Those songs are examples of "watered down" Bono. They are more broad laments than a criticism of a particular regime/ideology. SBS, Pride, Bullet, Mothers of the Disappeared, Ms Sarajevo, SATS, Please and other less obvious songs (like Seconds) tackle issues head-on.
I disagree.
SBS was indeed about a specific event and, based on what we've all read, Edge's first draft of the lyrics were even more specific (even mentioning the IRA). Bono, however, made the lyrics more abstract and non-specific. While the title remained, the lyrics could apply to any war at any time. Did this "water down" the meaning?
All the rest of the song are similar. Pride is about MLK, but never mentions him by name. The lyrics suggest the song is applicable to any martyr (even Jesus). This makes the song more relatable. Analogously, Bullet and Please have specific events as an influence, but the lyrics allow them to apply to multple situations.
With that in mind, I argue that Crumbs qualifies. It is heavily influenced by specific events, but is written in a general manner.
Love & Peace is admittedly more borderline, but that is intentional, IMO. The song has an early 70's vibe to it, which I also believe is intentional. It seems the song was meant to capture that time (with the Vietnam war). Both the music and lyrics are meant to be vague - discussing not just one situation, but many situations. And indeed, there are many. Pick a war - any war!
I like these more abstract ideas. It allows the songs to be applied to more than one or two events. If Bono wrote specifically, the songs would become outdated.
Are the lyrics not as potent? That's arguable. It could be a change in style. Words of a 50 year old may not match that of his 25 year old self. I see that even in my e-mails. Maturity allows one to phrase concepts and ideas better - to be more powerful with notions while not offending. Maybe people want offensive. But I argue that nothing Bono has ever written is specifically offensive. If one takes offense, so be it. But Bono's lyrics are meant for many interpretations - that is one of his biggest strengths.