image of adam lanza borrowed from bing
Newtown
“A nation can survive its fools, and even
the overly ambitious--but it cannot survive
treason from within.”--Marcus Tullius Cicero
How can we keep our children alive?
Can any of us safely survive?
Should everyone be trained like a cop?
Tell me, when will the killing stop?
Adam shot his Mom in the face--
he purchased ammo by the case
for three weapons and assault OP.
Tell me, when will the killing stop?
But the rifle setting the pace,
sending madness right over the top,
Bushmaster AR, lives erased;
tell me, when will the killing stop?
So demonic, murder times five,
bullets striking kid’s flesh wop-wop,
before the police could arrive;
tell me, when will the killing stop?
Now we know that no single solution can be offered
to completely quell a madman’s murderous rage.
Glenn Buttkus
December 2012
Posted over at dVerse Poets FFA
Would you like the author to read this Kyrielle to you?
18 comments:
when will it stop.. i think we can change laws, try to make schools more safe but mainly we have to work at the roots of this..a society with kids that suffer and somehow collect to much hate over the years that they walk this path one day..
My poem addresses this as well. I think it colors all our thinking this year. But the frustrations in life affect us all - some for the better and in this poor young man's case and for his victims - tragically for the worse.
Yes, this needs to stop.
Nicely dealt with the form and provided a fine refrain. And the sound of bullets hitting. I can't wait for the poem that provides the varied aspects of the solution!
WOW,Very powerful Kyrielle here! Well written!
i think it def opens the door to many a question...and you are right that it is not a one thing fix...there are layers to the onion that need to be peeled back and we will have to face....nicely done to form and using it to tackle a social issue...
Honestly...the BS I'm seeing all over these networks, tells me the only fix is a complete annihilation of the species...we want to blame the guns, the video games...how about a society where mothers take their KNOWN mentally challenged son to a rifle range for family outings and teaches him to shoot...You need guns to protect yourselves from the tyranny of government? Um....I think their arsenal will have you beat no matter how many weapons you have...the culture is sick, refuses to evolve, and is already caught up in arguments over right and wrong with party colors leading the charge...and I'm turning your spot into my soapbox...sorry...fine job with the form though...I think ;)
Powerful and thought-provoking, Glenn... a great Kyrielle.
Agh. Agree with all. You manage to fit this terrible stuff in the form and rhyme without belittling it. Fine job. k .
Wow, this one I had to hear aloud. Powerful.
The refrain says it all ... such a tragedy
Fortunately, this was not "treason from within" -- "treason" being so intentional. As you said, it was madness with easily available expression.
Yet our news of violence from "treason from within" fills the Middle East and other countries where the populace is divided on how to live with differences.
'Tis fun to see you constrained by form == and not surprisingly, you do very well! [spooky pic -- could have done without that!]
PS: Natasha's 'soap box' was actually fun to hear.
A powerful, chilling, moving piece Glenn - and quite simply, in the wake of what happened last week, the most important question: When will the killing stop?
indeed this needs to stop. After the shooting happened many of my friends from the US started writing, painting, singing to create a voice which is stronger that hate, desperation or pain. To understand. To heal. To forgive. To compensate. This is what we do, as writers, artists. We free our hearts, pour our pain, share our joy. Through words. To touch the ones next to us.
Heart breakingly well done. The refrain was perfect...the details, painfully true. It was demonic and horrific and we will all wonder when it will stop.
There are so many issues here that need to be addressed. The teenage years are fraught with emotion that one can see in his wild eyes. Is it our present society or has this madness always existed in some? Removing computer war games and weapons may be a first step.
Excellent comment, Natasha Head, agreed 100%
The killings will never stop because the victims themselves are the killers.
Tragic and horrifying indeed, and you use the form to excellent effect to say so. I loved the passion of Natasha's 'soapbox' too, and must agree.
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