Poets Against War continues the tradition of socially engaged poetry by creating venues for poetry as a voice against war, tyranny and oppression.
Jennifer Carlile
36 years old
Boiling Springs, NC
Sequel
On the brink of another war with Iraq – or maybe it’s the same one – I listen to R.E.M. and worry again about people I’ll never meet: girls and boys studying geography, grandmothers weeding their gardens, parents watching the skies, knowing that devils come from above, not below.
So forgive me if I can’t get riled about Saddam, another former U.S. friend-turned-enemy according to another Bush – or maybe it’s the same one – they sound so much alike.
And don’t try to sell me some pseudo-religion that deifies “smart” bombs, oil wells, stock portfolios, the American flag plastered on every car.
Here’s what I do believe: there’s no acceptable level of “collateral damage,” no excuse for making war, no “us” and “them.”
Mr. President, if you’re listening, if you even know how, stop this thing. This truly evil thing. Half a world away, God’s other children are waiting to see what you’ll do, what we’ll do, this time.
