“If it were not for man, his greed, actions, and lack of forethought for the consequences of his actions, both environmental and military, this world would be a great plance for man to live in.” Thought for today from Tomás Ó Cárthaigh
These plains wide watered
By seasons rains from the sky
Bringing life to earth.
These plains wid [...]
Posts tagged war
Pannonia in Peace and War
“If it were not for man, his greed, actions, and lack of forethought for the consequences of his actions, both environmental and military, this world would be a great plance for man to live in.” Thought for today from Tomás Ó Cárthaigh
These plains wide watered
By seasons rains from the sky
Bringing life to earth.
These plains wid [...]
An Angel Flew Overhead
From the ground the soldier picked himself up
Saw his comrades dead all round
Cowering in the trenches
Shaking and tearful his friend he found…
A comforting arm around his dying pal
Soothing words and prayers he said
In the midst of that hell called war
An angel flew overhead
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Telegram Ignored
Next of kin – sisters name given:
Duty done, family contacted
Telegram ignored – the shame, the shame
As if kinship itself retracted.
But so things were in those times
And so he lies in an unknown spot
The shame of his uniform now has passed
His grave unknown, he’s forgotten not.
The tragic end of an Irish soldier of fortune [...]
All Gone… Home?
While on holiday in Serbia, in Banat our car drove through village, and we were told it was once a totally German village, and now home to 26 nations.
Those who held the land
Who built a Reich proud and true
Are like their great state..
Where are those today
Who here lived before the war?
All gone… home… they say.
There is no [...]
Flying Over Europe
Flying over cities and towns
I look and think it insane
This is what was seen by the pilot
Of every bomber plane
Allied and Axis that over flew
Houses, homes, alleys and roads
Town after town of defenseless people
Before the dropped their loads
Of bombs, that caused destruction
For that is how a war is won
He who kills is a hero
A thousand de [...]
Flying Over Europe
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9/11 Tribute Poem
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Another Name Among Many – Willi...
Bullet in his neck borne, a distraught soldier sought
For a brother shot – another dead in battles roar
The voice, a tenor so fine, no more will be heard
And the world, long after, it went on as before
His son, in his time, he would march uniformed in ranks
And wield firearms, brave fire, as did his father before
Who lost his brother, t [...]
Life to His Kind Was a Game of Chance
Tom Reilly, an Irish Soldier of Fortune
Adventures sake
Brought the young sons of Erin
Into uniform
Thoughts of great glory
Among shot and shell in hell
Of the battlefield
To return to home
To kisses of loved ones
And relieved mothers
As hero’s of old
Of whom they heard as children
At their mothers knee.
It was not to be
So many fell wo [...]
History Is Told By The Victors
“We must respect the court ruling, but I know
what I will be teaching my children.”
- Zeljko Komsic, Bosnian Croat president, after
the I.C.J. declared the Serbian state innocent
of the Srebrenica massacre.
History is told by the victors
And some of it is true
It passes on believeable
As those who question it are few.
Sometimes s [...]
This Land A Piece of Our Souls Holds
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Be Not a War Poet
We have not the shot or shell
Who read their poems from distant days
Yet today it is still the same
The dance of death that war it plays
Other young men, not Flanders now
Afghanistan, even Belfast
Wars big and small, why fight at all
Like them those poor fools from the past
Who to fight: them – they had no choice
Unlike what we today we [...]
I Walked the Streets of Prague
I walked the streets of Prague
In glorious sunshine, time to pass
I intended to, but never got round
To visiting a church, attending mass
But every step that I took
As I toured the city there
To see the glory created by God
Was in its own way a better prayer.
It is hard to believe that tanks rolled
These streets, a people to crush
A people wh [...]
The Fields of Vojvodina
The fields of Vojvodina are as flat as the world is round
A fairer land bar Ireland is rarer to be found…
By a tapestry of all the people of the area this land is blessed
And its borders by the blue Danube itself is caressed…
A tinderbox under bad leaders, waiting to explode
All peaceful now… but quickly can go the other roa [...]
From Boots a Flag Flutters
From boots a flag flutters
To commemorate the dead
Looked upon by others
Not with reverence but instead
With apathetic non wonder
As they see the soldiers of today
Fight not for nations freedom
But in its name, to take away
Control of other countries
To sieze their assets and their oil
All in the name of freedom
And in so doing spoil
The stab [...]
No Time for Art
There is no time for art
Where bullets fly
And screams of fear replace song
Even the birds are quiet
But to an artist, this is an ever evolving gallery
Where the shells, explosions, fires and bullets
By the craters, bullets holes and charred buildings
Become one abstract sculpture
Carved by destruction
As if to say
The soldier is an artist
Wh [...]
Love of God, Hatred of Man
Monasteries in Kosovo hold some of the most militant churchmen, who pray to the God of love, and then preach war and hatred of their neighbour.
Singing choirs sang
Songs of praise to the God they love
And hate fellow man
History hatred bred
And hatred breeds nothing
But more of itself
So they sing to God
And worship Jesus on high
And h [...]
