The Fall (and Rise) of Kherson

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: UKRAINE

The Fall of Kherson

 

The blood of defenders

The roar of the guns

A battle of soldiers

The fall of Kherson

 

The invaders are losing

At every corner and turn

Their will to fight wanes

As the other side burns

 

The dictator calls forth

Another ten thousand

But they are not warriors

Nothing will rouse them

 

The fall of Kherson

Is only the latest

In a contest of wills

Ukraine’s is the greatest

 

So here’s to all leaders

Who start foreign wars

You can’t win a nation

With mercenary whores

 

Enemies of God

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL JUSTICE

Enemies of God

 

Those who proclaim their adversaries

The enemies of God

Are twisted in their righteousness

Their vision warped and odd

 

They kill dissidents in Tehran

They sentence protesters to death

If they could hear the word of God

It would still their very breath

 

For there is no greater crime

Than to kill in your God’s name

God is merciful and kind

Vengeful zealots will face shame

 

I do not know the word of God

I do not pretend to know

But if you use his name to kill

I believe his wrath will show

 

The Fall of Bolsonaro

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WORLD DEMOCRACY

The Silence of Bolsonaro

 

Hold your breath Brazil

The very silence of Bolsonaro

Threatens the heart of your democracy

 

Will the military rise up in arms?

Will his followers raise hell?

Will democracy be overthrown?

Will the president be jailed?

 

The future of the nation

Stands in a delicate balance

If a lawful election is overturned

Brazil becomes a rogue

A pirate of the western world

 

Rise up in support of Lula!

Rise up in support of democracy!

Rise up against the despot

And his conspirators in crime!

Let the dictator know this cannot be

Let the generals know where

The people stand

 

Brazilians have made their choice

The people have rejected the bully

The people have chosen a leader

They demand a voice

Go home and take your guns!

 

Viva Lula!

Viva Brazil!

Liberation

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: UKRAINE

Liberation (Kherson)

 

We welcome you our soldiers

We have prayed for this day

At last we are liberated

Now we pray you will stay

 

We have lived in occupation

We have held our heads down

We kept faith that our nation

Would retake this sacred ground

 

The invaders were cold and cruel

They punished us for breathing

Living under a despot’s rule

Not knowing where it’s leading

 

You have come to lift our spirits

You have come to free our souls

When once we were the broken

You have made our spirits whole

 

The Ideal Candidate

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: DEMOCRACY

The Ideal Candidate

 

The ideal candidate for any public office

Believes whole-heartedly in democracy

Free, honest and fair elections

The unencumbered right to vote

Let every vote be counted

The majority decides

 

The ideal candidate knows the people

Feels what the people feel

Lives among the people

Represents the people’s interests

Talks with them and listens

Communicates her policies

Refuses corporate contributions

Answers for his actions

Takes full responsibility

 

The ideal candidate defends human rights

Against all abuses and encroachments

Without regard to race or religion

Gender or gender identity

Social class or economic status

 

The ideal candidate advocates peace

Supporting war only as a last resort

Only if the cause is righteous

For justice and national sovereignty

When all alternatives are exhausted

Without compromise on principle

 

The ideal candidate has her priorities

Consistent with history and the times

An age of global warming

An age of global crises

An age of critical decline

 

The ideal candidate may not exist

But the concept should

And voters should keep the ideal

Always in their minds