Why was the peanut sitting on the railroad track; it's heart all a-flutter?

A peanut sat on a railroad track, his heart was all a-flutter. Around the bend came number ten, toot-toot peanut butter.

Can you deconstruct this for me? Why on earth was a peanut sitting on a railroad track? How did it get there? Why did it have a heart and why was that heart fluttering? Was he excited? Scared? Anxious? What would his psychologist have to tell us? Was he mentally ill? Suicidal?

So here comes the train. And, as they say, it’s a train wreck waiting to happen. The result: well, something a kid spreads on a sandwich. But seriously, are you going to use peanut butter that was made by such violent means?

I mean, is this a social commentary on the process of making peanut butter? What is a child supposed to get out of this story? What is the social significance that is somehow sneaking deep into the psyches of our kids while no one really thinks about it… or worse, thinks it is innocent nonsense.

So I need help. Serious help here. I just don’t get it. How has this song arrived in the highest pantheon of childhood entertainment? How? Why? Help!