Music from the Past - Conflict

One of the more influential albums from my youth, Conflict's Ungovernable Force.
From Wikipedia: "The Ungovernable Force is an album by the U.K punk rock band Conflict. It was released in 1986 by Mortarhate Records. Considered by many to be the band's most coherent and complete representation of their politics and aesthetic, it has become an enduring classic in anarchist punk music culture."

One of the most important songs on that album for me was the acerbic humor of Force or Service. I try to keep it in mind as what not to be when carrying out my duties. While I'm not a police officer, my job does often require me to use police powers. Funny how this shit winds up.

Apologies to a friend across the water, but I'm sure he gets it.


Force or Service
A quiet sunny day, the scene is suburban
Not much going off, in fact it's a boring one
Ready and waiting in Bristol fashion
For my radio to bleep and I will jump into action
PC Caring's off duty for a while
A right prat he is, always helpful and a smile
Nineteen, well hard, DM's and truncheon
Headcase 'ere and I've got some lunch

'Headcase' fuck me there goes me radio
It must be a riot if they're calling for backup
I'm at the scene Sarge, what's going down?
There's a darkie in defiance, get that nigger off me, kill 'im
Don't do it in the open, kick his teeth in later
I thought I'd taught you police operations
Take him away out the eyes of the media
Then kill the bastard kill 'im
Make sure you don't bruise him
Oh, doesn't matter you won't see the bruises anyway
He's in the van, pile in everyone, c'mon, c'mon
That's it lads
Ha, ha, ha, I love it, let me have him
Let me kill him, yeah, nice one lads
Now if you wanna get overtime, you better take my advice
Promotion or demotion? Just never step out of line
You want to make sure? Sure we can discuss a price
But keep it shut, keep the image nice
We nick the unemployed, for they are just lazy
Scrounging off us taxpayers, it must be crazy
Join the force and give a helping hand
Because the rules of the force are the laws of the land

(Police Policy)
The CND are communists, we're sick of petty pacifists,
Greenham dykes, Trotskyites, Greenpeace and the rest of it
Rioters, muggers, looters, shooters, niggers are the cause of it
Repatriation for the nation, the simple way to deal with shit
Rastas, punks, mods and hippies, students, queers and dirty pakis
Demanding more than nothing less, but never want to work for it
Miners, printers, paddies, pickets, givin' it all the demo bit
We'll smash them back with our attack, because we're the guys to deal with it

You're here to serve? Protect the nation?
Stop all the foreigners' illegal immigration
You help old ladies across the road
Even if she has got a face like a toad
You re-assure, protect the rich from the poor
To hell with muggings, rapists and the whores
Maintain law and order, keep the public at large
The police is your profession: that's right, eh Sarge?