Hopeful Assassins of Zeno by The Mountain Goats Lyrics

[Verse 1]
Get tired of coming in from the mountains every year
Find some place to set up shop around here
Spread out a little, circulate
A log that floats down river
Will surely take on weight

[Pre-refrain]
Meet some people, make some friends
How long till we get sent back to the mountains?
It all depends

[Refrain]
On the hopeful
And the cunning
And the faithful
The well-positioned
Filthy but graceful

[Verse 2]
Get familiar with affairs of state
Foretell the future
Get a pretty good success rate
Notch some wins, take some losses
Be nice to the guys who wear necklaces with crosses
They will stab you in the back
[Pre-refrain]
You gotta turn the other cheek
You gotta learn to love Jesus, so to speak

[Refrain]
Like the hopeful
And the cunning
And the faithful
The well-positioned
Filthy but graceful

[Verse 3]
Real filthy, think about getting clean
Even hear the soldiers talk about it, down at the canteen
Little kings keep coming, one another's head
Which is exactly how the portents read
Watch with wonder
Fail to discern
These people never learn
How long till the snake devours its tail?
Longer than we think

[Pre-refrain]
Still it's gotta happen sometime
Until then, raise a drink
[Refrain]
To the hopeful
And the cunning
And the faithful
The well-positioned
Filthy but graceful