by Anne G. Davies
Retired generals aren't all so chummy
As once they seemed to be with Rummy.
There was wrath amid the upper ranks
At overruling Tommy Franks
In favor of strategic decisions
That looked good on American televisions.
Rummy, to his credit, seems quite unfazed
By the harsh criticisms being raised
About the ongoing Iraqi disaster
That he oversees as the Pentagon's master.
They can vent their spleen. That's democracy in action.
But these generals are just a tiny faction
Who regard my super-management style
As driven by arrogance and guile.
These guys made sure they got their pensions
Before they went public with their dissensions.
Now they're all over the media panning
The quality of my strategic planning.
A few of them were always complaining
About scarce troops or armor or lack of training.
I was willing to hear their perspectives
(As long as they suited Bush/Cheney directives.)
And they want me to resign. I'll never surrenda;
I'm in perfect accord with the White House agenda.
Attacks like this would make a lesser man queasy
But being Important has never been easy.
Staying in my job is my highest priority
And I have total support from the Dual Authority.
Anne G. Davies is a fund-raising writer by profession and a writer and versifier by avocation. Her work has been published on local and regional papers. She lives in Lexington, Massachusetts.