Who Owns You?

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

Who Owns You?

 

Ten cool mill from the Egyptian dictator

Shady real estate deals with the Saudi’s

Crooked bribes and shakedowns

Russia, China, Turkey, Hungary

The White House is for sale

 

Who owns you baby?

You demanded 40 bill from the oil industry

In exchange for ending renewable energy

You offered an end to regulation of the

Technology industry in exchange for

Unspecified billions

 

Who owns you baby?

You informed the Wall Street bankers and

Dealers that there is a price to ending the

Oversight the prevents the next great

Economic meltdown

 

Who owns you baby?

The one sure thing is that you owe nothing

To the suckers and working saps who gave

You their time, dollars and praise to get

You elected

 

You owe nothing to the militant fools

Who gave you their blood and freedom

To enforce your uprising and insurrection

 

Who owns you baby?

The big money interests who promise to

Give you riches in exchange for unspoken

Favors

World Class Liar

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: POEMICS

 

World Class

 

Someone you know is a world class liar

An elephant’s ass and a climate denier

Light a match and he’ll catch on fire

He will finish last from wire to wire

 

We’ll name him if we must

Take a guess, it’s Elon Musk

He’s got a prime seat on the loser’s bus

He’s with the weird, he’s not with us

 

He’s got an outrageous amount of money

That doesn’t make him smart or funny

He’s a dark, dark day when all is sunny

When he laughs it’s almost stunning

 

His friends? He doesn’t have them

He’s like a flower without a stem

Or a brand-new building that’s been condemned

He’s a robot among good men

 

His spotlight days will come and go

He’s shamed by all the things we know

He’s a curtain up without a show

His know-it-all has lost its glow

 

The Crack

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: UKRAINE WAR

The Crack

 

A crack in the wall of lies

The myth of Putin’s might

A blow that fate defies

A glimmering of light

 

Ukraine strikes across the border

What now can be done?

What now of Russia’s order?

A war that can’t be won

 

The crack will grow in size

A dark canyon of growing doubt

The Russian people finally rise

To demand that they get out

 

Putin’s madness is now exposed

His infallibility shattered

Remember the day Ukrainians rose

And the Russian conscripts scattered

 

Bring your forlorn soldiers home

While there’s still a chance to save face

Before your nation you stand alone

There is for you no place

 

Maduro's Betrayal

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

Maduro’s Betrayal

 

Simon Bolivar was a great man

Leader of the people’s revolution

Father of Latin American democracy

He dreamed of a free continent

Where the poor were poor no more

Where the power served the people

And the people served themselves

 

After decades of betrayal

By the drivers of western wealth

The rubber, fruit and oil barons

The ones who stole their resources

And left behind a poisoned land

A leader rose in Venezuela

His name was Hugo Chavez

He held forth a dream and a promise

A revival of the Bolivarian revolution

A return of power to the people

An end to soul-crushing poverty

An embrace of true democracy

In Venezuela and beyond

 

He delivered on that dream

In some measure for a while

He delivered food and health care

He gave rise to people’s hopes

But the power of the privileged class

Forced him to compromise

He lost hold of the dream

He lost hold of his principles

He lost hold of his pride

 

The nation he handed to his successor

Was a shadow of what it was

No longer a vibrant growing country

No longer one of promise or of hope

Nicolas Maduro took the reins and

Drove the nation off a cliff

He chose the way of power

He chose the way of wealth

 

Now the people of Venezuela suffer

In hunger and desperation

Poverty of spirit and of wealth

They flee in masses to the north

Where life can be no harder than it is

 

Nicolas Maduro: Let go of your power

Let go of your wealth

Retain some semblance of your pride

Until democracy is restored

There is no hope

And the Bolivarian revolution

Is but a dream

 

Stand Up!

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

Stand Up

 

Standing up for what is right is

A sacred obligation

Standing for our nation’s pride

Against discrimination

 

We see forces against the light

Standing up for hate

We fear the voices of the right

Are standing up too late

 

They’re standing all across the world

They’re standing in the streets

When good people stand together

We will hand them a defeat

 

There are more of us than them

Though they are brash and loud

Our strength is in our virtue

Together we stand proud

 

We’ll stand up for minorities

We’ll stand up for the poor

We’ll stand against oppressors

And their dirty little wars

 

(The British stand against fascism.)

