Hometown Hero
Like a hometown
hero
from the heartland,
a poor black
from the projects,
a son expected to emulate
his father,
I am drafted,
set off for war
told to kill for an idea,
to kill a Commie
for Christ.
My coworkers
at the aircraft plant,
both WW II and
Korean veterans,
agree
it's my patriotic duty,
right or wrong,
to defend the flag,
motherhood,
the American way.
It's understood
we must bomb
North Vietnam
back to the Stone Age.
That I must do my job,
fight like a man.
In this Theater
of the Absurd
I'm ordered to wage cruel war
on my own species
in a country
that has never known peace.
Sheeplike, I never
question
my role.
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