SWINGING ON A SCAB

A scab is an animal that walks on his knees;
He sniffs every time the bosses sneeze.
His back is brawny but his brain is weak,
He's just plain stupid with a yellow streak.
But if you don't care whose back it is you stab,
Go right ahead and be a scab.

Are you gonna stick on the line
Till we force the bosses to sign?
This is your fight, brother, and mine,
---- Or would you rather be a goon?

A goon is an animal that's terribly shy;
He can't stand to look you in the eye.
He rides to work on the cops' coattails
And wears brass knuckles to protect his nails.
But if your head is like the hole in a spittoon,
Go right ahead and be a goon.

Are you gonna stick on the line
Till we force the bosses to sign?
This is your fight, brother, and mine,
---- Or would you rather be a stool?

A stool is an animal with long hairy ears;
He runs back with everything he hears.
He's no bargain though he can be bought,
And though he's slippery he still gets caught.
But if your brain's like the rear end of a mule,
Go right ahead and be a stool.

Parody heard during the motion picture workers' strike in Hollywood, 1948.
From John Greenway's American Folksongs of Protest, 1953