Senator Collins Stands for War

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN POLITICS

 

Maine for War

 

The honorable Senator of Maine *

Raises her hand for war

The Senator has made it plain

Her cowardice runs to the core

 

She’s made an art of equivocation

On every issue under the sun

In the end she knows her station

Her vote belongs to the one

 

It’s never about her conscience

It’s rarely about her pride

It rarely makes any sense

She is always on their side

 

This time she has gone too far

In a vote for the Iran war

She is Maine’s declining star

They won’t stand for her anymore

 

She would send your kids to die

So far away and all alone

She could never tell them why

The voters should send her home

 

* Susan Collins

 

Relative Pain

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WAR

 

Relative Pain

 

What Iran experienced in four weeks

Ukraine has suffered for four long years

And Gaza has suffered for nearly three

The time for peace is long past near

 

While all eyes were turned to Iran

The way of the world goes on and on

The passage of time does not hold still

No matter how many are killed

 

Humans adapt to all manner of hell

That does not mean that all is well

Children will play in a pile of rubble

But we do not live in a bubble

 

Open your eyes to all these wars

Just imagine they’re at your door

They are open wounds we need to mend

The world must demand an end

 

The spoils of war can go on no longer

All civilized nations must come together

Institutions of peace must be stronger

To banish all wars forever

 

 

Britannia Rising

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

 

Britannia Rising

 

Our most loyal of all friends

Has risen in objection

That friendship is at an end

Until the next election

 

We went to war alone

Netanyahu not withstanding

The crude harshness of our tone

The lack of understanding

 

All of Europe stands apart

They’ve refused to go along

For diplomacy is an art

That our president gets wrong

 

We demand that they close ranks

Though they never had a say

We’d like them to say thanks

For what we did yesterday

 

But this is a brutal war

Netanyahu got it wrong

It is rotten to the core

And Britain will not go along

 

 

House of Cards

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: IRAN WAR

 

House of Cards

 

You have no cards, the president said

He seemed to imply Ukraine was dead

This is not a game, Zelensky replied

Our president was on the other side

 

Now we move to the Strait of Hormuz

The president says you’ll pay your dues

But China has something else in mind

If you move ahead you may fall behind

 

The Iranians may not have the cards

But China does if we push too hard

They could furnish weapons across the border

And rearrange the new world order

 

If we want to play this deadly game

We should know that we’re the one to blame

Netanyahu may have started the war

But we’re the one who settled the score

 

Now we’re stuck in a terrible mess

We wanted it all but we’ll settle for less

The price of oil continues to rise

While the president issues his alibis

 

 

The Deadline

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: IRAN WAR

 

The Deadline

 

No nation would tempt this fate

The loss of all it has built

Execution of its chief of state

Its wealth in oil spilt

 

Unless its pride is on the line

Surrender is not an option

We’ve placed them in an impossible bind

We don’t know how to stop them

 

How much will be enough?

Will we let the people suffer?

The Iranian people are tough

Just to prove that we are tougher

 

Will we hold them to this deadline

On the threat of mass destruction

Will we cross that humane line

Have we made that crude deduction?

 

We’ve learned nothing from the past

For war is not the answer

How long must this war last

Before we see that it’s the cancer?

 

 

The Saboteur

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: NETANYAHU

 

The Saboteur

 

With the Strait of Hormuz closed

And the whole world feeling squeezed

Netanyahu plays the rogue

He derailed the talks with ease

 

It did not apply to Lebanon

The bombing there increased

Did they get their signals wrong?

Or did he sabotage the peace?

 

The story played on Wall Street

The Dow went through the sky

Netanyahu saw defeat

So he exposed it as a lie

 

Now the fighting will go on

In fact it hardly skipped a beat

Netanyahu played the con

That made the lie complete

 

Iran is fighting to survive

Like all of Palestine before

The cause of peace has lost its drive

We will carry on with war

 

The brutal goal is demolition

Reduce it all to a wasteland

That is Netanyahu’s mission

And he will do it if he can

 

If that means mass genocide

That is just the way it goes

They’ve got us on their side

So we will watch the horrors grow

 

 

War Crimes

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: IRAN WAR

 

War Crimes

 

The Iranians cheered him on

When he delivered the first blow

When the leadership was gone

They all gave the sign for Go!

 

But soon they had their doubts

They’re counting civilian dead

They know now what it’s about

Their hearts are filled with dread

 

He’s pledged to bomb the oil fields

Their bridges and their plants

The gruesome fate of Iran is sealed

Do not tell him that he can’t

 

He’s not afraid of war crimes

He believes that he’s immune

Yet he is running out of time

The payback is coming soon

 

He’ll be entered in the book

Of depraved and lawless leaders

Of mindless killers and crooks

Of shameless bottom feeders

 

 

Kicking the Hornets' Nest

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: IRAN WAR

 

Kicking the Hornets’ Nest

 

When you initiate a war

You ought to know what’s in store

It shouldn’t be just a guess

When you’ve kicked the hornets’ nest

 

The Hormuz Strait is still closed

Iran is shooting down our jets

The sense of failure only grows

For we have kicked the hornets’ nest

 

