When Winning Is Losing

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The rest if the songs on "Pipe Dreams" are not conscious responses to historic Rock albums. They are instead stories and moods that attempt to connect the situation certain ambitious types found themselves in back in 1966, as well as in 2006. Certainly, in the Iraq war period, America was in the same bizarre situation it found itself in during the Vietnam period - actually losing the war, while winning it. America, because it is a democracy of sorts, is always being abused by its own worst tendencies. This song gets to the point.

When Winning Is Losing

When winning is losing and losing is winning,
cause winning is sinning. The lies keep on spinning.
When losing’s refusing to follow the leader,
then winning is singing your own brand of freedom.

In the regional trials he tried to break 210.
In the curve instead he drove too close to the firewall
   and hit the cement. Recovered in 4.2 seconds,
   saw God and knew exactly what it meant!
Now, nothing could stop him from winning this race,
   even though, at the moment, he’s still in last place.
Hoping and praying and wishing it true.
His team, they’re all doing the best they can do.

When winning is losing
and losing is winning.

He was making more money everyday than he ever had before.
He never noticed that he was any different from the poorest guy on the street.
Had the luck and the class, that’s all, otherwise he’s another race rat
   in debt up to his neck. He feels the heat all the time.
Can’t take the glass wall climb from the bottom to the top,
   then top to bottom, droppin’,
   poppin’, stoppin’, coppin’.
Gotta get more stuff.
Gotta get messed up,
need more time,
gotta make more
money money money money....

   When winning is losing
   and losing is winning.

The fearless and afraid,
   the friendless and the framed,
   all different forms of me and you.
True lies and miracles, endless debate.
What is false? What is true?
But the war is never over.
Everybody always loses.
Nobody’s ever gonna win.
There’s always something to fight for,
   someone to fight with,
   someone who wants to mix it up,
   who really wants to be friends.