Help the peaceniks
With their cut-backs
To the Army,
It’s fulfilling;
Once elected,
Buy cheap arms stocks,
Start a war and
Make a killing.
This poem was originally published in Lighten Up Online, edited by Jerome Betts. I dislike war, but even more I loathe “chicken hawks“, those who personally avoided combat when their country called them up but who later in their careers advocated war and made a fortune from it. That includes a lot of American politicians.
Good guys: Eisenhower and his military-industrial complex warning. Kennedy, assassinated when he was trying to pull US troops out of Vietnam. Jimmy Carter. All military men who understood war.
Total jerks: Johnson, ramping up the Vietnam war while everyone was distracted by the Kennedy funeral. Kissinger even more than Nixon. Cheney even more than George W. Bush. Trump. Chicken hawks.
The US doesn’t have a monopoly on avaricious politicians. The UK’s Tony Blair has been rewarded by the world of oil and wars to the extent of acquiring an estimated $90 million and a property portfolio worth $37.5 million in the first eight years since leaving office (i.e. 2007-2015).
Form in Formless Times 
I feel the same way.
Kissinger and Nixon knew the Vietnam War couldn’t be won, but they didn’t want to “lose face.” So they continued the bombings, hoping to get a “better deal.” They would watch Nixon’s favorite movie, Patton, then move chips around on war charts while American soldiers died wondering who was issuing the ridiculous orders. This was revealed in an authorized biography. I can’t remember the biographers’ names, but they were brothers and their last name started with the letter “K.” It’s well worth reading.
Rumsfeld and Cheney manipulated GWB. Rumsfeld would send Bible verses with his requests to bomb targets in Iraq. Cheney apparently tricked GWB into believing Iran had WMDs, and GWB seemed puzzled as to why they weren’t found.
Trump exceeds GWB in lacking the ability to understand complex things.
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