Xenophobia
Bill Sutton Lyrics


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Let's be xenophobic! It's really in this year
Let's find a nasty, slimy, ugly alien to fear
There's no more cutesy stories 'bout E.T. phoning home
Let's learn to love our neighbors, like the Christians learned in Rome!

We know we ought to hate 'em; they're different, you see
We've seen they're mean and ugly on movies and TV
The folks that ought to know have told us how it's got to be
The gospel truth is found in scenes from Alien and V

Let's wipe out any lifeform that seems to be a threat
We'll serve 'em up a genocide they never will forget
'Cause if we miss a couple, they'll breed a couple more!
And soon we'll all be hating twice as many as before

You see, aliens can never be as good as humankind
A more delightful race than us you'll never, ever find
So step aside, you star slime, we're ready for your worst!




We know you want to beat us, enslave us and defeat us,
Oppress us and browbeat us, unless we get you first!

Overall Meaning

The song "Xenophobia" by Bill Sutton, is a satirical take on the idea of xenophobia, which is the intense fear or dislike of people from other countries. In the lyrics, the singer embraces the idea of hating and fearing aliens, using them as a metaphor for people who are different from us. The idea is presented as a trend that is "in this year" and encourages the listener to find a "nasty, slimy, ugly alien to fear".


The lyrics mock the way that humans often rely on stereotypes and portrayals in media to form opinions about people from other cultures. The reference to movies like "Alien" and "V" reinforces the notion that our perceptions of otherness are often shaped by Hollywood. The line "The folks that ought to know have told us how it's got to be" implies that the media has a great influence on shaping our worldview. The song ends with the idea that aliens can never be as good as humankind, reinforcing the idea that xenophobia is an irrational fear and that it is important to learn to love and embrace our differences.


Line by Line Meaning

Let's be xenophobic! It's really in this year
Let's show hatred or fear towards people from other countries or races, because it's become fashionable or popular this year.


Let's find a nasty, slimy, ugly alien to fear
Let's look for an unpleasant, disgusting, and frightening being from another planet to be afraid of.


There's no more cutesy stories 'bout E.T. phoning home
There are no more innocent and heartwarming tales about an extraterrestrial creature named E.T. trying to find its way back home.


Let's learn to love our neighbors, like the Christians learned in Rome!
Let's practice loving and accepting our neighbors, just like early Christians learned to do in Rome.


We know we ought to hate 'em; they're different, you see
We understand that we should feel hatred towards them; they are different from us, you know.


We've seen they're mean and ugly on movies and TV
We've visualized them as unkind and unsightly creatures in movies and on television.


The folks that ought to know have told us how it's got to be
The people who are thought to be knowledgeable have instructed us on how to feel and behave towards them.


The gospel truth is found in scenes from Alien and V
The absolute truth of what these beings are like can be recognized from scenes in the movies Alien and V.


Let's wipe out any lifeform that seems to be a threat
Let's eradicate any living organism that seems to be a danger to us.


We'll serve 'em up a genocide they never will forget
We'll provide them with a mass killing that they will never be able to forget.


'Cause if we miss a couple, they'll breed a couple more!
Because if we miss a few of them, they will reproduce and increase their numbers.


And soon we'll all be hating twice as many as before
And soon we will end up hating twice as many of them as before.


You see, aliens can never be as good as humankind
You see, beings from other planets can never be as superior as humans.


A more delightful race than us you'll never, ever find
You will never, ever encounter a more delightful and charming species than ours.


So step aside, you star slime, we're ready for your worst!
So, move out of our way, you repulsive extraterrestrial, we are prepared for whatever horrors you can unleash!


We know you want to beat us, enslave us and defeat us, Oppress us and browbeat us, unless we get you first!
We know that your intentions are to triumph over us, oppress us and intimidate us unless we retaliate and harm you initially!




Contributed by Lillian M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

@williambrennan104

Let's be xenophilic, for our thinking is clear
The "unconventionally attractive", we needn't fear
Peace and love: sufficient, but not necessary
Let's learn living with our neighbors
Like the European Union, of countries so contrary!

We know that hate and fear make us act irrationally
Mr. Spock has showed us so, every week on our TV
If your fear has made you blind to gain, then here's how it can be:
Our Doctor's making house calls - and so are the Ferengi.

For "comparative advantage" isn't just an econ phrase
It's a universal truth, one that lucratively pays!
Let those xenophobic cowards starve to fund their guns
We'll just slather our new citizens' purple butter on our buns.

No one is good at everything, just keep that in mind,
Therefore a higher ROI than trade's, you'll never find!
So step right in, sentient ooze, we're ready for a deal!
You might want to beat us, enslave us, and defeat us,
But our prices are so good, it makes no sense to steal!



All comments from YouTube:

@SongsfromtheStars

Please note: real-life xenophobia is a big enough problem that I won't be inclined to tolerate a lot of comments joking about how great fictional xenophobia would be.

@nyarlathotep4889

Good, wouldn’t want this version to be taken down too.

@franciscorui

Bitch-made

@MSgtHavoc

This comment would only make sense if there wasn't a version of this song on Youtube that is clearly a joke on how great fictional xenophobia would be from the perspective of the game "Stellaris".

That is about 5 times the amount of time this exact video I'm commenting on is on this platform.

@treehousejackal

@@MSgtHavoc the hilarious part is that, within Stellaris, being a genocidal xenophobe is an absurdly overpowered strat and a lot of people play exclusively like that. personally it weighs too much on my conscience so I nearly always do egal/xenophile

@david7384

Non fictional xenophobia is far superior. Nobody gives a shit if you tolerate it.

10 More Replies...

@the13inquisitor59

I do love that Stellaris became an unintended gateway to filk.

@AndreiZhuravlev

My very first filk song. Found this treasure in one of Stellaris video. And finally got a hankering for filk

@cassie451

No idea how long I asked for the high quality Past Due, but damn if you didn't come through. Thanks so much!

@flinko99

Honestly it makes me kinda sad that this seems to be the only song most people know of Bill Sutton's... I swear, some of them think it's unironic

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