Mo More War
Nothing we do can change what has passed –
From ethnic cleansing to genocide.
Cultures once national reduced to a pow-wow
World powers still hungry to further their strength
Imperialism in the guise of benevolence
Aggression, repression, suppression, oppression
And much too short periods of Peace that won’t last.
Ordinary people have seen their homes leveled
They live in a war zone and watch their friends die
It has happened so many times in the past
Invasion on pretense of peace and good will
They no longer believe and some wonder why
For the defense of their land they hide and resist
We call them insurgents (but think terrorists)
Most corporate-owned media just reinforce lies
When power and money are hidden agendas
The truth becomes clouded in catch-phrase and rhetoric
Two sides to a story is just not enough
The truth is not flat, it is bloated and bloody
It maims and it kills and it cripples the children
It stinks and is acrid and makes your eyes runny.
Others have struggled to make the world free
To level the playing field; let people be -
Ghandi, Mandela and Martin Luther King
And millions of others whose names we know not
That powered the movements, and some gave their lives
And others still working for people and Earth.
Reality hurts and it’s hard not to weep
For the plight of the poor and the young and the weak
Though we’re not really to blame, the guilt is still there
A kind of collective awareness of wrongs through the years
How much is too much? What is the last straw?
What does it take to slap-back shock-and-awe?
Energy policies based solely on profit
Filthy pollutants wreak havoc on earth
The barons in power contrive our dependence
And they will not stop till they’ve milked every drop
Lest we wrestle that power and policy-making
And turn to alternatives clean and earth-friendly
Who knows how much longer poor earth can survive
As life’s getting sicker and species blink out
We now have the science to turn it around
Invest in our young, give science its due
Let’s harness the wind, clean up wood smoke
Stop using plastics, fix things when they’re broke.
America’s people are what make her so great
When decisions are made by public consensus
For the good of the world and all of its people
Democracy only survives when we vote
We want no more violence, nor killing and crushing
No more exploitation, slavery, nor war.
Remember our heroes, they’re still here today
In laws and in speeches in street names and mountains
Their struggle helped bring us this close to true freedom
But Freedom is not just an end in itself
It’s a constant awareness of things that are larger
Like justice for all - not merely ourselves.
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