I ask not that you walk a mile in my shoes
for they are worn beyond repair
What I ask for is not forgiveness
for you have already judged me.
I ask not for pity,
as you suffer as well.
Lets go hand in hand and run until
the world around us blurs away,
All we shall see are the colors.
Past the places we have already gone.
Let the thorns tear and rip our skin.
The pain will help us heal.
14 comments:
Hello Zach,
You are not alone. If you haven't already visited http://leonardclark.com/blog/ (perhaps you know this soldier), visit his blog. He plans to runs for Senate on a platform of bringing the soldiers home. Perhaps those of you over there can continue to build a support system.
Also, as a translator, you have a much broader world view (and sense of empathy) then those currently running our gov't (who in my view have committed multiple criminal and impeachable offenses by carrying out this invasion/occupation).
Leonard writes "Well I’m not gonna wait for another damn wall for Iraq to be filled with the names of my fellow soldiers and I hope your not either. The cause we fight for is noble and just it is : to save the lives of American soldiers who tragically dying over here needlessly. If we can save just one more American soldier’s life who knows we might just end up saving humanity itself. There are those who say that one life is not worth much but I say every human life is the gift of GOD and to destroy one of those lives for the greed and corruption of hypocrites who do not have to fight wars nor whose children do not have to fight wars is a great sin. To lie and say we are dying over here to ensure democracy in the Middle East when what we really are doing is fighting for Exxon and Halitburton is impeachable.
Remember this: not one more American soldier should die over here for it is a needless death that didn’t have to happen but only for the occupation of Iraq.
One last note: Today, after my 3 vehicle patrol passed through a certain stretch of highway an hour to 2 hours later another patrol was hit by a bomb on that same stretch and ANOTHER AMERICAN soldier was killed and at least 3 of his comrades were wounded hopefully they will all live.
NOT ONE MORE AMERICAN SOLDIER! N.O. M.A.S. !
Please pray for us soldiers and we will pray for you
and
the Peace of GOD will see us through.
Leonard Clark (Damned Liberal serving in Iraq)
National Guard soldier serving and patrolling the mean streets of Iraq every day
Civilian occupation : Kindergarten teacher (inner city school) Public Schools
Candidate : for United States Senate in Arizona against John Kyl"
There are also links to phone messages back to the states that express his sentiments.
salaam, if the people have anything to say about it,
stephan - here in boston
Kristen,
I very much agree with your point. Iraqi citizens have been brutalized by the invasion and occupation. I view Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Feith, Wolfowitz, Rice, Powell, and others as war criminals for the lies and acts that fueled and led to the invasion, the deaths, use of napalm-like weapons, destruction, loss of cultural artifiacts, dire living conditions...
In addition, it seems the Geneva Conventions are expendable to the administration. As many as 100,000 (or more ) Iraqi civilians have died as a result of the invasion and occupation (with American forces responsible for a large number of deaths). More Iraqis die every day.
You might want to view the site Today in Iraq (if you haven't already seen it) for an searing overview of events.
http://dailywarnews.blogspot.com/
stephan
http://leonardclark.com/blog
hurria, please would you commment on this link? http://leonardclark.com/blog/
the ameriKans seem to be trapped in their politiKal, FoKSnews attitudes.
i agree thats its unjust that poor, uneducated american people be "trapped" into butchKos grand schemes, but these same "poot folks" need to realize that they, by their personal daily choices, prolong the agony for all 6the planet.
FREE IRAQ from the texas petroleum invaders.
butch and his gang of thugs............ life. without parole. and no televison or doritos either....................
Hey Zach, I really love this poem. I think it's my favorite so far, though I've really enjoyed the haikus too. I especially like the image of thorns tearing skin in your last stanza. It resonates.
Thanks for sharing it. Take care --
If anyone wants to see what is being done to Iraq, Google "Depleted Uranium".
You have too many trolls, Zach. I'm so sorry. I hate how the blogosphere can devolve into something so ugly. Please take care of yourself. Have a safe trip home --
Yes, Kate, very well stated - there are too many people who keep reading this blog yet they hate it and everything Zach is about - so why not stop reading it and posting nasty comments? I mean really, is someone holding a gun to your head and MAKING you read?
Also, Kristen, glad you made that point.
NO ONE DESERVES TO DIE OVER THERE! A
human life is a life - it doesn't matter
what color you are, what language you speak,
or where you are from.
