'68 Guns lyrics have various sources though the meaning seems clear. It is one of The Alarm's main themes -- hope to the hopeless, downtrodden, alienated, etc like Woody Guthrie and The Clash. The first line, "And now they're trying to take my life away" is about the Merchant Marine recruiter coming around again and again to get Mike to take his physical and enlist. Banging on the door, saying, "Mr. Peters, your son will be ours!" The rest of the stanza follows from this disconnect between youth and the institutions. The main source for the song, especially the 2nd stanza, I believe, is the book A Glasgow Gang Observed. Mike has shared that the power of the young men's social bond made a deep impression. Regarding the chorus and title, in Europe " The '68 Generation" or "68ers" refers to the aspirations and activism of youth, especially students. The May '68 Paris strikes are similar to "Woodstock" or anti-Vietnam War "March on the Pentagon" (where hippies famously put flowers in rifles) in the US conciousness. So '68 Guns uses the bonds and graffiti of the street gang("The Guns Forever/that's our battle cry") to speak about idealism-dashed and solidarity. Although we age and are disillusioned by the slow pace of progress, we can still keep fighting for what we believe in and not compromise too much. This spoke to the moment after punk broke. Kids worldview was changed but what comes next? The DIY energy of punk culture The Alarm grew out of: start a band of novices, make zines, press own records, creating fashion. As "Spirit of '76" says, "Carve out my future with my two bare hands"
