9/11 MASQUERADE

a poem by Tyson Manker

tysonmanker@gmail.com
@tysonmanker

We came from all around

Pledged allegiance with resound

And gave to Uncle Sam our rights away

A soldier corps
Built just for war
With ranks of those
Who yearned for more

Were drilled and taught to kill both night and day

We stood in line
Time after time
Were stripped of thoughts
Issued a mind

And told to hate and who to hate as well

As time went on
It wasnt long
All childhood innocence
Was gone

We new recruits bought all that they could sell

Over the years
We trained as peers
We worked as one
And shed our fears
We moved around
And often found
People sharing
Common ground

Then came the day
A frightful one
The day the planes
Blocked out the sun
We knew it then
Fate would befall
On us to answer
Battles call

By then

Patriotic pride had
Forged itself down deep inside

Within the breasts of we who stood to fight

Our nation wed defend
If it took us to our end

Mattered not for why we joined meant doing right

Off to staging grounds we went
Determined not to die
Focused on the task at hand
Not once did we ask why

The cause for us to go to war
Was more than certain payback for
A cruel attack upon our land
A terrorist act that could not stand

But then again it could have been
The dreaded W M Ds
Yet all around they were not found
Despite the guarantees

Or was it freedom that we sought
For those who lived a life distraught
Surely order will return
After Saddams been caught

It must have also been to kill
Extremist rebels armed with will
What right have they to guard their land
We come in peace please understand

With shock and awe we forged ahead
Democracy we vowed to spread
Justice for all became our cry
Shown in bullets we let fly

Once the dust had finally cleared
Such shameful dirty truths appeared
Contradictions of a kind
That cannot leave a persons mind

It wasnt long before we saw

The storys multitude of flaws
Iraqs invasion was illegal and
We must withdraw

But wait! our leaders yelp
They say we need to give it time
The best thing we can do to help
Is prosecute war crimes

So...

They grabbed their pens
And wrote new laws
Declaring theirs
A noble cause

They set to work and
Captured men
And tortured them
Time and again

They have no rights, wed often hear
Besides, these methods arent severe

We hope that soon theyre going to talk
If not, well try electric shock

They never stopped
For once to think
The worlds support
Would surely shrink
That through their actions
Their own deeds
They had planted
Terrorist seeds

Yet awful as war is for some
For others rapid profits come
To them it brings utter delight
When boys and girls go off to fight

When sacrifice is in the air
Its not for them to share or care
They swoop in at the perfect time
With thoughts only to make a dime

Wartime profiteers
All gave the President three cheers
They knew they would not be condemned
Cause after all hes one of them

By design the storyline
Was framed to then falsely assign
The blame away from those who cost
The treasure and the lives now lost

Resounding faith we had in those
Who told us where to find our foes
Yet when we looked we found instead
That all along wed been misled

The dots were there for all to see
Indeed Mister Defense
But after I connect them
All the stories dont make sense

On and on for months and years
They preyed upon citizens fears
Making all the people scared
With constant threat levels declared

Then they poured our money in
And miles away felt free from sin
Even lives were too outsourced
As long as profits were enforced

Now government cant pay the rent
Because of all the money spent
Engaging in wars without end
A mis-prioritizing trend

We look to see what side theyre on
And find were nothing more than pawns
They use to make themselves well off
They take our money while they scoff

Make it known to understand
The blood that stains the desert sand
Of murdered daughters, sons, and friends
Ever marks The Deciders hands

The only thing we have to fear

Is fear itself so lets be clear

Attempts to veil the truth are made in vain

We see the things officials do
We know their words to be untrue

Nothing within our minds shall we constrain

Whats lost is gone
We cant get back
We must pursue
A different track
Nows the time
To take a stand
And rise above
To now demand

For those that fought and bled and died
And those who stayed at home and cried
For those wholl never shed the scars
And those remaining trapped by bars

Your sacrifices havent gone
in vain We wont allow this con

Here on out we simply must
Put faith in reason and not trust
Those on top who preach the most
Its in themselves that theyre engrossed

The next time that they want to fight
Lets come together and unite
Make peace and policy convene
Stand up against the war-machine

The power lies in all of us
To ask, question, dissent, discuss
And when our leaders go too far
We have to fuss and raise the bar

Since theyve failed to lead upright
Lets show the true meaning of might
And take back long-abused powers
Remind them that this land is ours