With apologies to Country Joe McDonald
Somehow I don't think he would mind
I adapted his "Agent Orange Song" to my own personal bind
I was just 19, a teenage kid, the year that I enlisted
I was drafted in the Marines, I’ll join the Army for an extra year, I insisted
I had started a career, and didn’t think Uncle Sam was right
Oh, the whole family cried, but I bit the bullet, and went off to fight
Got off the plane in South Korea lucky me, it didn’t seem like war
With all I saw, I knew what I had come there for
The South stood strong for their daughters and wives
While the dictator to the North, wanted to end their lives
Oh the Army tried some fancy stuff on the DMZ, UN acting as referees
Like Agent Orange defoliant, to kill the brush and trees
We’d work and play all day, on dirt roads and fields covered with poison spray
And they never told us then that it would hurt our health today
But I got the news last year, yeah, the doctors told me so
They killed me in Korea, and I didn’t even know
This Agent Orange from the DMZ, we carry it with us still
Dioxin stays inside for years and years before it starts to kill
You might get cancer of the prostate; you might get cancer of the skin
I just filed for disability, but I might not live to win
Oh, I got the news last year, yeah, the doctors told me so
They killed me in Korea, and I didn’t even know
It’s so big and angry, a stone will never pass
Let’s do a biopsy, it’s just a gargantuan needle up your ass
Oh, the doctor said I got some time, trying to be kind
We can rip it out now, or bathe it with radiation, he opined
Genetic test says it’s slow growing, let’s wait and see
Maybe something else will kill you before, that’s the key
Oh, I got the news last year, yeah, the doctors told me so
They killed me in Korea, and I didn’t even know
Now we know our own weapons are causing TBI
Soldiers now at risk, leading to suicide
I’ve always been a radical, and this hasn’t changed my mind
The military and VA can’t continue to be blind
There has to be accountability, says the PACT ACT
1 million plus veterans have filed claims, that’s a matter of fact
Country Joe McDonald
I was 17, just a teenage kid, the year that I enlisted
I can’t remember why I did, my mom said I insisted
I had some strange idea then, that Uncle Sam was right
Oh, momma cried, but she signed the card, and then I went off to fight
Got off the plane in Vietnam, it didn’t seem like war
With all I saw I started to wonder what I had come there for
Some officers got drunk at night, and cheated on their wives
And the peasants on the other side, were just struggling for their lives
Oh the army tried some fancy stuff, to bring them to their knees
Like Agent Orange defoliant, to kill the brush and trees
We’d hike all day on jungle trails through clouds of poison spray
And they never told me then that it would hurt my health today
But I got the news this morning, yeah, the doctors told me so
They killed me in Vietnam, and I didn’t even know
I tried hard to forget the war like everybody did
Settled down, got married, even had a couple of kids
Well, my children both had birth defects and the doctors had their doubts
They never could understand it, but I think I figured it out
Because I got the news this morning, yea, the doctors told me so
They killed me in Vietnam, and I didn’t even know
This Agent Orange from Vietnam, we carry it with us still
It stays inside for years and years before it starts to kill
You might get cancer of the liver; you might get cancer of the skin
You can file for disability, but you might not live to win
Oh, I got the news this morning, yeah, the doctors told me so
They killed me in Vietnam, and I didn’t even know
Oh, the doctor said I got some time, trying to be kind
I’ve never been a radical, but this has changed my mind
Oh, I’d be so proud to hear my kids say, "Hell no I won’t go
Because you killed my dad in Vietnam, and he didn’t even know."
Yes, I’d be so proud to hear my kid say, "Hell no I won’t go
Because you killed my dad and he didn’t even know."
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