Thursday, February 19, 2026

Remembering Navalny

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: RUSSIA

 

Remember Navalny

 

The evidence is finally in

Though it comes in very late

It was no one but Vladimir Putin

That sealed Navalny’s fate

 

He was in a Russian prison

So there can be no doubt

It was Vladimir’s decision

To take Navalny out

 

Still the struggle rages on

Without an end in sight

But Navalny is gone

So it is a leaderless fight

 

But the people are aware

That their leader is a killer

They are waiting everywhere

The next chapter in this thriller

 

Alexei Navalny is dead

But his spirit still lives on

If we follow out the thread

There may be a new Russian dawn

 

Wednesday, February 18, 2026

Mourning in Iran

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: IRAN

 

Mourning in Iran

 

If you kill thousands of your people

You do not get to mourn the dead

Beyond the push of the martyrs’ pull

Accept the fury you have bred

 

Blame it on the foreign agitators

Though all the world can see the lie

Blame it on domestic instigators

Blame it on the star-crossed skies

 

Even you can see and smell the truth

When so many have been killed

The rising of an outraged youth

They have expressed their will

 

All the nation is in mourning

For the martyrs you have decried

To all oppressors here’s a warning

History isn’t on your side

 

In time the righteous will prevail

Though it may take a hundred years

In time the oppressors will be jailed

And none will shed a martyr’s tears

 

Monday, February 16, 2026

Workingman Poor

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LABOR

 

Workingman Poor

 

The unions have no power

Losing workers shore to shore

Lower wages by the hour

The working man is poor

 

We can’t afford a living space

Debtors knocking at the door

We’re falling back in every race

For the working man is poor

 

Robotics on the assembly line

Automation in the stores

The oligarchs are more than fine

But the working man is poor

 

Those who need get less and less

Those who don’t get more

The system doesn’t pass the test

When the working man is poor

 

The corporate beast is growing

Good jobs are getting rare

The economy is slowing

But the wealthy grab their share

 

Sunday, February 15, 2026

Impunity

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

 

Impunity

 

“Nothing’s more dangerous than

power with impunity.” 

 

Isabel Allende, Portrait in Sepia

 

 

Nothing speaks of insanity

Nothing could be more extreme

Than a president with impunity

Decreed by the Court Supreme

 

One wonders what they were thinking

On that misbegotten day

When the ship of state was sinking

And they helped it on its way

 

They gifted him immunity

The people did not have a say

They assured enduring disunity

For as long as he would stay

 

So now he’ll stay forever

He will never leave the house

He’s pulling each and every lever

To get his forces armed and roused

 

ICE is his gestapo

Brown Shirts and the Guard

We don’t know where it goes

But we’re sure it goes down hard

 

Our democracy is at stake

She is trembling with desperate fear

Her defenders better stay awake

Or the end times will be here

 

 

Saturday, February 14, 2026

Tumbler Ridge

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: CANADA

 

Tumbler Ridge

 

Below the border it would not be news

Or rather it would not be shocking

We line them up and light a fuse

And we spend a few days talking

 

But changes never happen

We don’t operate that way

We wave our hands and wonder when

But the outrage never stays

 

In Canada they feel the pain

It just doesn’t happen here

It puts society under strain

The whole nation sheds a tear

 

The time has come to rein it in

The right to purchase arms

It cannot be the way it’s been

For the risk is too much harm

 

What passed at Tumbler Ridge

Should never be allowed

Maybe they should cross that bridge

And the people should be proud

 

Thursday, February 12, 2026

Sanae Takaichi

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

 

Sanae Takaichi

 

Sanae Takaichi of Japan

Has been given a dramatic mandate

She will balance if she can

The nation’s debt against its fate

 

She wants to cut the tax on food

Not a radical proposition

Her defense of Taiwan may seem rude

If you’re a Chinese institution

 

The Japanese demand change

They were tired of being bullied

A reversal of fortune may seem strange

But their dignity was sullied

 

Known for stoic conservatism

Takaichi deserves a chance

To deliver a novel populism

If the working folks advance

 

Managing debt will not be easy

It may require sacrifice

The results may not be pleasing

But the rich must pay the price

 

 

Wednesday, February 11, 2026

Luminaries of Peace

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

 

Luminaries of Peace

 

Never has there been

Such a luminous group of men

Dedicated to the cause of peace

From Pakistan to the Middle East

 

They’ve all put up a stake

A pact they’ve promised not to break

From Hungary’s Orban

To Mohammed bin Salman

And Turkey’s infamous Erdogan

From Pakistan’s Zardari to Javier Milei

They take their parts in Donald’s play

 

Did I mention Subianto?

There may be others we don’t know

The notorious MBZ

And bin Hamad the Qatari

And oh yes, Netanyahu

Who has yet to pay his dues

All gather around their chair

The heavyweight with golden hair

 

He is seated in perpetuity

To collect his grand annuities

As he greets them at the door

They will put an end to war

 

 

Trump’s Board of Peace:

Javier Milei, Argentina

Viktor Orban, Hungary

Prabowo Subianto, Indonesia

Asif Ali Zardari, Pakistan

Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia

Recep Erdogan, Turkey

Mohamed bin Zayed (MBZ), UAE

Tamom bin Hamad, Qatar

Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel