-Paul Chasman

We pledge allegiance to the flag,
and love the ideals it stands for:
Freedom, justice, liberty for all...
Light another candle.

We pray to god: 
to Jesus, to Allah, to Buddha,
to the Great Spirit, to Mother Earth, 
to our Father Who Art in Heaven...
Light another candle. 

We have fought and killed and died
For our tribe, our country, our god,
Since time time immemorial..
Light another candle.

We have fought and killed and died 
For our tribe, our country, our god, 
With fists and sticks and stones and
bats and blades and arrows and
guns and ships and planes and 
bombs and bigger bombs and smart bombs and 
every means of suffering
to people, to animals, to the earth, 
Since time time immemorial...
Light another candle.

And so here we are.
We recline in our chairs
and watch the Ultimate Reality TV Show.
We watch the rockets' red glare, 
The bombs bursting in air,
On our high-definition, big screen. 

Meanwhile, way beyond walking distance,
Our real sons and real daughters wage a real war.
They shed real blood and real tears,
They cry with real anguish,
And they really die...
Light another candle.

And our real sons and real daughters,
Who played soccer and took ballet lessons
And loved thy neighbor,
Are dropping real bombs on real cities
Where real mothers and real fathers 
and real sons and real daughters
Huddle in horror...
Light another candle.

Light a candle for the orphan's haunted eyes;
Light a candle for the mother's helpless cries;
Light a candle for the earth
which buckles beneath our feet and tries
to weather the human storm.

Light another candle,
For once again, we war.
And when we war, we fail.
Pray that one day love prevails. 
Pray one day we learn to be 
the promise that is humanity.

Light another candle. 
 
 

Copyright 3-19-2003