Dire Straits' song 'Industrial Disease' may have come closer to capturing technological anxiety than 'Money for Nothing.' They wrote money for nothing after watching a couple of roughnecks cut up the music videos in the television section of a department store. 'Industrial Disease' is a more serious song.

ARTIST: Dire Straits TITLE: Industrial Disease

Warning lights are flashing down at quality control
Somebody threw a spanner and they threw him in the hole
There's rumors in the loading bay and anger in the town
Somebody blew the whistle and the walls came down
There's a meeting in the boardroom they're trying to trace the smell
There's leaking in the washroom there's a sneak in personnel
Somewhere in the corridors someone was heard to sneeze
'Goodness me could this be industrial disease

The caretaker was crucified for sleeping at his post
There're refusing to be pacified it's him they blame the most
The watchdog's got rabies the foreman's got the fleas
And everyone's concerned about industrial disease
There's a panic on the switchboard tongues are tied in knots
Some come out in sympathy some come out in spots
Some blame the management some the employees
And everybody knows it's the industrial disease

The work force is disgusted downs tools and walks
Innocence is injured experience just talks
Everyone seeks damages and everyone agrees
That these are 'classic symptoms of a monetary squeeze'
On ITV and BBC they talk about the curse
Philosophy is useless theology is worse
History boils over there's an economics freeze
Sociologists invent words that mean industrial disease

Doctor Parkinson declared "I'm not surprised to see you here
You've got smokers cough from smoking brewer's droop from drinking beer
I don't know how you came to get the Bette Davis knees
But worst of all young man you've got industrial disease"
He wrote me a prescription he said, "You are depressed"
But I'm glad you came to see me to get this off your chest
Come back and see me later - Next patient please
Send in another victim of industrial disease"

I go down to Speakers Corner I'm thunderstruck
They got free speach, tourists, police in trucks
Two men say there're Jesus one of them must be wrong
There's a protest singer singing a protest song - he says
"They wanna have a war so they can keep us on out knees
They wanna have a war so they can keep their factories
They wanna have a war to stop us buying Japanese
They wanna have a war to stop industrial disease
They're pointing out the enemy to keep you deaf and blind
They wanna sap your energy incarcerate your mind
They give you Rule Brittania, gassy beer, page three
Two weeks in Espana and Sunday striptease"
Meanwhile the first Jesus say's "I'd cure it soon
Abolish monday mornings and friday afternoons"
The other one's out on hunger strike he's dying by degrees
How come even Jesus gets industrial disease