Saturday, December 10, 2011

"Windtalkers" War Poems (4)

"Windtalkers"

Meath Writers' Circle Dec 2012
Windtalkers the 2002 film starring Nicolas Cage may or may not be an accurate portrayal of the role played by the Navajo code talkers in WW2 but it was certainly a savage reminder of the depravity of war. It featured on Channel Five last night and told the story of two Navajos who were employed by the American military to transmit messages under fire during the capture of Saipan. A film that is not for the faint hearted but worth watching in case the recruiting sergeant ever ends up on your door, the code itself though was never broken. After the marching bands and the music the whole thing is best left alone. I remember a war film (can't remember the name of it) starring Peter Falk and Robert Mitchum in which Mitchum's character is asked why do men do this and he replied because they like it! Or it was something along those lines! 

Forgotten

Why, but for
A few medals
And the coping stone
Of a wall surrendered
And the churchyards
Overgrown.

And a quiet carriage
The umbrellas rolled
Drumming our fingers
In the morning
Cold.

Frank Murphy.

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