Heard about NY on Bill Maher...recently heard about LA on local news...been listening to OTEP for qite some time now. And wrote this in 2006.

"Extreme Home Makeover (Home Country Edition)" -Lance Bristow 2006-

A man walked into a town. He was followed by petrified boards with the flags of their land draped over them. The man with his procession step-by-step drew the occasional glance of the people of the town. Some were questioning, some comical, and the sight even made some cry. The final step found the man in front of the house that held the most power. The flag of the land flying high above the house, a flag that dwarfed all others in the land. The man arranged the draped boards behind him and bowed his head.

After about an hour a young woman wandered by, and upon a second glance she said to the man,

"Excuse me, but I have seen that shape before. It was at my brothers funeral."

The man replied, "then the one you are looking at, please, stand next to it." and again he bowed his head. The woman closed her eyes and images flashed before her minds eye, her brother and his unit in a tank crossing a bridge, then mortar fire. The bridge collapses and the tank sinks to the bottom of a river. Then as another fifteen minutes passed a servant of Power's house came and asked the man, "Sir, what are you doing?" The man looked the servant in the eyes and said " Standing. " The servant then asked the woman " Ma'am, what about you?" Her reply, "Standing."

The servant was going to get the master of Power's house when a little boy asked the servant, "Mister, what are those people doing?" The servant said, "Standing." The boy replied, "For what?" the servants answer being, " I don't know, go ask them." and then he rushed back to his masters house. The boy went over to the man and asked, "What are you standing for?" the man smiling said to the boy, "For those who are no longer with us." "My daddy isn't with us anymore." said the boy. " Why not?" inquired the woman. " He got a letter from that house, " the boy pointed across to Power's house, " then he went away. The phone rang one day and mommy said daddy wasn't coming home." " How sad." said the woman. Pointing to one of the boards draped in a flag of the land, " That one is for you. Will you stand next to it?" The boy did as he was told and memories of his father flashed through his mind.

That night a woman came to Power's house to see if anyone had seen her son. The boy opened his eyes, " Mommy!" he yelled. " What are you doing here?" she said running over to her child. " Standing with this man for daddy." The man, looking up, and seeing the mother's tears asked, " Will you stand with your son?" and she did. Before long there was a block full of people standing next to the man with his boards.

The servants of Power's house began to gather at the gates. The head servant ran to Power and told him of the crowd gathering in front of the house. But Power was preoccupied with gaining more power. Over the next few days the block had become a neighborhood of people standing next to cloth over wood and Power's servants became more and more worried. They began to plead to their master about their fears. Finally Power came to his porch and asked the head servant, " Who is responsible for this?" the servant pointed to he man. Power hurled fire at the man, who draped himself in the flag and was protected from the fire. Power, in a rage told his servants, " Fire on the whole crowd!" which they did. The crowd following the man covered themselves and were protected. The boards, however, began to catch aflame.

When all the fire was spent from Power's house which had been weakened from firing on other powerful houses. The man covered the board which was ash and ember, smothering the flames. Smoke, rising, lifting the flags into human shapes. Unveiling themselves, the army of the fallen stormed Power's house wiping out servants and master. When they came out of the house, the fallen looked to the sky, a rain began to fall and a gentle breeze carried away the ashes. The man stepped across the street to the gate of Power's house turned to the crowd and said " Welcome home."