Incertonia
09-06-2004, 08:56
On the Op-Ed page, so don't anyone give me that liberal rag bullshit.
A few months ago, Nicholas Kristof asked for readers to send in war poems. He's published some of them in tomorrow's column. (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/09/opinion/09KRIS.html?ex=1402113600&en=1eea33df3d194ddd&ei=5007&partner=USERLAND)
I'm a poet by trade, and while these are certainly not the same quality as Wilfred Owen of Siegfried Sassoon, they are certainly worth reading.
Here's the first one he posts.
Outside the city, shivering with dread,
We're Falluja bound.
Can hear the explosions when I raise my head. . . .
Foreign soldiers, invaders from another land;
When I look through the hatred in their eyes,
I almost understand.
R.P.G.'s, mortars, and friends dead on the road.
My youth is gone,
Crushed from sensory overload.
Assaulted yesterday up an Iraqi street.
R.P.G. explosion, a scream,
Seared my face with the heat.
Dragged him through the blood-streaked dust and dirt,
His screams in my ears,
His blood type tagged to his shirt.
Covered with blood, he cried, Don't leave me alone.
Died in my arms;
Now I just want to go home.
Officers yelling, Get out of your holes!
We're Falluja bound;
Please pray for our souls.
There are more in the column and even more at Kristof's blog. (http://www.nytimes.com/kristofresponds)
Someone want to ask Limbaugh if he thinks Tim Johnson is a "gentle little [flower] wilting in the breeze"? (http://mediamatters.org/items/200405280004)
Last but not least, if you want to post your own poems that deal with the war, whether opposed to or in favor of, then feel free. I ask only this--no flaming or criticism of anyone else's poems, regardless of how inaccurate you may feel they are or how enraged they make you. Break this rule and I'll ask the mods to deal with you harshly. Thank you.
A few months ago, Nicholas Kristof asked for readers to send in war poems. He's published some of them in tomorrow's column. (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/09/opinion/09KRIS.html?ex=1402113600&en=1eea33df3d194ddd&ei=5007&partner=USERLAND)
I'm a poet by trade, and while these are certainly not the same quality as Wilfred Owen of Siegfried Sassoon, they are certainly worth reading.
Here's the first one he posts.
Outside the city, shivering with dread,
We're Falluja bound.
Can hear the explosions when I raise my head. . . .
Foreign soldiers, invaders from another land;
When I look through the hatred in their eyes,
I almost understand.
R.P.G.'s, mortars, and friends dead on the road.
My youth is gone,
Crushed from sensory overload.
Assaulted yesterday up an Iraqi street.
R.P.G. explosion, a scream,
Seared my face with the heat.
Dragged him through the blood-streaked dust and dirt,
His screams in my ears,
His blood type tagged to his shirt.
Covered with blood, he cried, Don't leave me alone.
Died in my arms;
Now I just want to go home.
Officers yelling, Get out of your holes!
We're Falluja bound;
Please pray for our souls.
There are more in the column and even more at Kristof's blog. (http://www.nytimes.com/kristofresponds)
Someone want to ask Limbaugh if he thinks Tim Johnson is a "gentle little [flower] wilting in the breeze"? (http://mediamatters.org/items/200405280004)
Last but not least, if you want to post your own poems that deal with the war, whether opposed to or in favor of, then feel free. I ask only this--no flaming or criticism of anyone else's poems, regardless of how inaccurate you may feel they are or how enraged they make you. Break this rule and I'll ask the mods to deal with you harshly. Thank you.