it was a war…

it was a war fought
with hideous weapons
and repellent allies
against unseen enemies
in far-flung places
where nobody you knew
had ever been
and no one said just why
we were at war or what it meant
to win

our brave fighters
came home at night
from cosy bunkers
on the moors
having blown away
hospitals and schools
burning to ashes
millions of children
which they called killing
the enemy

never killing enough
to make a difference
and every now and then
they killed a dozen of us
on a city street
just to kid us
they were still there
and we never knew
if we were winning the war
or losing

it rumbled on
for a generation
costing trillions
it bled us white
jobs disappeared
bus routes were axed
homeless multiplied
food banks blossomed
children lost hope in
the future

most people grew poor
but a few became
filthy wealthy
they lied to us
slithered into power
and try as we might
we could not get them out
sometimes I wonder
just who was
the enemy