The words are clear, o so clear!
Patriotism blaring from a bullhorn,
Justice promised in steel blindly shaped.
“The threat, the response,
The rule of law…” the President drones,
And the people listen, how they listen!
To his faultless monotone.

While far away, a single sibilant drone–
By a nation’s indifference flown–
Releases the cargo its people built
Without a thought for their pending guilt;
And the survivors, mingling with the dead,
Shout at this flying thing
That most human of questions:
“Will you atone
For this death delivered in monotone?”