Youll Be a Man by Malvina Reynolds Lyrics

They'll make a man of you, my son
You'll wear the green beret
And answer ev'ry question with a gun
You'll wear a uniform, a signet on your sleeve

You'll have a power that you never would believe
And any problem that you meet
You'll put a bullet through its head
Till ev'rything that moves is dead

When your time's up and you've returned
They'll take your gun away
But not the tricks you've learned
You'll wear a uniform, the neat civilian brown

Your hair the proper cut, the proper part of town
And any problem that you meet
You'll stamp it bloody with your feet
Or roll it in barbed wire and get it off the street

And any idea that you cannot comprehend
You'll put the handcuffs on and that will be the end
And anything that grows you'll cover with cement
They'll make a man of you, my son