In honor of Memorial Day
But Man Is Not a Warrior
An apology to Dr. Oded Levine
Killed on the Golan Heights, June, 1969
Machines of war are systems analyzed
Produced by real and artificial brains
And cost effectiveness is optimized
As measured by the numbers that are slain
But man is not a number
It is hard for him to die –
Leaves his wife in restless slumber
And his children wonder why
We statisticians kill in likelihoods
We politicians waste the world with words
We scienticians spill tomorrow’s blood
We soldiers die now, heroes of the sword
But man is not a warrior
He is tiller of the soil
He is teacher, worker, lawyer –
His, the world’s constructive toil
The words we use are awful words to use
The jargon of our trade reeks battle stench
We have no choice; we ply the art or lose –
Our bones would early fill the burial trench
But man is not just cartilage
He is spirit free to choose –
He, creative to the challenge
Need not suffer such abuse
We analysts must model games of peace
We men of research heal the hunger pain
We statesmen build the bridge to span the breach
So soldiers should not have to fight again
For man is man unequaled
Though his life a spark of time
His to mend the earth to peaceful
By the powers of his mind
5/27/18
This is a beautiful and moving poem with a big challenge for us all.
Was there a 1969 version also?
Thanks. Yes; it is in one of my poetry books