Poem: "War and Hell"
Feb. 4th, 2020 05:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithThis is today's freebie, inspired by janetmiles. It also fills the "Violent Behavior" square in my 2-1-20 card for the Valentines Bingo fest.
"War and Hell"
War is war,
and Hell is Hell,
and of the two,
war is a lot worse.
Hell is structured,
layered, its circles of
fire and ice assigning
to each damned soul
an appropriate punishment.
War is chaos, the sludge
of boredom transmuting
to pure terror in an instant,
explosions out of nowhere
blowing everything to hell.
Anyone can get killed
at any moment.
Anyone does.
Hell is entered
by choice, a lifetime
of bad decisions that
add up to damnation.
War rolls over everyone like
an avalanche of blood and stone.
The Devil didn't invent war.
Hell, he didn't even invent murder,
only envy. Though he supposes
God set up for that with the favoritism.
All the Devil really did was ask questions,
and look where that's gotten everyone.
Maybe he'll just keep his mouth shut
around humans from now on.
They're dangerous little things.
* * *
Notes:
Hawkeye: War isn't Hell. War is war, and Hell is Hell. And of the two, war is a lot worse.
Father Mulcahy: How do you figure, Hawkeye?
Hawkeye: Easy, Father. Tell me, who goes to Hell?
Father Mulcahy: Sinners, I believe.
Hawkeye: Exactly. There are no innocent bystanders in Hell. War is chock full of them - little kids, cripples, old ladies. In fact, except for some of the brass, almost everybody involved is an innocent bystander.
-- M*A*S*H
janetmiles. It also fills the "Violent Behavior" square in my 2-1-20 card for the Valentines Bingo fest. "War and Hell"
War is war,
and Hell is Hell,
and of the two,
war is a lot worse.
Hell is structured,
layered, its circles of
fire and ice assigning
to each damned soul
an appropriate punishment.
War is chaos, the sludge
of boredom transmuting
to pure terror in an instant,
explosions out of nowhere
blowing everything to hell.
Anyone can get killed
at any moment.
Anyone does.
Hell is entered
by choice, a lifetime
of bad decisions that
add up to damnation.
War rolls over everyone like
an avalanche of blood and stone.
The Devil didn't invent war.
Hell, he didn't even invent murder,
only envy. Though he supposes
God set up for that with the favoritism.
All the Devil really did was ask questions,
and look where that's gotten everyone.
Maybe he'll just keep his mouth shut
around humans from now on.
They're dangerous little things.
* * *
Notes:
Hawkeye: War isn't Hell. War is war, and Hell is Hell. And of the two, war is a lot worse.
Father Mulcahy: How do you figure, Hawkeye?
Hawkeye: Easy, Father. Tell me, who goes to Hell?
Father Mulcahy: Sinners, I believe.
Hawkeye: Exactly. There are no innocent bystanders in Hell. War is chock full of them - little kids, cripples, old ladies. In fact, except for some of the brass, almost everybody involved is an innocent bystander.
-- M*A*S*H
(no subject)
Date: 2020-02-04 11:30 pm (UTC)Yes ...
Date: 2020-02-04 11:38 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2020-02-05 02:43 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2020-02-05 04:31 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2020-02-05 05:40 am (UTC)1) We do everything in groups from two people up to damn near the entire planet earth
2) Once we are serous about killing we do it with ranged weapons, instead of fair honorable combat (fun fact: people thought guns were for cowards back when they were first invented)
3) There are times when people will go through anything, even things that are debilitating or fatal to try and save our companions (this is partially cultural). If we cannot save them, we will often plan for revenge.
(no subject)
Date: 2020-02-05 04:44 pm (UTC)