Rob Rice knows just where he stands. This is his "Upon the War in Iraq":
The time has come for thunderboltsOn Oct. 7, 2001, the bombs began falling in Afghanistan, whose brutal, barbaric terrorist regime harbored al Qaeda. Tabitha Szalapski wrote this poem this year, but it expresses well the challenge America faced in the autumn of 2001:
Of steel from the sky.
It is now right that murderers
Instead of children, die.
They have forged chains and thumbscrews while
We have made pleas and threats.
The portraits of the killer smile
But he must pay his debts.
A mountainside is split in two,
His coward legions fall.
His shackled cities fade from view
Beneath a smoky pall.
Armored treads sound in the street,
The tanks are not his own.
He has bid many to be slain.
He'll face his death alone.
Cineas told Pyrrhus that
'Rome has a thousand heads.'
And Rome was a republic, strong
After that king was dead.
The tyrant butchers live in fear
And we go on and on.
A century shall find us here
And every tyrant gone.
Our carriers loom off his coast.
Our bombers fill his skies.
And brave, skilled men with stealthy tread
Prepare his grim surprise.
Grant, and Sherman, Patton, Greene
Have taught us to make war.
We now pick up their legacy
And free the world once more.
"War is hell," while not quite true,Tom Hedgecock contributes "America's Soul":
Expresses how we feel;
And, yet, to war we go anew
To quell a threat that's real.
We relish not the death and pain,
The loss of our dear sons;
But when the tyrants' terrors reign:
"Arise, courageous ones!"
Arise, rush forward to the fight,
Lift up sweet freedom's call--
If no one stands for what is right,
Oppression conquers all.
So--to the battle-line and wreak
Destruction swift and sure.
It is not power that we seek,
But life--for all--secure.
The bagpipe plays its somber trill through the last strains of "Amazing Grace",There's a lot of good stuff there so I suggest you check it out.
As New York's finest is gently lowered, to his final resting place,
The tears aren't dry and will flow again as the rites begin anew,
But from these mournings, there brings resolve, which will see this nation through.
The Twin Towers survived their mortal blows as both struggled not to fall,
But as one twin fell and skyward looked as if beckoning to call,
For it would not be the same with one twin left, in that skyline for all to see,
And soon the second came crashing down to where a memorial soon will be.
The memorial will list the names of those who gave their last full measure,
For they sacrificed their lives for others and thus increased our nations treasure,
It will be there to honor all who answered duties call just then,
For as the workers were rushing out, America's heroes were rushing in.
The Pentagon, where soldiers serve, was terror's next objective,
Steering the plane through death-throes course to unleash their grim invective,
They wreaked their havoc at the citadel where now planning does evolve,
In the name of fallen comrades their fate's been sealed, with steely-eyed resolve.
As an aircraft flew PA's uncharted course, a plan soon came to be,
If Americans must die, it would not be in vain; that's why freedom isn't free,
These heroes then fought back the terror, thus lessening the nation's toll,
And forever their battle cry will be, it's time to go, "Let's roll."
As witnesses to this martial play we know horrific deeds were done,
Yes bitter blows were struck that day; the ironic date was Nine-One-One,
The shocking disbelief our nation felt, was hard to rationalize,
But when knocked down, we do get up; soon the world would realize.
We dusted off our soot drenched clothes and began our work anew,
As our enemies began to ponder just, what would this colossus do?
With patience and devotion we planned to strategically reply,
For history's lessons taught us to prepare, and soon our enemy would die.
The true leaders of the world then met, to collate what would become,
A united front to fight a foe, who used terror as a gun,
We're now lead by those who know the price and are willing to pay it too,
To eradicate the world from terror and the patience to see it through.
Yes when terror struck we were not prepared and paid an horrific price,
But as a tribute to those who gave their all and made the ultimate sacrifice,
We have been strengthened and we have united to reach the final goal,
And since 9-11 the whole world now knows, the depth of "America's Soul."