Let our country produce no more exceptional men;
at least none worth remembering in Bronze or Stone.
The American Taliban has declared war on the past;
Since those men are dead, their statues must atone.
So pull down their monuments and leave the empty plinths.
Efface their names from parks and roads and forts.
Gutzon Borglum offends us with his carvings.
“Demolish Stone Mountain!” the Taliban retorts.
The day will come when Stonewall is just a bar
Where tops and bottoms battled with police.
Foote, Catton and McPherson must be burned,
with all other books about that war and peace.
An army of ants can bring an elephant down.
An army of ignorance can drag down old heroes.
When America is exceptional no more
All will be equal; all men will be zeros.
Aug 17, 2017
Aug 17, 2017 at 7:50 AM UTC
Let our country produce no more exceptional men;
at least none worth remembering in Bronze or Stone.
The American Taliban has declared war on the past;
Since those men are dead, their statues must atone.
So pull down their monuments and leave the empty plinths.
Efface their names from parks and roads and forts.
Gutzon Borglum offends us with his carvings.
“Demolish Stone Mountain!” the Taliban retorts.
The day will come when Stonewall is just a bar
Where tops and bottoms battled with police.
Foote, Catton and McPherson must be burned,
with all other books about that war and peace.
An army of ants can bring an elephant down.
An army of ignorance can drag down old heroes.
When America is exceptional no more
All will be equal; all men will be zeros.
The Past and the Future are both at the mercy of the Present. I don’t know which of them to pity more.
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