Its clear in the title, it's about the nature of joining the service, you're nothing but a disposable hero. Sure people will respect you, think of you as a hero, but you're about as irreplaceable as a tin can.
"21, only son, but he served us well"- a lot of young men and women die in war, and yet the government doesn't realize the impact it has on families, so what? she just lost her only son, but he served us well! He died an honorable death, but at 21, no one should die any kind of death.
"Soldier boy, Made of Clay, Now an empty Shell" - if going to war doesn't kill you, it will kill something inside of you, once you kill, you can't apologize, you can't gain forgiveness from the one you killed, you took their life, and they're dead, and that leaves you empty inside, it kills you slowly, "bred to kill, not to care..." you are forced to reassess your morals, killing is now ok, and therefore there is no morality...
"back at thr front, you will do what I say, when I say...you will die, when I say you must die" - when you're a soldier you're a fucking drone, you do as you're told, die when you're told, run into fucking gunfire, you do as you're told...
"Life planned out before my birth, nothing could I say Had no chance to see myself, molded day by day
Looking back I realize, nothing have I done Left to die with only friend Alone I clench my gun" - this line is one of the most poignant, some parents bring their child up as a patriot, love america, serve america, give your freewill to america, that's not freedom people, ITS FUCKING COMMUNISM! They then believe that they HAVE TO give their life to serve america, but in the end they realize their death did nothing, they did nothing, and war solves nothing, just overpopulation... And the draft was the worst, it forced even those who didn't want to go out onto the field, people die even when they know their death solves nothing.
Its sad, but true...
