Some might say that’s unsportsman-like
Sometimes I make mistakes, but there’s nothing I can do
’cause you gotta kill them before they kill you

OK, so here we are, guarding this pipeline;
when this embed comes up, says he’s with Nightline
He asks if were bringing ‘em democracy,
I said “you want the answer with or without hypocrisy”

Chorus 2:
Salute us, prosecute us, or just take our guns and shoot us
Cause I don’t think we’re gonna make it alive
You gotta help us make it alive,
Forgive us if we don’t make it alive
Everyday I wonder why we’re alive, alive, alive

Bridge:
Out in the desert, the grains of sand fly,
each one’s an enemy that wants me to die
We’re bringing democracy & the freedom it allows,
but what good’s a vote when they blow up your house?
Why do people always have to say
it’s the Hand of God when things go their way?
There’s a rocket comin’ at you, looks like a direct hit,
and you can see God’s fingerprints all over it.

Verse 3:
I’m a killing machine, I’m not supposed to feel, but if you
saw my nightmares, you’d swear they’re real.
Those TV ads make it look like fun, but that
stops pretty quick when the blood starts to run

When your out on a patrol,
there are things you just can’t control
Sometimes it’s live, sometimes it’s a dud,
you just pray you don’t lose too much blood

After I was hit, I was tended by a nurse
She took me her arms, said it could’a been worse
Sometimes a blessing comes from a curse
Hope had a face just like hers

Chorus 3:
Salute me, prosecute me, but whatever you do, don’t let them shoot me
Cause I’m gonna make it out alive
She helped me make it out alive,
We’re gonna make it out alive, before we die
Gonna make it out alive, alive
Gonna make it out alive