How can I speak of war
if I have never been before?
Only on television broadcasts
have I seen bombs dropped and heard their blasts.
And have I heard the moans of the dying?
And have I heard their children crying?
And have I run through gunfire,
advancing o'er hills, trenches, and wire?
No. None of these have I done;
been in no battles, lost or won.
And so, I will ask once more:
how can I speak of war?