Against the Drowning Noise of Other Words, CCXX: "(n)ever again"
never again rolling tanks (n)ever again bomber after bomber
Chen-ou Liu
Commentary:
1. The parenthetical “(n)” creates a hinge between "never" and "ever,”" allowing the phrase to be read in two ways: "never again" and "ever again." And this duality is the haiku ’s core tension: the desire for violence to stop versus the fear (or reality) that it will continue.
Because it is a one-line haiku with no punctuation, the reader feels no pause or relief to read the whole haiku in one go -- mirroring the relentless, uninterrupted movement of “tanks” and “bomber after bomber.” And the progression from “rolling tanks” to “bomber after bomber” suggests escalation:ground war → air war; slow machinery → repeated airborne strikes. The repetition in “bomber after bomber” provides a drumbeat effect, underscoring the unstoppable rhythm of conflict.
Most importantly, the haiku creates a powerful paradox: We vow “never again,” yet history shows that war seems to occur “ever again.” The parenthetical insertion is a small typographical device that generates a large emotional and philosophical critique: how fragile declarations like “never again” become in the face of recurring violence.
This haiku is a compact, politically charged, cleverly structured poem that uses minimal typographic alteration to reveal a looping, tragic pattern. The one-line form forces the reader to experience that continuity and contradiction.
Nov. 25, 2025:
'I'm Not Sure Democracy Will Survive': Israeli 2025 Nobel Laureate Prof. Joel Mokyr, Fears for the West's Future
"The big problem – the huge gorilla in the room – is what nobody addresses: Israel needs to learn that it cannot succeed in doing what South Africa tried and failed to do. You cannot live indefinitely as an occupying army without morally destroying the country from within."
Nov. 26, 2025:
Israeli Human Rights Groups Tell UN That Israel Increased Use of Torture During Gaza War
The report submitted to the UN notes that detainees received medical treatment while shackled and blindfolded, and were forced to use diapers to relieve themselves. It also says detainees were starved, with 'an official diet of approximately 1,000 calories daily'
"Israel has dismantled existing safeguards and now employs torture throughout the entire detention process – from arrest to imprisonment – targeting Palestinians under occupation and Palestinian citizens, with senior officials sanctioning these abuses while judicial and administrative mechanisms fail to intervene," the report says.
And
Haaretz, Nov. 26 2025:
U.S. Senators Urge Trump to Investigate IDF Violations of U.S. Human Rights Law
The senators, led by Democrats Chris Van Hollen and Jack Reed, asked that the president review a report issued in September by the U.S. Department of State Office of Inspector General, which "found that Israeli military units committed 'many hundreds' of potential violations of U.S. human rights law in the Gaza Strip that would take the State Department 'multiple years' to review."
In their letter to the Trump administration, the senators said that the report is "the latest confirmation from a series of different reports that have each described failures to uphold American human rights laws and policies governing the use of U.S. weapons."
Added: Against the Drowning Noise of Other Words, CCLIV: "'cold rain all day..."
cold rain all day ...
in a Gazan shelter
bomb craters of sky
Access to new tents and essential winter supplies is strictly limited, forcing residents to face the cold and damp after two years of destruction, famine, and forced displacement.
