Hope Rises

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

 

Hope Rises

 

Hope rises like the Phoenix

And crashes like a bomb

Take a breath, make a wish

Decide what side you’re on

 

When you’re on the side of hope

You’re a moment from despair

From worrying how to cope

To doubting why you care

 

When hope rises from the dust

Every day becomes bright

When we shake off all that rust

We set out to make it right

 

We are the hopeful warriors

Just like we’ve always been

We’re workers and we’re lawyers

We’re ready to fight again

 

For hope rises with the sun

And hope falls in the deep of night

The long war cannot be won

Yet we will always seek the light

 

 

Reclaiming the Flag

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR:  AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

 

Reclaiming the Flag

 

Everybody wants to know what went down

Everybody has a point of view

Open up your ears and hear that sound

That’s a debt coming due

 

We reclaimed the flag last night

The colors red, white and blue

We took a flame to a firefight

We held strong and true

 

The next time they call you Red

Throw it back in their ugly faces

Defiance is the force they dread

In all the nation’s disparate places

 

We marched together hand in hand

Every color, tribe and station

We waved the flag across the land

Reclaiming our true nation

 

We weren’t afraid to take a stand

We weren’t afraid to tell it straight

In words that all could understand

Our America is great

 

The Democratic Facade

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WORLD DEMOCRACY

 

The Democratic Façade

 

In Tanzania they elected a president

Samia Suluhu Hassan

If a true republic is what they meant

Their chances are nearly gone

 

She tallied 98 percent of the vote

She believes that is a mandate

In fact that is a tally of note

That declared a miserable fate

 

For democracy requires an open field

In a free and fair election

A republic allows no such appeal

The fraud is beyond correction

 

Tanzania is now a phony façade

Another entry in the despots ring

When you’ve no choice but to applaud

The applause means less than nothing

 

We wonder why they even bother

To present themselves as free and fair

Like pretending a deity is your father

Why would you even dare?

 

 

Arms for Genocide

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GENOCIDE

 

Arms for Genocide

 

Supplying arms for genocide

In Gaza or Darfur

Is a crime the world cannot abide

Of that we should be sure

 

The United Arab Emirates

Believes they are immune

To the laws applied to all of us

We’ll find out very soon

 

They’re killing all the native sons

All those of darker skin

They’ll kill them all before they’re done

They’ll kill them all again

 

The Emirates supplied the weapons

To do their dirty deeds

A bold supply of swords and guns

To kill the Sudanese

 

The world must now decide

If the Emirates have the right

To fund and foment genocide

Beneath a glaring light

 

 

War with Venezuela

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LATIN AMERICA

 

War with Venezuela

 

We’re preparing for war with Venezuela

On the pretense of Narco Terror

Like the Russians invading Australia

The debt belongs to the bearer

 

What fool dreamed up this adventure?

Bush’s folly was not enough

Is this how the man derives pleasure?

By proving he’s bold and tough

 

Just as Putin did in Ukraine

The US will go it alone

An invasion that drags on in vain

An occupation in the American zone

 

Turn back before it’s too late

Like Bush you will stumble and lose

You wanted to show yourself great

Instead you will pay your dues

 

Like Nam, Iraq and Afghanistan

You’ll go down in a flurry of flames

Just another imperialist plan

That forever degrades our name

 

Let’s pretend you’re still a peacemaker

Let’s pretend you don’t want war

You’re a giver not a taker

You can find the other shore