[Verse 1] Nineteen fourteen, the world went dark Ten million dead, left their mark Trenches full of mud and bone Boys who'd never make it home Violence normalized each day Death became the common way Mosse wrote about the fallen souls How war had changed society's goals [Chorus] Mass death, empire collapse Liberal dreams in full relapse Veterans march with angry fists Paramilitaries on the list Structural breaks, the old world's gone New politics are being born Four conditions pave the way For fascism's darkest day [Verse 2] Habsburg, Ottoman empires fall Russian Tsar against the wall Borders drawn on shattered ground New nations rise, old maps unwound Liberal promises wore thin Democracy could barely win Legitimacy in crisis mode People lost faith in freedom's code [Chorus] Mass death, empire collapse Liberal dreams in full relapse Veterans march with angry fists Paramilitaries on the list Structural breaks, the old world's gone New politics are being born Four conditions pave the way For fascism's darkest day [Bridge] Freikorps in Germany Arditi in Italy Veterans feel betrayed and lost Promised glory, counted cost Uniform brotherhood remains Violence flowing through their veins Ready for a leader's call Democracy about to fall [Verse 3] George Mosse saw the pattern clear How the war bred fascist fear Cult of the fallen, sacred dead Myths of glory filled each head Brutalization of the mind Left compassion far behind Political rupture opened space For extremism's cold embrace [Chorus] Mass death, empire collapse Liberal dreams in full relapse Veterans march with angry fists Paramilitaries on the list Structural breaks, the old world's gone New politics are being born Four conditions pave the way For fascism's darkest day [Outro] When old structures break apart Violence hardens every heart Remember how it came to be The death of real democracy
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