His will is only iron

A poem by Mike Marqusee published in Babylon Burning: 9/11 five years on, poems in aid of the Red Cross, edited by Todd Swift

His will is only iron

The hosepipe snakes through lawns,
green on green. The tank
churns its dust- penumbra.

At leisure, under licence,
indecently arrayed
in the cat-suit of decency,

striding in mayhem boots
from continent
to continent,

a god is on the loose.
(Bring out the nets!
Bring out the snares!)

Like all gods, this one
is blasé.
His form is molten.

Like all gods, this one
is resistible.
His will is only iron.