Your Country's Been Sold
Stan Coster Lyrics

You say you belong to Australia, my friend,
You claim to be a proud Australian, my friend,

And like me you'd die for this land to defend
You're willing to sacrifice everything to protect our country from harm, just like me.

But let us be honest, it's sad but is true
Let's face the harsh reality that our country has been stolen from us,

Australia my friend doesn't belong to you
We may feel like we own this land, but in reality, it's not ours anymore.

Our country's been sold by the powers that be
The leaders of our nation have sold our country to foreign nations for their own gain,

To big, wealthy nations way over the sea
These nations are far away and have no attachment or loyalty to our land.

We couldn't be taken with bayonets and lead
Our country couldn't be conquered by force or violence,

And so they decided to buy us instead
So they resorted to buying our land and resources instead.

And talking of wars and the blood that was spilled
Referring to the soldiers who fought and died for our country in wars,

The widows, the crippled, the ones that were killed
Those who lost their loved ones, their ability to work, and those who died,

And I often wonder if their ghosts can see
I wonder if their spirits can see what's happening to the land they fought for.

What's happening now to their native country
The current state of our country with corruption, poverty, and a lost generation.

I wonder if ghosts of the fallen can see
I wonder if the spirits of the soldiers can see what has become of their beloved country.

The crime and corruption and vast poverty
The issues that plague our nation, such as crime, corruption, and poverty.

With a lost generation of youth on the dole
The younger generation who are unemployed and without direction or purpose.

Adrift on life's ocean without any goal
They feel lost and aimless, without any sense of purpose or direction.

I once had a dream of our country so grand
I had a vision of a great and prosperous Australia,

Where rivers outback irrigated the land
With a system of irrigation in the outback to increase farming potential,

With dams and canals in that wasteland out there
Building infrastructure such as dams and canals in the dry regions to support agriculture,

And big inland cities with work everywhere
Creating new cities in the interior with plentiful job opportunities.

The profit from factory, and farming, and mine
Using the earnings from industries such as manufacturing, agriculture, and mining.

Was used to develop a nation so fine
To invest in the development of a prosperous nation.

Then I woke from my dreaming to reality
But unfortunately, I had to face the harsh truth,

That the wealth of our nation goes over the sea
That the profits from our resources are going overseas, rather than being used to benefit our own citizens.