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Between a Rock and a Hard Place
Civic Democracy and the Oil Endgame
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Bill Vitek
Department of Humanities and Social Sciences
Clarkson University
March 26, 2005
They used to tell me I was building a dream
And so I followed the mob.
When there was earth to plow or guns to bear,
I was always there, right on the job.
They used to tell me I was building a dream
With peace and glory ahead --
Why should I be standing in line, just waiting for bread?
Once I built a railroad, I made it run,
Made it race against time.
Once I built a railroad, now it's done --
Brother, can you spare a dime?
Once I built a tower, up to the sun,
brick and rivet and lime.
Once I built a tower, now it's done --
Brother, can you spare a dime?
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Presented at the Southwestern Political Science Association meeting, March 2005, New Orleans.
Comments are welcome:
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Excerpts from “Brother Can You Spare a Dime?” (E. Y. HARBURG/JAY GORNEY) (1932)