War Is More Than Just Battles and Bullets
War is war, but so much more
Secret agendas hidden in plain sight
Yet so few can read the signs
For in our quickly shrinking world
Conquest is more than maps and numbers
More than just politics
War is more than just battles and bullets
It’s the bigger things
About things that bring about change
Not just pocket change
War is a currency
Minted in armor plated rolling beasts
Traded in blood, bone, and mangled bodies
Profit margins from broken borders
Jabs and jousts, slights perceived
Clandestine brokers forging enemies
If they fight, they will destroy
And then the promise of rebuilding
That’s where the money lies
But there’s more, so much more
War is theater
The steady stream of daily news
Body counts, lost and gained
A spectacle to stir the masses
The great redirect from what is real
Watch my left hand over here
Turn your thoughts and eyes away
There’s corruption hiding in the shadows
But only if you can see
Fear is momentum
And nothing frightens so well
As the clanking of tank treads
While the land burns away
War is a cleansing
Not of souls, not of land
But of debts
Some are currency.
But most are failed policies
A way to reset the board
Without admitting failure
Remove some of the pieces
Redraw the lines
War is ambition
Ideological men with big ideas
Feeding the ancient hunger
Empire builders
A desire to own more than the next man
Not just more land, but more influence
More control, more secrets
That urge to dominate their fellow man
To make or take, with no escape
Conflict becomes their compass
North is the way to expansion
A moving target without an end
War is distraction
A culling of unwanted voices
While amplifying others
The noise of battle makes for good cover
Drowning out those demanding justice
Those virtuous ones of the people
Cries for fairness, for a better way
Disappeared beneath the rubble
We’ll mourn them
But not for too long
War is legacy
Conquest fills the dreams
Dream of statues, of building names
History books with lines of praise
Strong, resolute, tactful, decisive
But monuments are built on graves
War is more
More than the common man is fighting for
The mongers don’t fight
Their children sleep in silent rooms
Far from the falling shells and acrid air
They speak of sacrifice
But never taste it
No funerals for their young men
Yet still the powers that be go to war
Because it serves them
Because it enriches them
Because it protects their thrones
Our world, so it seems
Is theirs to gamble with
Until our cost outweighs their gain
Nothing, not a thing will change
But one day
Soon perhaps, armies will stop marching
Tanks will stop rolling, and aircraft grounded
Without fodder, the cannons are useless
When every life is viewed the same
Additional Reading
R.J. (Ralph) Schwartz is an American poet, author, website owner, and online publisher. His writing spans several poetry collections—ranging from spiritual and romantic to fear-driven explorations—and even extends into science fiction. Notable works include:
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Hope – Inspirational and Spiritual Poetry
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Things That Go Bump in the Night – Poetry of Fear and Fright
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The Lover’s Thread – Poetry for Couples
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Poetry of the Human Condition – The Ups and Downs of Modern Living
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The Secrets of the Moon (a sci-fi novel co-authored with his son Sebastian J. Schwartz)
Schwartz’s work is described as purposefully wordy, richly descriptive, and thematically grounded in nature, romance, antiquity, and forgotten histories. He writes regularly on platforms he manages, including The Creative Exiles, a collaborative venue for writers, and The Gypsy Thread, which delves into offbeat histories, pagan lore, and poetry.
- The Struggle of Understanding - April 13, 2026
- How To Deal With Frost on Your Pumpkin Patch - March 25, 2026
- The Awakening of Earth – A Poem of Springtime - March 18, 2026
