Poets Against the War

March 22, 2003 12:20 PM

Poets Against The War
Sons and Daughters of Baghdad:
The hour of your liberation draws near
We extend towards you our white hand
Once embraced by many in vain:
Indian, African, Vietnamese,
And washed clean of their colored red stain.
posted by fold_and_mutilate (10 comments total)

Hey, I happen to *be* Indian. And the British were by no means *all* bad. They brought literacy, railroads, and - yes - civilization to the subcontinent.

Also - while America couldn't save the South Vietnamese, it did save the South Koreans...as it saved the Haitians, the Bosnian Muslims, the women under the Taliban, and now the Iraqis.
posted by balajis at 12:34 PM on March 22, 2003

The Japanese and the Germans, although I suppose the Germans were white.
posted by stoneegg21 at 12:51 PM on March 22, 2003

Barf. Those poet-peaceniks just can't get past the past, can they...?
posted by davidmsc at 1:32 PM on March 22, 2003

"My annoyance has been stewing for a while. It peaked with the emergence of Poets Against the War, an overhyped coalition of usual suspects led by Seattle poet and small-press publisher Sam Hamill. Last week Mr. Hamill, with a maximum amount of self-righteous pomposity, staged readings across the country. My first reaction, upon hearing about the protest readings, was, "Oh, no. The poets are against the war. Whatever are we going to do?" But my flip, quote-marks-in-the-air reaction grew even less sincere and more ironic when I actually read some of the poetry. Select pieces are available on the Internet, in the e-book 100 Poets Against the War, now in a "third edition" because there have been so many submissions. Why, if you didn't know better, you'd almost think that thousands of poets were taking advantage of a political crisis to further their careers!"

--Neal Pollack
posted by Karl at 2:29 PM on March 22, 2003

**awaits hilariously histrionic & ominous response from MeFi's little ray of sunshine, foldy**
posted by Karl at 2:33 PM on March 22, 2003

I bet the hippies are happy they can walk around with there peace t-shirts and not feel dated anymore.
posted by Jessy at 5:47 PM on March 22, 2003

I bet the hippies are happy they can walk around with there peace t-shirts and not feel dated anymore.

I bet the latch-key warriors are happy they can walk around in camouflage and feel like they're on the front line.
posted by riviera at 8:17 PM on March 22, 2003

Clearly, poetry is the way to end this useless bloodshed. No, Really. Why are you giggling? Because it's stupid?

I'll tell you what Foldy, I'm launching my own campaign this very night. I like to call it S.A.W. (Sleep Against War). It is getting underway in about 30 minutes. I'll bet you a packet of patchouli incense sticks that my campaign is just as succesful.
posted by ttrendel at 3:29 AM on March 23, 2003

I see they've even managed to sneak a bit of white-guilt in there.

I must be SO evil.
posted by ed\26h at 8:00 AM on March 23, 2003

I cry for the dead
Those who could not speak
Those I could have aided
Those for whom few weep

I called my agent
And then spoke my mind
I protested the war
for Those who could not speak

I gave up the red carpet
on Oscar night
I protested the war
while more civilians died

They died at the hands
of soldiers and their guns
not American, though,
but of their countrymen, brothers, sons

They were tortured and tormented
By Sadaam and his friends
and I could not see this
I had a press conference to attend

I shouted down the war
because it was the fashion
little understanding the needs
of those in the line of action

I didn't understand liberation
or the freedom it brought
but I sounded so knowledgeable
or so many Americans thought
posted by darren at 12:06 PM on March 23, 2003