I was talking 'bout the state of the union How there's no one now in power thinking of me I was saying how we ought to try to fix it Find a leader who is not afraid to be Then a voice came out of the darkness Saying "Tear the system down" Tear it down I was thinking 'bout how that was very crazy And I tried to find a way to tell him so But when I did I used a word that was quite nasty How the policeman heard me man I'll never know Then a voice came out of the darkness Saying "Tear the system down" Tear it down; down to the ground I was wrestled off to one side of the theater And they said I'd have to go right to jail They don't permit coarse language in their city But they did accept a large amount of bail Then a voice came out of the darkness Saying "Tear the system down" Tear it down; down to the ground