The whole region is inflamed

The whole world is feeling pressed

We all know who’s to blame

For he has kicked the hornets’ nest

 

Now we are offering a deal

Though it seems it is in jest

These ultimatums are not real

For we have kicked the hornets’ nest

 

Now Iraq is up in arms

What happens next is just a guess

Every move will promise harm

For we have kicked the hornets’ nest

 

Get out now while there’s still time

Get out yesterday is best

As all our enemies fall in line

We have kicked the hornets’ nest

 

The Costs of War

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WAR

 

The Cost of War

 

We really don’t need healthcare

We don’t need housing anymore

We can use that money elsewhere

We can fund the Iran War

 

We don’t need to feed the homeless

We don’t need shelters from the storms

We don’t need highways in the west

So we can pave the road to war

 

We don’t need public education

We don’t need to help the poor

We don’t need walls or space stations

Let’s fund the Iran War

 

After all it is our mission

We are destined to want more

He has made this bold decision

We must fund the Iran War

 

To hell with all our handouts

To hell with building up our shores

Tell the world to have no doubts

We can fund our dirty wars

 

 

Back to the Stone Age

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: IRAN WAR

 

Back to the Stone Age

 

America is great

America is strong

If you doubt us just wait

We will send all Iran

Back to the stone age

To where they belong

We’ll show you our rage

We’ll sing you our song

 

Ninety million people

Living in the dark

Ninety million people

The vision is stark

Ninety million people

Without power or defense

Wipe the slate clean

Is that what he meant?

The greatest ever seen

A president that’s bent

 

Lay waste to all the land

Ancient Persia is no more

Destruction is his brand

He’s the master of war

He did it because he can

Now he seems a little bored

He’s desperate for fans

He did it for the Lord

 

War for Jesus

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: IRAN WAR

 

War for Jesus

 

“Jesus don’t like killing no matter

what the reasons for…”

 

John Prine, Flag Decal

 

Jesus was a man of peace

Do not prostitute his name

The man who turned the other cheek

Would fill your soul with shame

 

You’re the Secretary of War

That much you have proclaimed

You are the president’s little whore

You’re supposed to take the blame

 

So don’t shift it all to Jesus

Do not blame it on the lord

Did you think that it would please us?

Calling Jesus to your war

 

Blame it on your raging boss

This is a war of his choosing

He tossed the dice and lost

We’re accustomed to his losing

 

(Note: Pete Hegseth makes appeals

to Jesus in the war effort.)

 

America Stands Alone

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: IRAN WAR

 

America Stands Alone

 

The Middle East is on fire

The Strait of Hormuz is closed

We are balancing on a wire

Our president is loathed

 

Betrayed at every turn

Europe goes its own way

When will we ever learn?

This is the price we pay

 

Netanyahu is our only friend

The Israelis tire of his act

We all demand that this war end

Before the next attack

 

Another hundred billion dollars

To be thrown into the flames

The debt keeps growing taller

Just to glorify his name

 

The world has lost its breath

Seems his heart is made of stone

Mass destruction, pointless death

And America stands alone

 

Netanyahu's War

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WAR IN IRAN

 

Netanyahu’s War

 

A billion dollars a day in Netanyahu’s war

The man has gone insane

As he asks for billions more

It’s the Middle East refrain

You can hear the lions roar

You can feel the grief and pain

And we know what lies in store

 

You have sacrificed your cause

The way the Dubya did before you

You have trashed international laws

The economy must have bored you

Now all you had is lost

Nothing will restore you

And we will pay the cost

 

Now boots are on the ground

In a war that never ends

Until a bitter truce is found

Though the wounds will never mend

The whole world hears the sound

On oil we all depend

And the markets will go down

And down and down again

 

Nightmare in Iran

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WAR IN IRAN

 

Nightmare Scenario

 

We answered the killing of civilians

By killing hundreds more

In a contest of crude reptilians

How should we keep the score?

 

They’ve closed the Strait of Hormuz

To us and all our friends

When you “win” this war you lose

It has no foreseeable end

 

So the price of gas will rise

And economies will fall

As toxins fill the skies

So Netanyahu can stand tall

 

Our alliances are on the block

Our people feel the pain

Our enemies will not talk

Our relationships are strained

 

All because we chose a war

Without a solid plan

We still don’t know what for

We may never understand

 

 

United Against the War

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN POLITICS

 

United Against the War

 

If the Democrats aren’t united

Against the Iranian War

They will lose the next election

It’s not enough to be against the

Oligarchs and for the poor

We demand a different direction

 

Don’t lose yourselves in strategic detail

Don’t pause to salute the troops

Don’t let the wind escape your sails

Don’t get caught in an infinite loop

 

This is not a war of necessity

This was a deliberate choice

To say anything else is a travesty

You will lose your persuasive voice

 

Stand together united in principle

This war is damnably wrong

No empire is invincible

The opposition must hold strong

 

Don’t say it needs deliberation

Don’t hem and haw like you did before

We are not an imperialist nation

Stand strong against this war