I'm at work -- and I'm not in the mood

I've had one idiot phone call already, which just hasn't enhanced my motivation, shall we say?

Laurie King posted up something in a recent blog talking about national anthems, and their dodgy sentiments. And yep, there are some good'uns.

La Marseillaise (France):

Let's go children of the fatherland,
The day of glory has arrived!
Against us tyranny's
Bloody flag is raised! (repeat)
In the countryside, do you hear
The roaring of these fierce soldiers?
They come right to our arms
To slit the throats of our sons, our friends!

Grab your weapons, citizens!
Form your batallions!
Let us march! Let us march!
May impure blood
Water our fields!

No, it really is the French national anthem, not Nazi Germany's.

The Star-Spangled Banner (US):

What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thro' the perilous fight'
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming.
And the rockets red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

Well, it's good that's nothing's changed there with the bombs bursting in air. We don't need to go into the blood "washing" further on.

¡Oh Gloria Inmarcesible! (Colombia) (8th Stanza)

The virgin her hairs
pulls out in agony
and from her love widowed
hangs them on a cypress.
Regretting her hope
covered by a cold headstone,
but glorious pride
hallows her fair complexion.

Ok, WTF? All the independence stuff earlier on makes sense, but this?

Das Lied Der Deutschen (Germany) (2nd stanza)

German women, German loyalty,
German wine and German song,
Shall retain in the world,
Their old lovely ring
To inspire us to noble deeds
Our whole life long.
German women, German loyalty,
German wine and German song.

See, there's motivation: wine, women and song. I can't help thinking the French and Germans got their anthems muddled up somehow.

And, the piece de resistance, the New Zealand National Anthem:
God Defend New Zealand

God of nations, at thy feet
In the bonds of love we meet,
Hear our voices, we entreat,
God defend our free land.

No, apparently von Sacher-Masoch did not compose the lyrics, but really, who can tell?

The Canadian and Australian national anthems are pretty decent, really, the lucky buggers. The English and South African ones go "Queen, queen, queen" and "God, God, God" respectively, but that's pretty inoffensive.