Earth Doctor / Climate Troubadour

Shoveling Coal on a Runaway Train

SHOVELING COAL ON A RUNAWAY TRAIN

The sun is rising, hello caffeine                         E B7
Smell the bacon, and gasoline                           C#m E11/B A A#dim
Just keepin my head down, and I don’t complain E7 G#7 A7 A#dim
Just shoveling coal on a runaway train         E  B7  E boogie

I work my fingers till they bleed                     E  B7
Just to buy what I don’t need                          C#m  F#7  B7
And all I’ve really got is a ball and chain      E  E11/B   A  A#dim
Just shoveling coal on a runaway train        E  B7  E

Hear the lookout calling, the time’s come and gone       E B7
Water’s rising, and the band plays on             C#m E11/B A A#dim
The rich got lifeboats, and they’re climbing in       E G#7 A A#dim
But everybody else is trying to swim                     E  F#7 B7

The bridge to nowhere,  ain’t no doubt                  E  B7
And people are calling that the bridge is out  C#m E11/B  A  A#dim
Better meet my neighbor, better slow things down    E G#7 A
Or we’re gonna all be underground                    E  F#7  B7

Just one way — gonna win this game             E   E11/B A A#dim
Quit shoveling coal on a runaway train         E B7   A  A#dim
Quit shoveling coal on a runaway train         E B7 E

                       ©Doug Hendren 2017

What’s it about?  When the world is on fire, stop burning things! Business as usual is leading us to disaster. The poor are hit first and worst, but the rich people and nations are not far behind. The voices of climate scientists have been silenced and marginalized for forty years, and now we are in an emergency. Stop shoveling coal and listen to what science is telling us!

Here is a good place to start: www.globalchange.gov.
Talk to your neighbors and friends. There is still time, but not much.

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *