Song: Fair is Fair

Long folksong here, kids - skip if you want, link to it if you like (you can link to any of my public posts, just so you know)


Don't need much, I'm just working for a living
Working for a living of a dollar a day
Might not be much but I got me no misgivings
It's an honest day's work for an honest day's pay

Fair is fair, gonna spend my final penny
Get myself some groceries from the little corner store
My bag's half full, can't buy too much of any thing
I don't mind what I have, I'd just like a little more

But when fair's not fair, I gots me a problem
I thought we all was equal in the law of the land
But when Enron leads to thieving without consequence
I ask myself, why they treated so grand?

From home to work on public transportation
The local trains are fast enough and cheap
But they raised their rates to fix the crumbling stations
and my wallet cries when I lay me down to sleep

Fair is fair, gonna spend my only dollar
Haven't bought my wife a present in over half a year
Yeah, the price is high but you won't hear me holler much
Her happy sigh, that's what I wanna hear

But when fair's not fair, I gots me a problem
I thought we all was equal with the rights that we share
But when Halliburton just up and trades with terrorists
I ask myself, why is it that they dare?

My shoes are shined with lots of spit and polish
My hair's all clean with the last of my shampoo
I check the time and then I make a little wish
I wish we'd all rise up and see what we could do

Fair is fair, gonna spend my final fiver
I need to pay the gasman for a little winter heat
And a winter coat from maybe Sears and Roebuck and
maybe just enough for a little bite to eat

But when fair's not fair, I gots me a problem
I thought we all was equal when it's time to pay the bill
but when WorldCom don't pay half the cash they owe, well
I ask myself why they closed the Bar and Grille

They cut the bills my corporation has to pay
But my take-home pay won't cover all my debt
They say the help for corporate will trickle down to me another day
Why they don't help me direct is what I don't get

Fair is fair, gonna spend my only sawbuck
Gotta pay the bill for my HMO
They may not pay the ambulance's driver so
I wonder where all my money's gonna go

But when fair's not fair, I gots me a problem
I thought we all was equal in the price we pay
But when Uncle Sam treats his soldiers worse than criminals
I ask myself, hell, what's going on today

My belt is broke, can't buy me no suspenders
My suit don't fit, gonna try and trade it in
It's time for me to find a better line of work
Cuz a dollar a day ain't enough for all the gin

Fair's not fair, I gotta spend a thousand
I gotta spend a million for a lying thief
I gotta spend a billion to pay for Ken Lay's mistresses
I gotta spend a trillion for the Antichrist in Chief

Yeah when fair's not fair I really gots a problem
Their fraud earns 'em billions while my pension goes to none
I know we ain't got nothing of what we've all been paying for
I still ask myself just what I could'a done