Tyranny steps lightly One foot before the next You never hear the marching Till it coming up the steps The temporary measures Of a nation in distress A choice between two evils One of duty or regret Tyranny advances Like the darkening of night When it is for the greater good You don't put up a fight If blind to the beginnings You cannot see the end This is the nearsightedness Of ordinary men And then a great acceleration A beating of the drum The awful recognition Of all you have become Tyranny speaks calmly As it offers up a deal Even as it presses you Underneath its heel A temporary measure Do you wonder what it meant What you have surrendered to Without dissent And then a great acceleration A beating of the drum The awful recognition Of all you have become All you have become