Recipe for a Colossal Mistake

Come up with at least two trillion dollars

(And let your infrastructure go to pot).

Manipulate intelligence and lie

To your people. Wait! I almost forgot:

 

Mock and scorn dissenters and those

Who disagree with your goals and plans.

Drum up support from your allies and "friends"--

The ones you think are your biggest fans.

 

Be willing for hundreds of thousands to die

And for millions of people to be displaced.

Hire mercenaries to do dirty-work;

Cast a blind eye to abuse and waste.

 

Be sure to support inept leaders

That further tear that country apart.

And be proud that you've given the country

That lies in ruins a brand-new start.

 

Don't forget to torture the captured,

But don't call it "torture," call it "enhanced

Coercive interrogation technique."

Ah, the people will be entranced!

 

Now you've got the perfect place

For insurgent groups to terrorize.

Watch as people's suffering increases

Right before your very eyes.

 

Regarding all of the people responsible,

Don’t hesitate to cut them some slack.

Instead of taking them to task,

Give them a kindly pat on the back.

 

There you have it--what is called

A Recipe for a Colossal Mistake.

Avoiding such a nightmare would be

A wonderful thing for everyone's sake.

 

(6-15-15)