Our boys need some tunes to inspire them as they prepare for the coming liberation of Iraq. Here are my two dozen ideas for inclusion on a mix CD to send to your brother, son, sister or cousin heading off for duty in the Middle East:

"Mama Said Knock You Out" by LL Cool J - I could imagine some of our boys wanting to wire up some speakers to boom this ultimate in gangsta rap upon a garrison of Republican Guard troops in a loop. "I think I'm gonna bomb a TOWN, get down! I gotta thank GOD, cause he gave me the strength to rock HARD. Knock you out, Mama said knock you out."

"Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner" by Warren Zevon - Other Warren possibilities include "The Envoy" or "The Long Arm of the Law." Somehow, you've got to have some Warren in the mix. "Roland," of course, is a eulogy for a great warrior, and Saddam should be well feeling the sentiment of the classic rock inevitability of having that "long arm of the law" tapping on his shoulder. Your cousin in the infantry might well say, "'Long arm of the law?' Oh yeah, that would be ME!" Then of course the badass envoy that carries a "lethal weapon that nobody sees" might entertain your soldier boy.

"Neighborhood Bully" by Bob Dylan - The "bully" would be the Israelis who had to deal with the Hussein problem twenty years ago. Here's one of Dylan's catchiest, most furious, and straightforward rock and roll classics. It's about taking care of business and protecting your own, even if the rest of the world hates you for it.

"Sabotage" by the Beastie Boys - Bringing the hard funk and the metal together in rare perfect harmony, the Beasties read the riot act to the provocateur: "You're scheming on a thing that's a mirage. I'm telling all y'all it's sabotage." Well, we've got an answer for that.

"Psycho Street" by Richard Thompson - You know where you try to get along and be nice with the neighbors, but it just ain't gonna work? This veers from the nice lollipop Mr. Rogers chorus about friendly neighbors, to the swinging psycho rants of the verses, with neighbors interrogating the cats, and cheerful throbbing murders amongst friends. "'Oh well,' says the dad as his life blood trickles away. 'Boys will be boys.'"