It’s another day at the Circus
The lions are eating the lambs
The Gladiators, all young and handsome
Plan to do battle in Cyber Land
They don their silk shirt armor
Tie their patented ties
Heft their mighty war shields
Of Corporate Lies
Put on their trusty helmets
Of Off Shore Accounts
Let the Games unfold!
Go for the Gold!
All amassed amounts leading
To uphold…. The New Rome

Yes, Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen
To the Game of Cheat and Steal!
Where the money isn’t real
It’s all just Numbers on a page
It’s all just Power being waged
It’s all just Worth being gauged by Deals
And have we got a deal for you!

Unless of course you're one of the masses
(I'm talking the lower classes)
Now these are being conned into being content
With bad jobs and measly pay
Seduced into a daze,
They’re duped in subtle ways
To think things are better now than in the old days…

They're told:
"You are living in the Land of the Free!
Don't you know, you are lucky indeed?
To be here living democratically
Yes! Most of you are poor... but at least it’s… equally
Forget about your rising debt and poverty
' Cause you are living the dream!
So be content with your trailer park heaps
Those tenement buildings crumbling around your feet
Some people in the world would give their eye teeth
To live like you- Believe me"

Meanwhile:
The Wall Street Warriors add another Beamer to their car fleet
Build walls around their homes and streets
And...Hire guards to stand and greet you at the gate
("Do you have a pass?You look like riffraff to me..".)
You might appreciate how this ‘Greatest Country in the World’ rhetoric
Begins to grate on the nerves a bit
As the Hard Up get hip to this unequal state of affairs
Unfortunately, once they’re aware,
They’ll tear down your gate
Plant your head on a stake
And storm The Forum…
No decorum whatsoever and.....
Let's face it... in history,
It's happened before

So better ply the Poor with cheap beer and porn
Keep ‘em tranquil with cigarettes and corn dogs
But to really keep ‘em quiet
To ensure they don’t riot
To numb the Great Unwashed
And tame the thugs
Just give 'em a bit of blood
It numbs the senses like a drug
Soon those masses are molasses in your palm.

Tell them:
Hey! Turn on your TV!
Have we got something for you to see...

We got Spectacles on which to gape
Turn on, tune in…
We got it covered!
All captured on video tape!
Turn on, tune in…
We got it covered!
It’s the equivalent of Modern Roman Games
Yes Rome itself can be in flames
The "18+" coverage begins at three
And you can watch the burning
On your rented TV
Turn on, tune in…
We got it covered
On CNN...
We got it covered
Turn on, tune in…

Yes it's:
Friends, Romans, Countrymen!
Lend me your ears!
In fact, cut them off altogether and hold them up
In front of Camera Two, please
Now, that’s the way to appease the throngs!
But , before long it takes more than an ear or two
To tame their voracity
Soon, every image, every theme, has to be Extreme
You know what I'm talking about ... Real TV

So give ‘em girls dining on worms and bathing in bugs
Boys dangling from the sides of mountains
Covered in scratches and mud
Let’s see that horrific car crash
Where all the people get crushed
And the looters steal the wallets off the dead
Let’s see a public execution
Shoot that terrorist in the head
Let’s see the guy
Lose his legs in a disaster
and all that red
Is real blood
Play the instant replays
A thousand times
Faster and faster
Vault from channel to channel
Watch over and over
As the twin towers fall

And fall

And fall

And that poor woman somersaults
From the fortieth story window
Like a tossed rag doll
Was she dead yet?
You can’t really tell at all
Here, you better let me see that again

It’s all Real TV

It’s real live suffering

And I think to myself:

Rome is on the rise again,
Rome is on the rise, Uncle Sam
It’s another day at the Circus
And the lions are eating the lambs