War Mongers

donhakman's post reminded me of some works I wrote and prominently posted in my English teacher's classroom, some of them long before the invasion. According to him, many people stopped to read it, and some of the staunchest republicans in the school told me they had read and dissagreed, but could not counter or debate me because they were "not as good with words."

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War Mongers

I do not trust
The war mongers
Among us
Who are happy to send
The troops into battle.

Why exactly they do this,
No one has said.
Perhaps they enjoy
Seeing people dead.

I do not trust
The war mongers
Among us
Who make war an issue
For political gain.

It’s time to stand up
And tell how it is
We owe it to ourselves
And to our kids.

I do not trust
The war mongers
Among us
Who say we are an island
And act accordingly.

They mean to distract us
From what’s really wrong.
We cannot allow
These things to go on.

I do not trust
The war mongers
Among us.
You should not either.
Do not let them fool you.
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Critical point

We have reached a critical point
And the forces in play
Could easily destroy us
By the end of the day.
I still do not trust
These war mongers among us
Who choose where they aim
By who they can hit.
United we stand,
We fall if we split,
Or we can all burn together
When the fire is lit.

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Saber rattling

The rattling of the saber
And the beating of the drum
In addition to being
Ill advised and dumb,
Have done nothing good
But demonstrate to the planet
That our government has power
And cannot handle it.
Never mind our weapons’ power,
And the skill of our spies,
What I want to see
Are international allies.


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Where Sam Be Stepping

When Sam steps on the ant-hill,
He will kill some ants,
But he’ll also get them
All up in his pants.
It would be a good idea
For him to mark where he strides,
And make sure exterminators
Don’t turn from his side.


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The Magician

See the great magician
Playing his tricks.
Look where he tells you,
Or you might get sick.
You don’t want to know
Just how he performs
That makes passers-by
Look at his audience in scorn.
He’s a new kind of juggler!
Two hands on one ball!
Who cares about the others
If he lets them fall.
Remember the rogue nation
We spent blood, sweat, and tears on?
Well, here comes the magician.
Poof! Flash! Gone!
You don’t see it because
His slight of hand
Distracts your eyes
Towards another land.

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Simple Majority

I used to wonder
How they can report
That most Americans
Stand in support.
Now I see
The supporters are not
Few and far
As I had thought.

I find myself surrounded
By bloodthirsty fools
Who have forgotten the past
And all of the rules.
Many of them say
“We must make him die!”
Not one is able
To explain why.
“He’s been at it too long!
We must take him down!”
But no one knows
What, or how.

“We will free the people!”
As we blow them apart.
It’s a clear demonstration
Of the love in our hearts,
For whether or not
We go for their oil
We will only free them
Of this mortal coil.
Does no one understand
That by going in
We are committing
The greater sin?

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The Baghdad 500

I’d like a word
With whoever’s in command.
Sir I believe
That you must understand
A few of the tactics
On which you rely
Must be addressed,
Because they’re unwise.
Primarily, this race--
The rush to Baghdad--
In theory: Good.
In practice: Bad.
You may leave resistance
In the dust behind,
But you then leave resistance
To attack your supply lines.

Our soldiers will pay
For this speedy show
During which the target is
Not the enemy, but the poll
Speed in this war:
Politically: Good.
But don’t waste brave lives
And pretend that you should.

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The Eagle and the Elephant

You can’t talk politics
Without saying “war.”
This is quite a departure,
For, Unlike before,
When the Eagle swooped down
To deliver justice,
This Elephant puts tusks
To all who don’t trust it.

I myself find it
To be beyond belief
That the Eagle traded wings
In favor of teeth.
So this Elephant is
Not from the eagle evolved,
But saw it as a target,
Which it then robbed.

The abuses are many
As in the nest it sits
Not feeding the hatchlings
But instead throwing fits.
Soon, it’s weight
Will tip over the nest,
And then will come
The hatchlings’ test.
Will they learn to fly
Before they hit the ground,
Or continue to flutter
The whole way down?

I really liked them all -- and I love "The Baghdad 500."

I visited the teacher last month, and he pointed out that I had been correct in every one of my ridiculously dire predictions. There was no joy in the vindication.

"There was no joy in the vindication."

And pretend that you should.

Poetry communicates in ways that no term paper can, and it is more difficult to write.
Thanks for sharing.

The "Baghdad 500" was the weakest of the set.

The Blind Patriot

My country, right or wrong
You better not criticize;
I’d rather believe the lies -
So join the chorus and sing along:

Oh, say can you see
Through the hype and the spin?
If you can, then you must
Not want us to win.

Rally round the flag boys
No matter who does the waving
Our might to be right
Is truly worth saving.

Don’t question the president
About WMD
Just believe what he says;
Don’t you want to be free?

You’re either with us
Or against the red white and blue
So watch what you say
Or we’ll investigate you.

Be a good PATRIOT
And clean up your ACT.
If you don’t think the RIGHT way
Your computer will be hacked.

You must be a traitor
To protest this war -
It’s your free speech
That we’re fighting for.

So shut your mouth
You liberal fag
Just close your eyes
And wave that flag.