It is also a term meaning “arrest and charge” Getting out of charges was a common reason for people to “volunteer” for military service.

Also the idea of Americana imagery and the support of US ideology; I’ve got my spine (bravery in the face of a demonised enermy), I’ve got my orange crush (I’m also a working class person who is rightfully enjoying some"luxury" and made to believe this is right to die for)

The critique of the Vietnam War (already mentioned) has three additional layers to it, in this song. The critique of warmongering masculinity is paired with a critique of capitalism – as others have mentioned, through the link between Agent Orange and Orange Crush soda.

But the soda and the spine of the song are not only references to the sense of immunity of the masculine soldier figure that Stipe is channelling. They link to the duality at the heart of late 20th century masculinity – his physical body is tough (“I’ve got my spine”) and his commodities are tasty (“I’ve got my Orange Crush”). Stipe is layering his critique of masculinity with the advertising-slogan style. “I’ve got my Orange Crush” is a brilliantly ideological phrase: not only does it reaffirm the importance of capitalism to this masculine figure by pairing the spine with the corporate brand. It goes further! It even manages to sound like a brand’s catch phrase while doing so.

If we think seriously about Orange Crush in this song, we get even more interesting layers to this critique. The chemical agent to which the song refers was made by Monsanto, Dow Chemical, and Diamond Shamrock (wikipedia). These companies profited from the failed genocide in Vietnam, through the militarism of the US government – as Monsanto and Dow Chemical, at least, have continued to do. (idk about DS).

The soda brand is no less corporate, though it is a (delicious) consumer good. High sugar derived from progressively worse sources (see the history of this beverage, it’s awful) was itself a product of colonial expansion into the Caribbean – low sugar prices, built out of British colonialism, created the prevalence of white sugar that later formed the base for 20th century US diets (with white flour, meat, etc).

In all these ways, Stipe’s “Orange Crush” is a fierce indictment of a capitalism built on colonial and imperial oppression. Because Stipe is able to capture the phrasing and tone of the figure he’s critiquing, this song (like Springsteen’s “Born in the USA” or Neil Young’s “Rockin' in the Free World”) can be read as a celebration of the thing he critiques. Don’t read it that way; this essay is why.

The use of the phrase “orange crush” could also be a reference to the American soda product Crush, which is most commonly sold in orange flavor; the allusion to the drink may further the song’s critique of the Vietnam War by depicting Agent Orange attacks as being as everyday to the narrator as a common beverage.

It’s a reference to football and orange soda.