 Greg Garrett , an English professor at <unk> University , saw the song as an effort to " [ respond ] to growing interests in doing justice — and calling to attention American failures in that regard " , noting that the regimes in South America had been supported by the United States because of their anti @-@ communist positions , even though their tactics were in opposition to the democratic values that " America claims to champion around the world " . Lisa Hand of the Sunday Independent noted the influence of America on the track , remarking , " [ it ] does not <unk> itself simply to the music , but also extends to some of the lyrics . However , far from being a tribute to the star @-@ spangled banner , the words highlight the political <unk> and <unk> which exist within the U.S. ' Mothers of the Disappeared ' and ' Bullet the Blue Sky ' both take a hard look at the American involvement in South America " . Richard Harrington of The Washington Post described the song as " a simple lament of great beauty and sadness pleading for the realization that ideological battles about right and left obscure the more important issue of right and wrong . " Author David <unk> described it as a " [ portrait ] of the American Dream gone rancid " . 
