Read quickly, the poem feels like a chain of commands that spiral downward. The opening line plays on the word "order": people "lock into order" so that they can make "war," as if discipline and structure exist mainly to fuel violence. The next lines follow the money. "Tar and oil" are what the war goes after, and the strange image of someone who will "eat money" suggests a hunger that can never be satisfied. Then comes the grim twist: everything "change[s] into lead," the heavy, poisonous metal, which might also hint at bullets or at wealth turning into something deadly.
The title, "Billionaire blues," sets a bitter, sarcastic tone, since it pairs enormous wealth with the language of sadness. The final line, "O pain of my pain," breaks the cold, clipped rhythm with a sudden cry. The speaker seems to feel grief that is doubled back on itself, a pain that hurts to witness as much as to endure. The mood is angry, weary, and haunted.