The Day Saigon Fell

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

 

The Day Saigon Fell

 

The day that Saigon fell *

Ended fifty years of hell **

Fifty years since that day

We’ve learned there’s a price to pay

 

For fighting endless wars

That wound us to our core

Wars in other people’s lands

Iraq and Afghanistan

 

Wars that leave a lasting stain

Yemen and Ukraine

I wonder if we’ve learned at all

Fifty years since the fall

 

We’ve pledged to end all war

We’ve sworn to fight no more

But then the bugle sounds

And another war goes down

 

Soldiers by the thousands die

As mothers wonder why

Their children are deceased

When will we live in peace?

 

* April 28, 1975

** British, French and American wars

Remember Kent State

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN HISTORY

Remember Kent State

 

Back in the year 1970

(most of you don’t remember)

The National Guard in the state of Ohio

Shot four students dead

They were not violent

They were not breaking the law

They were shot dead for being there

Shot dead for caring

Shot dead for the war machine

In Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam

 

We knew they hated us

We didn’t know they’d kill us

After Kent State we knew

We’d never forget the bloodstained path

The tears of innocence

The end of an era of hope

 

More than any other event of the decade

Kent State divided the nation

Kent State burned itself into our psyche

It spawned a generation of distrust

A distrust of government and authority

Passed down the years to today

 

If you love this nation

If you love its principles and ideals

If you want America to endure

Then remember Kent State

Remember Jackson State

Remember the age of protest

Remember the disenchantment

And make sure it never happens again

Boots on the Ground

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: UKRAINE

Boots on the Ground

 

Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan

They did not ask us to lend a hand

We fought our wars on their land

We hoped they’d understand

 

Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan

We put our boots on their ground

We asked them not to let us down

When we unleashed the hounds

 

Iraq is not Ukraine

The differences are plain

Like sunshine and forever rain

They do not want our soldiers

We do not want their grain

 

Ukraine is not Afghanistan

Though they share a common thread

The Russians once invaded them

An act they came to dread

An act the world condemned

 

Ukraine is not Vietnam

They do not want our troops

They don’t want our boots on loan

They only want their country

They want to defend their own

 

War and Warriors

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WAR

Warriors and War

 

To the warriors of World War II

So long ago and so far away

Your numbers now are quite few

But the elders among us remember you

For the courage that you showed

On that fateful day in June

The dark side of the moon

When you landed on that forlorn shore

The stuff of Hollywood and lore

We bow our heads in admiration

The pride of a grateful nation

 

To the warriors who fought in Vietnam

Not quite so proud and true

We offer you our deep respect

May we always honor you

As we remember those who fell

From them we ring the solemn bell

And promise not to make again

The mistakes we made back then

The warrior we should never blame

For the war the fought in our name

 

To the warriors of Afghanistan

Once again we honor you

Though the cause was less than true

You did what you must do

You answered a mourning nation’s call

The young and able, one and all

To fight a shameful terrorist attack

They hit us hard, we hit them back

But soon enough they spun around

And sent you to Iraq

 

To the warriors of Iraq

We owe you our apology

We sent you far across the sea

To fight against an enemy

That never did our people harm

And yet we took up arms

So many lost their lives

In a war that was not wise

We honor and remember you

For being strong and true