British poet laureate questions motives on Iraq
( 2003-01-09 10:55 ) (7 )

Britain's poet laureate Andrew Motion has questioned the motives behind a potential war with Iraq in a new poem published on Thursday.

His move is an unusual one for a poet laureate, who is appointed by the queen's household and traditionally writes non-political poems to commemorate major national and royal occasions.

Motion published "Causa Belli", a 30-word, four-line poem, in the Guardian newspaper.

It reads"

"They read good books, and quote, but never learn

a language other than the scream of rocket-burn.

Our straighter talk is drowned but ironclad" elections, money, empire, oil and Dad.

Motion told the Guardian the poem was "not a poem about whether we should go to war".

"We can't decide that because we don't yet know whether there are weapons. It's a poem about wishing to be more candid."

He said the reference to "Dad" in the last line of the poem was to US President George W. Bush's "strange father fixation" with George Bush senior, who led the United States into war with Iraq in 1991.

Britain has had a poet laureate since the mid-17th century Previous incumbents have included John Dryden, William Wordsworth and Lord Tennyson.