Mourning in America

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

Mourning in America

 

The majority* of Americans

Have made their feeling clear

The rest of us are mourning

For the nation we hold dear

 

We cannot deny the mandate

Unlike the opposing side

We’ve lost our democratic state

Now we’re forced to take a ride

 

Down the autocratic lane

Where brutes and tyrants live

So begins the tyrant’s reign

That history will not forgive

 

It is mourning in America

And all around the world

The once proud democracy

Into the void was hurled

 

We will not give up hope

We’ll rise to fight again

We’re facing a daunting slope

With a deep desire to win

 

* Plurality

Erosion of Democracy

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

Erosion of Democracy

 

We do not lose democracy overnight

It erodes gradually over years

We watch it happen without a fight

It does not arouse our deepest fears

 

They strip away our voting rights

They degrade our vote with gerrymander

They push our protests out of sight

They diminish our side with candor

 

The wealthy buy our fourth estate

They take control of our information

They beat us down and call it great

Say goodbye to our once great nation

 

Our corporate mobsters have the power

Awarded by the Court Supreme

Some will applaud the final hours

The death of the American dream

 

Will we rise from our deep despair?

To gain back what we have lost

There are far too many who do not care

Bend the knee to our new boss

 

The Unseen Hand (of Oppression)

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WORLD DEMOCRACY

The Unseen Hand

 

The unseen hand of intimidation

Belongs to the brute of the Kremlin

His presence felt in most every nation

Like a force of voting gremlins

 

They promote stories with clever lies

The truth is altered and deformed

They provide their guilty alibies

They invade like a closing storm

 

From Austria to the Slavic states

From Wisconsin to the Hague

The unseen hand has found its place

Like the scourge of a Russian plague

 

Democracy is on the run

Most everywhere we turn

We cannot rest until it’s done

Let the flames of freedom burn

 

Do not give in, do not despair

The alarm has been sounded

We are rallying the free and fair

On the principles that were founded

 

In ancient Greece and modern Rome

The bricks of our foundation

Democracy has found a home

In the best of civilized nations

 

The Common Good

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

The Common Good

 

There is something deeply disturbing

About the state of our democracy

When so many of our citizens

Are tempted to autocracy

 

We will never have to vote again

That is exactly what he said

Our democracy has flown away

Say goodnight and go to bed

 

In the morning when we wake up

Our once great country tis of thee

Is no longer of and by the people

And the people are no longer free

 

We had a long and storied run

But the wealthy spoiled the pot

The filthy rich took all the power

And let the republic rot

 

We neglected it for far too long

We let the wealthy have their way

Now that they’ve bought all branches

We will no longer have a say

 

It is for the common good they say

And for the benefit of very few

It is far too late to make a change

There is nothing more we can do

 

The World Awaits

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

The World Awaits

 

With bated breath the world awaits

The end of our republic?

The christening of a new age?

The rendering of fate

 

The raging propaganda wars

Everywhere across the globe

Misinformation in full force

Attacking the frontal lobe

 

We do not know what to believe

Our eyes and ears mislead us

The information we receive

Is what they choose to feed us

 

But people have a seventh sense

We carry it deep inside

It is our last and best defense

A human override

 

There are evil forces everywhere

We will fight them back again

As long as people know and care

The evil will not win

 

Despots United

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

Despots United

 

When despots act in unity

The dangers are compounded

Bold aggression with impunity

Diplomacy confounded

 

Kim the Grim and Vlad the Bad

Are suddenly best of friends

Nothing positive can be had

When the peace on them depends

 

Kim supplies the warriors

Vladimir supplies the tech

An evil Huck and Tom Sawyer

What looms is a massive wreck

 

The world must stand at ready

When such despots come together

Hold them back and hold it steady

They are birds of a wicked feather

 

They must suffer for their actions

Their communion cannot hold

For all who join their evil faction

The reaction must be bold

 

(3,000 North Korean troops

amass on the Ukrainian border.)

Contamination of the Press

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

Contamination of the Press

 

Look hard and long, it’s plain to see

The press ain’t what it used to be

A shadow of its former self

A dusty volume on the shelf

 

We’ve seen the power of the press

When Richard Nixon did his best

To undermine our free and fair

In the days when papers cared

 

In a story that toppled towers

They did not hide, they did not cower

They exposed his dirt and crooked deeds

And let it run where it would lead

 

Today they let it all go down

The truth is nowhere to be found

Who cares about democracy?

We’ll profit from autocracy

 

So let it all unfold

The truth will not be told

Not today and not tomorrow

When all is gloom and sorrow

 

(Jeff Bezos’ Washington Post

declines to endorse for president.)