They watched the Towers shudder and fall

In disbelief

Those iconic up-thrust symbols of wealth

Melting in shivering cascades of dust and flesh

Keening wails rose up through choking smoke

As hordes of Banshees took wild flight

In shock they toiled, in shock they mustered, in shock found brotherhood

As they rescued all they could

The world stood still and held its breath, even the skies were silent

Except for the planes that were get-aways, filled with Princes of Saud

So many knew how it was

To be bombedvaporizedviolated, both the vanquished and victorious

But not this land!  It wasn’t done!  A brand new game it seemed

Goodwill poured in from around the world, offers to help in every way

From nations and people of every faith

The Muslim world condemned the deeds, though not loudly enough for some

But the Leader said this is the work of a few, many are our Partners in Peace

Don’t condemn the Many for the deeds of the Few

So soon it wore away, that unity

As they were urged to fear and loathe

The hijab, the shimagh, the burqua, the turban, The Other

Revenge was required it seemed

Blood libel sang to them

Dissenters were shouted down

Battle cries of “9/11!” shook the land and clutched the nation’s soul

We must show our might! Their leaders screamed

Nothing else will do

But that we mow them down for this impunity

This travesty undeserved

We’ll chew them up and spit them out

They’ll not fuck with us again!

They offered cynical carrots to despots unlovable

And forged some weak accords

Sent cash and arms and fearsome threats to any

Who’d play their parts

To help destroy these dastardly foes

They sought security through might not right

And abjured the path toward peace

Asked only one lying question about the cause

Answered themselves with greater lies

So often they got writ in stone

So they shocked and awed and shocked some more

And tied yellow ribbons to help

Flags and flags and flags again

As Blue Ribbon moms unfurled

And shook their fists and called them traitors

As some walked defiantly

For Peace

And Muslims prayed

No internment camps, please!

They recalled the language of violence too well

Given what they’d mis-taught Geronimo’s friends

And still never thought to question

What fueled the rage that brought the Towers down

They were lied to by their leaders                 

And didn’t care, didn’t cry, Did.Not.Cry.

As bombs turned night to day, millions of tons of bombs

The cradle of civilization, its art and texts

Gone in a hail of retaliatory rage

It’s ruined now, but hey

They promised them purple fingers on the way

Not quite out the door

Then onward to the place of sand where Empires go to die

Those deaf, blind students of history

Fools in search of enemies, any old which ones will do

Kill and capture who you can, we’ll sort it out  

Later

Soldiers were told; a big prison’s over yonder

They called it COIN but what it really was

Was bales of cash, army uniforms and guns

The ‘Treats’ of a game of Trick or Treat

The ‘Tricks’ unspeakable now

Never mind

No one witnessed the terror of the dustylovelyplaying children

Or the farmers tending crops

When the sound of an approaching drone froze them

In place in fear and trance

They’d never heard of the 9/11 time change the West now reckoned by

‘before or after’

And did they wonder, “Why DO they hate us so?”

At home they watched Survivor as though it mattered

And Dancing Stars and Oprah

They shopped and drove their cars and bought Exxon stock while their very own Rome

Burned without the sizzle

The lucre in their treasury grew small, but never fear, Uncle Ben created more out of air

Through some silent and curious agreement

That it was worth something more

Than entries on a balance sheet

Few spoke the name of Geronimo for a time

Though it was implied within the conjoined letters A and Q

Evil Personified, a useful tool

Psy-ops Charismatic Boogey Man in a dress

Few new tapes to debunk or not

Was he dead?

They hounded his brethren across more borders with drones

Fewer carrots, more sticks, more Tricks, less Treats

Insanity.  Kapow.  Kablooie.  Oops; sorry

Where is God?  Where is Allah?  Who misplaced humanity?

At home it all fell apart in one swell foop

The people lost houses and savings and future

Hope

While their leaders abetted the heist

Exxon and Raytheon grew fat as Wall Street bankers smokin’ stogies

Gorging on the work of the peasants until even the work was gone

Millions unemployed, underemployed; “Would you like fries with that?”

Did the leaders even take note?

The wars would end any day, the people were told

Just as soon as X, Y and Z and

Remember Geronimo! 

As the Generals and spies played musical chairs

On the deck of the Titanic while few were even aware because

American Idol.   Hunger.  Homelessness.  Xanax and Viagra.  Austerity.  Video games.

Amnesia.  Sweet amnesia.

Then one night the people’s Leader came on their teevees to tell them a story

Of intel and courage and decision

In the North of a nation with whom they’d formed a crap alliance

And he soberly announced that Ding, Dong, the Witch was Dead

Americans can do anything they set out to do, one nation under God

I forget the rest just now

Something about justice, I think?

And then the stories changed and changed a little more

But the people won’t mind, the end’s the same

Though justice it was not, but instead, Satisfaction

Geronimo was consigned to the Briny Deep

The Leader got a Geronimo bump

Maybe there would be a Geronimo Peace Dividend

The people did not hold their breaths

But please, for the sake of the real Geronimo

Remember

They code-named Osama bin Laden

Geronimo

But they killed him like

Crazy Horse                                             (Art by Anthony Freda @ www.anthonyfreda.com)

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