In transcribing the poem, Ginsberg arranged the lines by the natural pauses and dictation in his recordings, according to the "organic space-timing" that they provided.
[3][5] Throughout the poem, Ginsberg contrasts images of the Midwest (and, in particular, the Kansan landscape) with snippets of news reports about the war, linking its violence with the political conservatism of the Heartland.
He decries Carrie Nation's work in Wichita, Kansas as beginning "a vortex of hatred that defoliated the Mekong Delta.
Ginsberg also references religious figures, including Christ, Allah, and Yahweh, in addition to various Indian holy men.
[9] The poem was used in Ang Lee's 2016 film Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, which focuses on a group of soldiers who take a short leave home after a winning battle in Iraq.