 

Moving the Homeless

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: HOMELESSNESS

Moving the Homeless

 

It doesn’t matter whether you call them

The unhoused, homeless or unsheltered

The unhoused are homeless

The homeless have no shelter

 

The homeless have always been

As long as the river runs

As long as the sun rises in the east

During the Great Depression

The homeless lived in Hoovervilles

Or followed the rails in hobo camps

There were soup kitchens for the poor

There were shelters from the storm

When times got rough in one place

The cops moved them along

The railroad bulls beat them

Catch em if you can

 

We’ve come a long way since then

But the homeless are still here

In ever increasing numbers

They camped in parks until the rangers

Came around to push them out

They camped by the riverside until

The river cops pushed them out

They camped on the streets until

The street cops pushed them out

 

I don’t know what the solution is

But pushing the homeless from one

Camp to another is not an answer

It’s just a way of avoiding the question

We have a right to expect some service

Of all individuals – even the homeless –

In exchange, individuals have a right to

Expect fulfillment of basic needs

Including food and shelter

 

The Fix

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

The Fix

 

The fix is in

Only it ain’t the Democrats

Say what you will

Democrats don’t fix elections

Republicans do

Trump Republicans are committed to it

They’ve dedicated time and resources

To taking over local election boards

It’s always the one who cries foul the loudest

Who is most guilty of the crime

 

Three months before hand

We know what’s coming

Trump Republicans will claim victory

Regardless of the vote count

Their operatives will refuse to certify results

Trump wants the win

He wants his vindication

He wants his vengeance

He wants his retribution

Even more than victory at the polls

 

He wants a civil war

He wants to take the White House by force

He wants his minions to do it for him

You say you don’t believe me?

Wait three months and see

Or take action now to make sure

It doesn’t happen

 

Bebe's War

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: ISRAEL AT WAR

Bebe’s War

 

It is not the thing itself

It’s the timing of the thing itself

With the Middle East ready to explode

With a ceasefire in negotiations

With a growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza

With Hezbollah firing rockets from Lebanon

Netanyahu orders a strike in Tehran

Inviting a broader war

A war engaging the world’s powers

 

Israel has a right to defend herself

Israel has a right to kill those responsible

For the October 7^th attack

Targeted assassination was the proper

Response to the assault

But to wait until Gaza is decimated

To wait until tens of thousands are dead

Homes, schools, hospitals destroyed

To wait for mass starvation

 

Netanyahu has left us no doubt

This war will go on and on

As long as he is still in power

This is Bebe’s war

And Bebe’s war has no end

Kara-Murza Rises

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: RUSSIA

Kara-Murza Rises

 

Kara-Murza rises from his cell

He followed in Navalny’s steps

A Russian with a wicked tale to tell

Where some tease Kara-Murza leapt

 

The man has his freedom now

Give thanks to world diplomacy

He swears he’ll carry on now

The dream of Russian democracy

 

We must hope he will be well

In whatever country he chooses

Let us hope he rings that bell

Let us hope the madman loses

 

Navalny is remembered well

Kara-Murza is his voice

He rises from the depths of hell

To help his people win a choice

 

What happens next no one knows

He will work to advance the cause

Ghosts will follow wherever he goes

He must sharpen up his claws

 

Iran Speaks

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

Iran Speaks

 

Despite all the horrors we have heard

In their defense of Palestine

The Iranian people give their word

The cause of peace is on their minds

 

They have chosen a moderate leader

Who wants relations with the west

They say he’s a true believer

The path of peace is always best

 

He wants to ease the harsh restrictions

On the moral code for all

He has expressed a strong conviction

That some restraints should fall

 

We can’t expect a lot of change

The ayatollah is still in charge

But the furniture is rearranged

Basic change is always hard

 

At least it is a forward step

Away from war and oppression

For once the hard line overslept

Letting go their hard obsessions

 

Olympian Values

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

Olympian Values

 

Watching the American Olympic team

I am reminded of our virtue

We are a diverse lot

People of all shapes and sizes

Colors and distinctions

Black, white, yellow and brown

Blend in a tapestry of excellence

We are America!

