"But I believe in torture and
I will torture you,"
spits the soldier; defender
of this great, Western faith.
We bring freedom and grenades,
democracy in the barrel of a semi-automatic.
Ready, aim, FIRE -- take your peace and prisons,
our useless jabber.
"We feel simply awful."
(Under a rippling, star-spangled rag.
"My fellow barbarians,
May God bless America.")
"They are human beings", yes,
so artfully arranged.
These human beings in a human pyramid or
splayed naked on the floor or
balancing on a crate, hooded like Death.
Each flash, each CLICK,
each image a gunshot --
a hammer to our human foundations.
Ashes on the ruins, blood in the ashes.
Arab blood: irrelevant.
"They are human beings", these smiling monsters,
Buzz cuts & fatigues. Mint-green surgical gloves,
disposable like inmates.
Saying CHEESE over the body
of Manadel al-Jamadi.
I am eating macaroni & cheese with
my hair in braids
in front of the six o'clock news.
Here, child, the punchline --
That girl in those photos,
she has eyes like yours.
(Tomorrow America will look me in the face and say,
"You know, these people are being fired at every day.
You ever heard of emotional release?"
Limbaugh, your eyes are barred windows
into your prison cell of a soul.
I see corpses in you.)
They are human and they are bleeding.
You are human and you are cold.
This is what we do to each other.
"It was un-American and it was
inconsistent with the values of our nation" -- No, liar,
their values are yours.
("I believe in torture," the soldier says
and you smile beneficently, bury the evidence)
They are yours.
Author notes
This is about Abu Ghraib. If you don't know what that is, here and here will explain. It is not pretty. Fair warning.
And for the record, I do believe that this atrocity is not the result of "bad apples" (thanks, General Kimmitt) but an indictment of the direction in which we're allowing society to move in this post 9/11 world. It isn't an aberration, seen once and reviled by the world. It could very easily be normal.
"But I believe in torture. And I will torture you."
-- said by some monster of a US soldier to Ameen Saeed Al-Sheik.
"They [Iraqi prisoners] are human beings."
-- Donald Rumsfeld.
"You know, these people are being fired at every day. You ever heard of emotional release?"
-- US shock jock Rush Limbaugh, on why we shouldn't be worried about Abu Ghraib. Fucker.
"It was un-American and it was inconsistent with the values of our nation."
-- Also Donald Rumsfeld.
A contest entry
- Abu Ghraib ~ the Contest ~ 4000 points by Ariosto II..
3500 points, ended June 17, 2008, 6 entries
Gold trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Comments
1 - 7 of 7
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Here, child, the punchline --
That girl in those photos,
she has eyes like yours.
Wow....this was powerful....almost too powerful. Nearly made me start crying, I seem to be doing my fair share of that due to poems lately. Wow.
Hey, everynow and then I find a poem that I feel I have to read again and again, and it's pretty rare mind you, but when I do find one, I print those poems off and I hang them on my wall. May I print off yours for that purpose. The only changes I would make to it, with your permission of course, is I run it through spell check though on MS word, though I wont do that if you don't want me to. Your name would be on it along with the adress of this page. But I feel I should ask before I print, so...may I?
-Andi
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Thanks for your lovely comment, it's great to hear that I've managed to imbue this work with an emotional resonance. I'm really honoured to hear that you want to print it off -- go right ahead. Feel free to run it through a spell check as well (get back to me if I've screwed up somewhere)
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Enjoy
xxx.
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This is an exceptional work.
You paint a broad canvas that includes much more than the actual 'happening' in Iraq.
You've tied in so much, from eating macaroni (great stanza!) to Limbaugh, through the atrocity itself and right on up to the star spangled banner.
There are a few rough edges here but considering the subject they don't bother me.
The details add up to more than the whole in this.
Terrific job
thanks for entering
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that was breathtaking....... it gave me goosebumps!! the last line is incredibly powerful.
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Yes ...
you've got it down fairly well I'd say. It was a disgusting chapter in American history, but there have been many and it will soon be forgotten. At least it will if the powers that be have anything to say about it.
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this is really powerful. like...wow. i really feel you're emotion in this. one of your best. i loved:
"(Under a rippling, star-spangled rag.
"My fellow barbarians,
May God bless America.")"
and just a punctiation thing;
"spits the soldier, defender
of this great, Western faith."
I'd say maybe...
"spits the soldier; defender
of this great Western faith."
would work better.
but regardless of that this is amazing, though a bit brutal.
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Ahh, I hate semicolons. But point taken -- changed.
Thx for the comment -- glad you liked despite the political overtones and, yes, obvious brutality.
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