From the land of the wall wishing brave, 

where braves are no longer welcome,

or this, our island of explorers 

who now wish these sea shores were 

fringed with endless rows of closed doors,

have migrated many mantras of woe

fired forth from the business of diplomatic show.

 

And so, below the same stars 

beneath which some mothers starve 

- but not ours -

some will still say we in the West 

need to invest in joyless weapons 

we claim we aim not to use,

so as to trigger in others 

a will to choose 

to use less useless weapons... 

that yes... all too often 

we sold them.

 

We do this, so as to terrorise the terrorists 

until they fear us more than we fear them...

Hard, since we are so very scared 

of all these very scarred 

skins, minds and hearts 

because we know, 

history can clearly show,

we marked them.

 

Yet even as we wend our way 

along this well worn path, 

be sure, we will mark more, 

and more, and more 

until we just can't keep score,

for so many bodies will have been lost 

that no one can count the cost

as easily as the profits.

 

Still, we need be no prophet to see 

although with open arms some will cash in,

it is as true now as it ever has been before,

no progressive people can ever truly win, 

when we allow our boys to pay to play,

with the murderous toys of war.