Oh Syria! Poem by Tom Higgins

The Halal slaughterers used to come at dawn,
they came to kill the lambs,
they would cut their throats, in the shape of a smile.

The slaughterers came at dawn,
and they killed the kids,
they cut their throats in the shape of a smile.

Did they smile as they did the deed?
Are they still smiling now?
What kind of man, and what kind of creed,
can contemplate this, and how?

Where are the teachings of their God?
What are their true beliefs?
Are they truly righteous folks?
Or are they merely, thieves?

Who hide behind a chosen creed,
and say they are God's men,
I say they lie, I say they heed,
cruel, and evil orders, then,

unleash their ignorance on those they see,
as enemies of their master,
an ugly, murderous mess ensues,
for the many innocents, disaster.

And here in our 'nice' democracies,
we sit and watch on our TVs
as evil flaunts its wicked grin,
and thousands commit the most wicked sin,

and again we do not lift a finger,
the bad tastes from other wars still linger,
we wait to see what will unfold,
too late for those who'll never grow old!

Tom 03/06/2012