USA! USA! USA!

What others consider weakness

Has always been our strength

We exemplify the Olympic spirit

We bring it all to life

The Olympics bring together

Athletes from around the globe

Dedicated to the brotherhood of competition

Committed to crowning glory

Without regard to race or culture

We are the world

We are the Olympic spirit

We are its diversity, its excellence and its wonder

USA! USA! USA!

Never lose sight of those values

Hold on to the dream

 

A Woman with a Brain

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

A Woman with a Brain

 

They say she’s not genuine

They say her laugh is like a crane

They say she lacks bravado

They say she’s borderline insane

But the truth is they’re afraid

Of a woman with a brain

 

She is their worst nightmare

Their minds explode in pain

You see it in their expressions

So exhausted and so strained

They’re shaking at the thought

Of a woman with a brain

 

Watch them squirm and wiggle

Like a worm in the rain

They’re pretending to be outraged

When the truth is very plain

They are terrified of facing

A woman with a brain

 

They’ve tried a lot of tactics

Tried them all in vain

They might as well pack them up

And drive them down the lane

The truth is getting nearer

To home but in the main

Kamala has them quaking

A woman with a brain

 

Venezuelan Tragedy

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WORLD DEMOCRACY

Venezuelan Tragedy

 

We remember Hugo Chavez

The leader of the working class

A man of the people

The Bolivarian revolution

Many times the capitalist forces

The imperialist forces

Led by the CIA

Tried and failed to depose him

Despite all their efforts to discredit him

Chavez had the support of the people

 

He handed his reign to Nicolas Maduro

And for a time it seemed to hold

But the forces of corruption overwhelmed

He became what Chavez would not

A corrupt leader who no longer cared

For the welfare of the poor

Whose love of power became him

Whose commitment to democracy waned

 

Maduro lost the recent election

He covered up the fraud

When the Carter Center turns against you

Your cause is lost

When the people turn against you

You must go

 

The Bolivarian revolution may rise again

We pray that it is so

But it will not be led by Maduro

The people have said no

 

Sycophants & Panderers

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

Sycophants & Panderers

 

There are some who despise democracy

Who would build an emperor’s tower

They are willing to sell their eternal souls

They are so very in love with power

 

There are sycophants and panderers

Who will kiss the emperor’s feet

Against everything they cherish

They will throw the crowd red meat

 

The MAGA crowd is an interesting mix

Of true believers and fanatics

The latter believes in nothing at all

But they love the great dramatics

 

This is how we lose our nation

To the sycophants and pandering crowd

They don’t know what they’re doing

But they’re standing tall and proud

 

Goodbye my sweet America

To all that we hold dear

To equal rights and liberty

The end is drawing near

 

Virtues of Democracy

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: DEMOCRACY

Virtues of Democracy

 

When people come together

From diverse cultures and ages

Different backgrounds and races

Varied interests and stages

 

They can rise to the moment

When they find common ground

They can answer the calling

You cannot keep them down

 

You will see them at the ballot

You will hear them on the streets

When they stand as one people

They won’t go down in defeat

 

The virtue of our republic is

We can alter our course

When the old mount stumbles

We can ride a new horse

 

When the people are united

Their power is unbounded

Like the virtue of government

That our forebearers founded

 

A Legacy of Fire

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL WARMING

 

Western Wildfires

 

From California throughout the west

We’ve put firefighters to the test

So here’s to all you climate deniers

Your legacy is a trail of fire

 

Massive swaths of land destroyed

Pristine forest and small towns

Villages and country schools

Fields of green are turning brown

 

The land grows dry and brittle

A desperate need for rain

Branches crack and fall to earth

Whole crops of fruit and grain

 

We know we’re in for hard times

We are paying for our past

We acted out of avarice

We knew it could not last

 

We wish we’d done things differently

We catered to deniers

Now we watch our homelands burn

In a legacy of fire