Grin & Bear Shit

I will not tell you to smile
there shall be no condescension
or insult of that kind
we all know the dangers posed
to our freedoms
our pursuits of happiness
and very lives, yes
I know you know
and would not dare
to tell you otherwise
but
I might suggest
if we have high spirits
if we dance and smile and laugh
then they lose
those angry old white pricks
who value joy the least
will not take mine
as long as I
…as we? (merely a suggestion)
are happier than they
we win
and that’s what I shall do
win

Skeptical Burn Out

Tomorrow has never been observed today
passed forever is what’s gone when it goes
predictions of science
indifferent, remorseless
driven to conclusion
as if our human fate
and the destiny of nature
is directed but one way
nails pounded into the future
never to return
never to be seen clearly
until falling distantly behind
smaller and smaller in the rearview
whether or not, evidently
even if
it was pristinely
prophesied

The Deplorables

How can I paint a picture
of the world I live in
where the early
metal expansions
and whistling leaks of pressure
of a kettle on the hob
are the distant cries of children
in terror
as they are ripped apart
for disobedience
by marauding mobs
of Donald Trump’s men
where the circling overhead roar
of propeller blades
means imminent eviction
at the teeth of unleashed hounds
later… status sortment
prison, deportation or extermination
this is what is coming
every fear the cowardly right
cried out in alarm
that Obama would do to them
is coming for real
for the left
the right-wing projector
of intent and desire
is the untarnished window
to their dark loathsome souls…

religious persecution?
you betchya!

detention camps?
you betchya!

gun confiscation?
you betchya!

death panels?
you betchya!

silence of internet dissent?
you betchya!

better be ready people
‘cause Hitler was a punk

White Power

Lawless carnage
streets stalked by terror
incarnate
gunfire, grizzly bears, thugs
cries of murder
a nation in hellish free-fall
collapsing in riot, protest
and disrespect
for police, authoritarian institutions
a nightmare urban landscape
of dark angry faces and
shrill women’s voices
raised in violence
this is what America is…

…in the eyes of cowardly white men

a dystopian alternate reality
that could be made right
again
through military force
through the silencing
of political dissent
the dissolution of civil rights
women’s rights, voting rights
religious and sexual freedoms
because white men are weak
sad, pathetic creatures
who cannot succeed or thrive
without the legislated oppression
of others
the full force of the state
leveled against their perceived foes:
women, minorities, non-christians
this is how white men win
the only way they win
lies, deceit, propaganda, treachery
are the tools they use
to tilt the system to their advantage
so they may ooze into power
power they achieve and hold
only by a gerrymandered
anti-democratic imbalance
if white men had to play fair
were held to the same standards
to which we hold kindergarteners
they’d all be living under bridges
charging illegal tolls
like the loathsome trolls they are

A Dog Called Donald

Yip and bay and
growl and bark
attack the fence
in graceless wanton idiocy
run its perimeter
territorial beast
piss in passive victory
re-sanctifying your dirt
once, down the pavement
the heathen has passed
now you are again
king
of your walled-in domain
until the next threat
by idle passer-by
rankles
your all too easy ire

Let Freedom Splat

Flattened against the glass
Another fly
Freedom’s illusion has killed it

Post-Nuclear Real Estate Values

Should you
in finding the courage
to place your head
inside the lion’s maw
at the last moment
the one of truth
balk and withdraw
remember this
there are times
when suicide
is a justifiable impulse
and others when
plunging into death’s jaws
is better avoided
consider Khrushchev
his gamble in Cuba
know when to fold
know when to walk
weigh the odds
measure the worth
the big cat’s
always calling trump
leaving your hand
a smoking ruin

Rape on Tape

Whenever you see a photograph
of
grinning white men, pasty ghouls
wearing suits
neckties
all standing behind
the one man seated at a desk
a pen in hand
poised over paper
know this
they smile
the smile
of the criminal
of the murderer
of the rapist
caught in the act
caught on tape
and acquitted
and know this
as well
you are the victim
yes you are
even if you believe
they are on your side
because
like the professional victim you are
you voted for them
all due to the letter ‘R’
and why did you do that
in defeat of your own interests
I know
it’s because you’re a horrible person
a cheerleader of rape
who gets off
seeing the sick die
the poor suffer
women stripped of their rights
to be abused at the hands of the state
you love the bombs that fall
and bury bodies in rubble abroad
this is you, a pastiche image
a portrait built in a bricolage of ruin
of terror and hatred
a craven face
free of humanity
empty of light

Snake

Under the radar of the rattle
flying below
envenomation
no warning; no bite
slithering against the law
ass low; live rounds
marine on his belly
on the muddy ground
soldier flat
as ordered
from high
stand down
stay down
fat cat
in command
do, die and in between
exercise
dance to the music
leap to the drum
keep it ever in mind
your job is a job
worked for fucking scum

Minor Inconvenience Mart

lead to drink
by rain swollen doors
sticking shut
refusing to lock
deadbolt alignment shot
screws in hinges
endless twist in rotted wood
unwilling to get a grip

lead to drink
by gas station lines
cars jack-knifed in
bad angles
no way to pass
cheaper with cash
per gallon
why not fuck us over by the quart
charge an extra dime
a pint…

a pint, perchance to drink
a bitter
or a quart of rye
necessity sits squarely
right there
the center of my forehead
bang between the eyes
throat craving scorch
belly the warm wash
in the tank
the drunk tank
click, click goes the meter
need to quell
why not
lead to drink
unleaded to drink