Zach, this is my favorite of all your posts. it touches a cord with me although our struggles are entirely different and you can only try to understand mine and I yours. I hope you stay safe over the next few weeks.
Dan
snag dude,
methinks you're snagged somewhere unpleasant.
http://billmon.org/
For the moment he had shut his ears to the remoter noises and was listening to the stuff that streamed out of the telescreen. It appeared that there had even been demonstrations to thank Big Brother for raising the chocolate ration to twenty grammes a week. And only yesterday, he reflected, it had been announced that the ration was to be reduced to twenty grammes a week. Was it possible that they could swallow that, after only twenty-four hours? Yes, they swallowed it. The fabulous statistics continued to pour out of the telescreen.
George Orwell
Stunning Victory!
The latest reports from the Anbar Front show the swinish subhuman terrorists in headlong retreat, after suffering massive casualties at the hands of our heroic troops.
Army information specialists say the fleeing enemy has left behind evidence of unbelievable atrocities -- including mass graves, torture chambers, sadistic scientific experiments, the use of nerve gas, smallpox and anthrax against innocent civilians, and millions of DVDs and videotapes of prisoner beheadings.
Intelligence analysts say captured enemy documents show terrorist mastermind Abu Musab Zarqawi in complete despair over his losses. "Fanatical cowards such as we can never defeat the awesome power of America," the evil monster laments in one captured letter. "Democracy has triumphed."
In cities across America, spontaneous demonstrations are in full swing, as College Republicans and other patriotic groups express their undying devotion to our beloved party leaders.
At the White House, a steely-eyed President Bush vowed not to settle for anything less than total victory. "Our purpose is firm, our moral vision clear," he said. "We will never -- never -- negotiate with terrorists."
(In a related development, Pentagon officials say they have reached an agreement with Sunni freedom fighters to evacuate the Green Zone in downtown Baghdad. Transfer of sovereignty to the newly proclaimed Islamic Caliphate of Iraq will occur at midnight.)
Posted by billmon at 04:18 PM
Editorial
We support the troops and you should too. It feels good to say "we support the troops," so we think you should say it a lot. It will make you feel better about the war.
"We support the troops."
Don't you feel better now? We sure do.
Some people say we should ask tough questions about the war, because it's been going on for a couple of years and a lot of our troops are still getting killed. But the bad guys haven't gone away. In fact it looks like there's more of them.
But we support the troops, so we're not going to ask tough questions. It's really annoying when people ask tough questions -- almost as bad as when people criticize us. Bloggers ask a lot of tough questions. Bloggers criticize us a lot. We don't like bloggers. They're unethical.
We don't remember why the troops are in Iraq, but we know there must be a good reason. We could look it up on the Internet, but that's hard. And we don't have much time, because of all the shark attacks. Sharks are scary, but also really cool. We like sharks.
But we definitely support the troops. Especially when they die.
Posted by billmon at 03:38 PM
Let's Invade Iran
The AEI says they'll have the bomb any day now. But Kenneth Timmerman says the people love us. He was on the Daily Show.
The White House says things are going really swell in Iraq. So I guess we have enough troops for the job. Plus we've got Shock and Awe. I really like Shock and Awe. I like to watch.
This should be a cakewalk.
I wonder what's going on with that woman in Aruba . . .
Posted by billmon at 02:55 PM
Celebrities Sure Are Fascinating
I wonder what Michael Jackson's up to these days. Don't his fans have a right to know?
Somebody really should interview his plastic surgeon.
Posted by billmon at 02:37 PM
When Tabloids Attack
Suddenly I feel this powerful craving to write about shark attacks . . . or missing white women.
Or a pretty blonde white woman who everybody thinks is missing, but who's actually been attacked and eaten by a monster white shark! With Roy Scheider! And Richard Dreyfuss! And exploding shark heads!!!
God I love being in the journalism business.
Posted by billmon at 02:11 PM
Anonymous said...
http://leonardclark.com/blog
June 27, 2005 10:40 PM
What Do You Think About This?
http://www.junkscience.com/MSU_Temps/Kyoto_Count_Up.htm
That poem is beautiful. Did you write that? It is truly beautiful. Pete.
Mashallah, God bless you son. I will pray for you and all of the boys Bush and his cronies have sent needlessly to Iraq. Keep up your faith!
Asalaamo alleikum.
www.rockinghejabi.blogspot.com
All Of You Should See THIS
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