They call me a man born without a heart
The most frightening face on earth
The scornful mouth of a Viking statue
A face with no sign of feeling

There are only two modes of living left
Be a looter who robs victims
Or be a victim to be plundered
I did not choose to be either.

I choose to live by means of force
If looters think force is all they need to rob their betters,
Let them see what happens when their betters use force too

They call me a pirate
I am a deliverer of justice
The disease of legal plunder
I destroy by my battleship of justice

I do not rob men who are tied and gagged
I do not demand that my victims help me
I do not pretend I am acting for their own good

I stake my life in every encounter with men
And they have a chance to match their force against mine
It is I against the strength of five continents
If they believe that force is the proper means of business
I am giving them what they ask for

They call me a pirate
I am a deliverer of justice
The disease of legal plunder
I destroy by my hammer fist of pain

I am the destroyer of Robin Hood
The socialist scum of your fairy tales
I rob the poor and give it all to the rich
I fight the double-parasite,
Who lives on the sores of the poor,
And soaks up all the blood of the rich

There is but one rightful owner of Rearden Metal
You may try to extort his grand design
But you can’t hide your copycat plans from me
I will burn your Chinese mill to the ground

They call me a pirate
I am a deliverer of justice
The disease of legal plunder
I destroy by my battleship of justice

When robbery becomes the purpose of the law
Then an outlaw must deliver justice
What is taxed I steal back in gold
I’ll send your ship of loot to the bottom of the sea

Death and taxes are your absolutes
Life and production are mine
But without that hope
I'll hoist the black flag
And begin slitting throats

I am the friend of the friendless
An avenging angel
In the sky, and upon the open seas
When we are free,
Within my lifetime
Reborn from the ruins

I will lay down my arms
And bask in the new sunrise
My only love is human ability
I will see it free