These words are written
for Margaret Hassan, friend
of the Arab world, born in Ireland
married to Tahseen Ali Hassan, citizen
of Iraq, a woman who gave…
Politics
The Watchers
I see them watching over us. They stand high
on the rooftops of tall buildings, on the median strip
of highways, spaced at intervals, at the perimeter…
Sometimes, Bush…
… when I see you
in your photo ops
I am inspired
to feel sorry for you:
those moments when the fear…
Here He Is…
Well, here he is, neatly
packaged in his small
box, ready for the Xmas
market, the all-new
George W. Bush talking…
Yes, Bush,
I am deeply
sickened by those images
now emanating from
your conquered Falluja:
the torture cells, the blood…
An Eleventh Plague: At Passover
I have seen them in Hong Kong and Tokyo.
I have seen them in London, Paris, Rome.
I have seen them on the streets of New York City,
in the parks, in the subways…
“Bound and Gagged”
(after Ed Moses)
They stand there, gazing
out at us balefully, from behind
their enclosure of wooden struts
and chicken wire, bound and gagged
by the ties that hold them carefully…
Anniversary
Let us not pray,
since prayer offers us
the comfortable exculpation
of piety. Let us not say, once again,
Never again: we have shown ourselves…