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War

While I am glad justice has been served for so many, I hesitate to celebrate. Osama bin Laden is one man among many who shared his sentiment. This is not about the defeat of one man, and that's why this is not over. We, as a human race, are only as good as our weakest individual; so, we have a long way to go before peace is the reigning force among us. Each of us must constantly ask ourselves what image of America are we portraying? What image of humanity are we extending to others? If this is to be such a historic moment, let us not simply celebrate death, but contemplate the suffering of others and better ourselves so that history need not repeat itself.


As we think on these things and evaluate our role in peace/war, I offer a poem I wrote years ago that still aptly summarizes my feelings toward all of these things. I'd love to hear your thoughts.


Cheers,
PD


~War~


Static whispers on the radio
Something is wrong in Sarajevo

They crash! Kamikaze are idols
But God forbid they feel the cold

Cold breath of our country, so strong, so great
We’re making the world better! But we’re too late

Men aiming guns at each other’s eyes,
Don’t see your own injustices, see mine!

We’re stuck in the trenches and they’ll never stop
As long as we’re here, we’re doomed to hear the POP

Of grenades thrown out at our children
No one… no one will ever win

Fight the faceless foe, never let him go!
They don’t tell you what you don’t want to know

We’re winning! We’re winning this damned war
Though hundreds of thousands of corpses lay heaped at our door

Can’t you see we’re protecting the free world?
Saviors are we, and so we stab with our swords

But into whose chest do we plunge the blade?
Our friends? Ha! Maybe last year, but now that fades

I’m so tired of these damned battles
My mind reels and my head rattles

Fire! Fire! Seared onto our brains, branded
Oh God! The anonymous enemy has just landed!

Reveal yourself! Take off that mask!
Fine, you won’t? I will… gasp!

It’s me.

- P. Desai (10/2006)


 War/Peace (Deconstructed Book 1, P.Desai, 2003)

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