When all the weapons are silent
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What will the Glorious Fourth be like
when all the weapons are silent?
Will fireworks mimic the shrieks of the dying,
the hiss and bubble of burning flesh?
Will a rocket fly moaning into the sky
to break with a dying gasp?

Ladies and germs, allow me to present the new flag
of the United States of Perpetual Warfare:
green for oozing pus, black for charred bone,
red and yellow for bloody vomit.