| I tried hard to be proud of my service, but all I could feel was shame |
| Racism could no longer mask the reality of the occupation |
| These were people, these were human beings |
| I’ve since been plagued by guilt, any time I see an elderly man |
| Like the one who couldn’t walk, who we rolled onto a stretcher, and told the |
| Iraqi police to take him away |
| I feel guilt anytime I see a mother with her children, like the one who cried |
| hysterically |
| And screamed that we’re worse than Saddam |
| As we forced her from her home |
| I feel guilt anytime I see a young girl |
| Like the one I grabbed by the arm, and dragged into the street |
| We were told we were fighting terrorists… |
| The real terrorist was me, and the real terrorism was this occupation |
| Racism within the military has long been an important tool to justify the |
| destruction and occupation of another country |
| It has long been used to justify the killing, subjugation and torture of |
| another people |
| Racism is a vital weapon employed by this government |
| It is a more important weapon than a rifle, a tank, a bomber, or a battleship |
| It is more destructive than an artillery shell, or a bunker buster, |
| or tomahawk missile |
| While all those weapons are created and owned by this government |
| They are harmless without people willing to use them |
| Those who send us to war, do not have to pull the trigger, or lob a mortar round |
| They do not have to fight the war, they merely have to sell the war |
| They need a public who’s willing to send their soldiers into harm’s way |
| They need soldiers who are willing to kill and be killed, without question |
| They can spend millions on a single bomb |
| But that bomb only becomes a weapon when the ranks of the military are willing |
| to follow orders to use it |
| They can send every last soldier anywhere on Earth, but there will only be a |
| war, if soldiers are willing to fight |