curl of the burl

A) Unavoidable outcome
B) An often sad or wrong status quo that has always been, and is not likely to change
C) A set of events that come full circle

It comes from the song of the same name from the American band Mastodon. The song is about drug addicts cutting down trees with burls. Those burls - with their beautiful curls - are then sold to wood workers, which in turn allows them to buy even more drugs.

"It's just the curl of the burl
That's just the way of the world"

If you mess with them you'll end up dead. That's just the curl of the burl.