"In God's Country" is a song by Irish rock band U2. It is the seventh track from their 1987 album The Joshua Tree and was released as the album's fourth single in November 1987 in North America only.^[1]

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Bono has stated that he originally didn't know whether the song was about Irelandor America, but eventually dedicated it to the Statue of Liberty.^[4] The song characterises the United States as a desert rose, a siren whose dress is torn in "ribbons and bows". The lyric speaks of a lack of political ideas in The West which Bono later contrasted to the revolution in Nicaragua where he had travelled during the recording of The Joshua Tree.^[2]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_God%27s_Country

The Joshua Tree is the fifth studio album by rock band U2. It was produced byDaniel Lanois and Brian Eno, and was released on 9 March 1987 by Island Records. In contrast to the ambient experimentation of their 1984 release The Unforgettable Fire, on The Joshua Tree U2 aimed for a harder-hitting sound within the limitation of conventional song structures. The album is influenced by Americanand Irish roots music, and depicts the band's love-hate relationship with the United States, with socially and politically conscious lyrics embellished with spiritual imagery.

Inspired by American tour experiences, literature, and politics, U2 chose America as a theme for the record. Recording began in January 1986 in Ireland, and to foster a relaxed, creative atmosphere, the group recorded in two houses, in addition to two professional studios. Several events during the sessions helped shape the conscious tone of the album, including the band's participation in A Conspiracy of Hope tour, the death of roadie Greg Carroll, and lead vocalist Bono's travels to Central America. Recording was completed in November 1986; additional production continued into January 1987. Throughout the sessions, U2 sought a "cinematic" quality for the record, one that would evoke a sense of location, in particular, the open spaces of America. They represented this in the sleeve photography depicting them in American desert landscapes.

The Joshua Tree received critical acclaim, topped the charts in over 20 countries, and sold in record-breaking numbers. According to Rolling Stone, the album increased the band's stature "from heroes to superstars". It produced the hit singles "With or Without You", "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For", and "Where the Streets Have No Name". The album won Grammy Awards for Album of the Year and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 1988. The group supported the record with the Joshua Tree Tour throughout 1987. Frequently featured on critics' lists of rock's greatest records, The Joshua Tree is one of theworld's best-selling albums, with over 25 million copies sold. In 2007, U2 released a remastered edition of the record to commemorate its 20th anniversary.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Joshua_Tree

I've a bone to pick with Bono but this isn't the time or place.

As for the music. This is probably U2's best stuff. While I can relate to most of their other work I don't necessarily like it. But that's okay. What's one man's opinion against the rest of the world.

What does it, particularly 'In God's Country', signify? Is it a paean to Ronald Reagan for  his efforts to upend the Soviet Union &   beginning the destruction of the international working-class (& so-called middle-class &/or professional caste) leading the USA on the way to an oligarchic plutocratic super-fascistic militaristic corporate totalitarian police-state ?  

Like Ray Bradbury said: his job as a scifi writer was not to predict the future but rather to prevent the future in its twisted dystopian (Reaganite-Thatcherite) form from coming about. The health of this republic is everybody's responsibility. You can ignore that trust or run with it. 

Or do the words make a highly critical political statement on the decline of the West & more specific, America?  A wasteland filled with hollow men. The sons of Cain in a nation damned by good intentions gone bad;  "burned by the fire of love".

In God's Country

Desert sky
Dream beneath a desert sky
The rivers run but soon run dry
We need new dreams tonight

Desert rose
Dreamed I saw a desert rose
Dress torn in ribbons and in bows
Like a siren she calls to me

Sleep comes like a drug
In God's country
Sad eyes, crooked crosses
In God's country

Set me alight
We'll punch a hole right through the night
Everyday the dreamers die
See what's on the other side

She is liberty
And she comes to rescue me
Hope, faith, her vanity
The greatest gift is gold

Sleep comes like a drug
In God's country
Sad eyes, crooked crosses
In God's country

Naked flame
She stands with a naked flame
I stand with the sons of Cain
Burned by the fire of love
Burned by the fire of love

--song written by Adam Clayton et al

Extra Special Bonus: The Joshua Tree [Full Album]