A New Coalition

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

A New Coalition

 

Old school politics are dead and gone

The Grand Old Party is a fraud

The politics of right and wrong

Give a smile and spare the rod

The weakest ones are now the strong

There’s never been a party of God

We knew better all along

That road has been well trod

 

We need a brand-new coalition

Free of what we’ve done before

No more props or superstitions

Shove the old guard out the door

Say goodbye to politicians

We don’t want you anymore

 

If you believe in democracy

Join together and be heard

All our voices against autocracy

United is the sacred word

 

United for our legacy

United in our vote

United against our enemies

United in our hope

Tears of Palestine

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: JERUSALEM

Tears of Palestine

 

“I walk and count the bones of my beloveds

Along the Valley of Destruction.”

 

Wm. Blake, Jerusalem (1820)

 

The tears of Jerusalem became the tears of

Palestine that together formed a river  

that flowed into the sea.

 

Endless is the sorrow and the mourning of

the mothers and the anger of the fathers

and the vows of vengeance that the sons

and daughters carried through the ages

of antiquity.

 

The tears of Palestine became the tears of

Jerusalem that together formed a river

that flowed into the sea.

 

There is no peace on earth

Nor can there ever be

Until at last we find a cure

for this ancient blood disease

 

Dark before Dawn

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: UKRAINE

Dark before Dawn

 

All the chips are stacked against you

Your back is up against the wall

There is no one you can turn to

There is no one you can call

It seems the fateful tide is turning

Like the rush before the fall

You have let your hopes be taken

In the morning you’ll be gone

It always seems the darkest before dawn

 

We will rise again tomorrow

We will find a way to bend

We will melt into the shadows

With a message we will send

They have only won the battle

It’s not over till the end

We will find a deeper courage

We will sing our mourning song

It always seems the darkest before dawn

 

We will fight with all our strength

We will refuse to give in

When it seems we’ve reached the end

We will begin again

For we are on the side of justice

For the righteous we will win

We must defeat an enemy

Whose cause is dark and wrong

It always seems the darkest before dawn

 

(for Ukraine)

Staring Down the Barrel (for Ukraine)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: UKRAINE

Staring Down the Barrel

 

We knew what were in for

We were always on the run

We were heading for the exit

Underneath a setting sun

Like a woman on a tight rope

One wrong step and we’re done

We were staring down the barrel

of a gun

 

We were desperate and afraid

Like a child that has no one

We were carrying a load

That must have weighed a ton

We were running short on luck

No one lost and no one won

We were staring down the barrel

of a gun

 

When we awakened in the morning

We were naked and alone

All our friends and trusted allies

Had given up and gone home

We were all out of trying

We were down and we were done

We were staring down the barrel

of a gun

 

(for Ukraine)

Days of Freedom

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WORLD DEMOCRACY

Days of Freedom

 

There was a time we walked the streets

Free and easy like a charm

No one could tell us where to go

No one could do us any harm

Now they stop us everywhere

To rob us of our peace

To steal away our memories

Of the days when we were free

 

Like a lover from our dreams

Like a hero in a song

The days of freedom linger

We will miss her when she’s gone

 

We will take a vow of memory

A promise never to forget

The days when we were free

The nights when we first met

We held on for our lives

Like we were riders on a jet

They sang of us in Singapore

It rang across the sea

Always we’ll remember

The days when we were free

 

Like a lover in a dream

Like a hero in a song

The days of freedom linger

We will miss her when she’s gone

 

(for Democracy in Hong Kong)