Collateral Damage

Just a euphemism we have coined
to mask the slaughter of innocents,
people much like you and me
who got in the way of war.

Just a phrase to make it neat,
and hide the body bags,
while we wave our flags,
sing our anthems, and shed a tear for  “heroes”.

We colonised, destroying cultures,
imposing religion, and societal mores
on peoples who had been civilized
long before the Enlightenment.

We pushed our hegemonic aspirations,
driven by corporate greed,
and the leitmotif of economic expansionism,
with military muscle hammering compliance.

We speak democracy, but install tyrants
who ensure human rights abuses,
economic stagnation, theocratic indoctrination,
and we ponder the causes of terrorism.

So: another day, another headline,
screaming of blood, and death, and pain.
When will we realise the collateral damage
is empathy, tolerance, and social progress?