Addicts

They are the weak, the tired, the wretched, the broken
And together they make a nation
A nation of the disregarded, of the irrelevant
A nation that is to a healthy society an impediment
Though it is a nation in which all are equal
The whore, the prisoner, the thief, the murderer, the poor
Stand bowed shoulder to bowed shoulder
With the politician, the starlet, the CEO, the rich
A nation of equals racing each other to the grave
Drinking to drown themselves
Ingesting pills to cure incurable ills
Inhaling smoke to stop breathing
Injecting fire in their veins to burn themselves alive
But the nation will live on, Eternal
A tumor grown too large to cut out

And oh you citizens of this glorious nation
Magnificent in your simplicity, in your purity
Having burned away all excess sentiment in chemically induced bliss
All that left is desire, the insatiable urge, the need
Men and women running until the only place left to run is out of this world
Examples of a concept repugnant to human growth
Soldiers of the irrelevant nation
Standing amongst your brothers and sisters proudly naming yourselves
The forsaken, the damned, the soon to be forgotten