The Bushiad
Chapter 16: Out of Order

The Idyossey
Chapter 1- Ichor of the Gods
Chapter 2- The Price of Peace
Chapter 3- Empyre
Chapter 4- Woeful Warrior
Chapter 5- Mitzvah
Chapter 6- News Analysis
Chapter 7- Strategic Planner
Chapter 8- Aristea
Chapter 9- Last Supper
Chapter 10- Skullduggery
Chapter 11: Family Reunion
Chapter 12- Black Goddess
Chapter 13- Saboteur
Chapter 14- Glossolalia
Chapter 15- Visitation
Chapter 16- Dead or Alive
Chapter 17- Across the Border
Chapter 18- The Unraveling
Chapter 19- Summer in the City
Chapter 20- Wolf and Jackal
Chapter 21- George Gloats
Chapter 22- Surreality
Chapter 23- Kidnapped
Chapter 24- Denouement

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From ironclad order to unruly chaos in three short weeks;
War over, Iraq descends into darkness. Electricity gone
Water in short supply, garbage quickly fills the streets.
Huddled inside their dark and quiet homes
The fearful residents of Baghdad cling to one another
Hoping the murderous mobs will not break in.

The Americans stand idly by while looters reign,
Any object not embedded in concrete is swiftly taken.
Copper pipes, office chairs, tables, desks and lamps,
Heating systems, air compressors, generators,
Cars, cranes, tractors, tires - all are stripped or burned,
Hospitals are trashed and medical supplies stolen.

All this while the U.S. Army, 150,000 soldiers strong
Skirmishes with isolated Iraqi fighters
Hidden in the smoldering ruins of burned buildings.
An occasional hand grenade is thrown, shots fired,
The last whimpers of Saddam’s guard. Even leaderless,
Without orders or compensation, they remain loyal.

In other cities across Iraq, it’s the same story:
No water, no electricity, ruthless raging mobs.
Iraqi soldiers, civilians now in dress and manner,
Return home to their neighborhoods, out of work.
No prospects for tomorrow, Saddam’s dinar worthless
The only currency that matters is the dollar.

Long-repressed ethnic factions recover their pride.
The Shiites demonstrate their strength of numbers,
Marching in the streets in support of their Imam.
Sunni Moslems retreat to their established “triangle;”
Fearing the potential alliance of the Shiites with Iran
Where Shiite fundamentalists are in complete control.

Expatriates return from across the globe,
Wannabe leaders and greedy businessmen eager for booty.
CIA-connected, approved by the U.S. military.
Political opportunists gleefully gather round Iraq,
Vultures pushing and vying for best position,
Iraq carrion for their picking.

The munitions trade show is a great success,
Widespread destruction all the proof required
To show the market value of new weapons.
High-tech wed to high explosive, a winning combination.
Computer records kept of every bomb, every mission,
Are a sales tool second to none.

Arson guts neighborhoods and public buildings,
Cultural centers, industrial plants, even libraries,
Where thousand-year-old holy books go up in flames.
Though the media calls all this a cultural tragedy
It’s good for business. Halliburton stands ready to rebuild,
Charging billions to clean up after war.

Multinationals are eager to tap the market;
Iraqi oil means unlimited credit.
Most Third World nations desperately poor,
Neither natural resources nor productive labor left,
Both exhausted by centuries of Western exploitation.
Not so Iraq, with billions left to plunder.

The Iraqi people, deprived by greedy Saddam
While he built gold and marble palace after palace,
Have the makings of a solid consumer base.
Pent-up demand for consumer goods will explode,
So eager American soft-drink companies, fast-food chains
Warehouse stores, and of course banks, prepare.

In April, The Irish Pub, first bar in Basra, opens,
Foreigners allowed inside for pints of ale and stout.
It’s popular with the British troops, who
March through Basra’s streets as though it’s still 1920,
Anxious for the taste of home and comfort
That comes with playing darts and eating mushy peas.

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