Within the sterile environment that carries out American retribution The threatened insist that vengeance is the only acceptable solution Emotions fuel the media frenzy, relentlessly searching for satisfaction The world’s superpower, made to feel vulnerable, is now demanding action No one can breathe easy until he’s drawn his final breath And taken his place amongst his victims in the company of death Demonized for something that our government does every single day But when it happens in our own backyard, you know that someone’s going to pay Is state sanctioned murder really closure? Focusing on vengeance, our government will do whatever it takes Satisfied that this brand of justice outweighs all mistakes But when does an immoral act become justified Ignore the responsibility and a person is crucified By the abuse and corruption of the laws that supposedly protect No individual or government should have legality over death A life for a life, an eye for an eye, no government has the right To continue the cycle of violence and show it’s ultimate might Is state sanctioned murder really closure? We wipe our hands clean, he got what he deserved In our minds we can rationalize that justice has been served But in reality nothing is ever really accomplished When justice is overshadowed by a primal need for vengeance Killing another person won’t wash away the guilt Just put another victim in the house of cards the state built How many more lives will our government erase? When revenge in our legal system is commonplace Is state sanctioned murder really closure? Do you now feel safe? Do you now feel secure? Will you sleep any easier now that they’ve evened the score? Is your mind now at peace? Has your way of life been defended? Has all of the pain or just another life ended? Is it your desire to see another dead? Will it bring you closure and put your fears to bed? You grasp at an illusion to use as a safety net But what we find in the end is a nation with no self-respect Not only is there the illusion of safety but also the illusion of healing That a death sentence is going to help how the victims’ loved ones are feeling But instead of compassion they find a murderous beast and a bloodstain The government can kill all they want but they can’t kill the pain The hurt they feel can’t be cured by a lethal injection A state sanctioned murder won’t bring about resurrection Death cannot mend, so we only pretend That the cycle of violence and all the pain ends