To wish President Madura, his family the best

President Madura in his splendor
Faced an enemy to whom he could not surrender.
Not even in the famous – no-go-areas!

The city square shaded by red or steel barriers.
The President spoke to the still lines of soldiers
Who watched with skepticism the drones’ approach.

“I’m alive and victorious,” claimed the President,
After two explosions, and the enemy poached!
By military shots, in quick reproach, on a man

Intent on his Grand-daughter’s celebration,
Than on this strange metallic invasion.
Which brought a grim revelation -

Of his mortality, of wounded men,
That power corrupts, that courage can,
The race is to be run, not finished, nor already run!

(c) Rosalind J. Lee

Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro survives apparent assassination attempt

Forgotten Heroes

Not only those who fight and die

But those who watch a screen and sigh:

They also serve who push a switch

And leave the field with mental twitch.

The bravest feat of British arms:

To game away their moral qualms;

For, if we doubt these propositions,

What medals then for politicians?

© Philip Challinor

UK drone pilots to get medals for killing from 2,000 miles outside the combat zone

Philip Challinor posts fiction, satire and assorted grumbles on his blog: The Curmudgeon. His longer fiction is available here.

Drone

A bird hovers above the yard,
hanging and humming without
nectar in a plastic feeder --
beady gaze, but with vision
like a giant foil-eyed fish.

I think the saccades are out --
summer, and the din sounds like theirs.
From the back porch, my expanse
is neatly protected by
hanging and hemming foliage.

But as I unscrew the cap from
my sweaty bottle of beer
something seems to be missing --
maybe it’s a long dead shrub,
maybe it’s a thing more dear.

© E R Olsen

Drones: From War Weapon To Homemade Toy

E R Olsen writes poetry and practices law in Nevada, in the U.S., where he lives with his wife and four children. His poems have appeared in several U.S. journals, most recently in Viking.