To Kill a Man

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: DEATH PENALTY

To Kill

 

To kill a man in anger

To kill a man for cause

To kill a man for vengeance

To kill a man is wrong

 

I understand the rage

When an injustice is done

But there is no compensation

In picking up a gun

There is no grand salvation

In public execution

Let the hand of justice reign

Let it be firm and strong

But let it be without emotion

For that which soothes today

Tomorrow it may stun

 

To kill someone in anger

To kill someone for cause

To kill someone is wrong

Regardless of the laws

 

There are many who are evil

Who deserve a sudden death

Their crimes are so despicable

They steal away our breath

When justice takes them down

We will not shed a tear

We’ll celebrate the moment

And raise a rowdy cheer

But we will not kill in anger

To prove that we are strong

We will not kill for vengeance

Because killing is wrong

 

Malibu Mourning

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL WARMING

Malibu Mourning

 

Flames rage through Malibu

Home to the rich and famed

Howling winds of Santa Ana

Feed the anger of the flames

 

Run to save your lives

Run and don’t look back

Your homes and your belongings

Slowly fade to black

 

This is a place of beauty

Nature’s best and brightest star

We know you will come back

But we cannot know how far

 

This is only a beginning

Of the tragedies to come

It doesn’t matter where you live

Or where you traveled from

 

The warming comes a rising

Like a wave of thrumming dread

How many homes will vanish?

How many will be dead?

 

The Crusader

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN POLITICS

The Crusader (Pete Hegseth)

 

Those who do not know their history

Are most often condemned to repeat

They very worst of our worst atrocities

The Crusades ended in defeat

 

The Crusaders killed with utter pleasure

Annihilation was their only plan

They led massacres at their leisure

Killing children, woman and man

 

They believed their sword was blessed

Because they wore the Crusader’s cross

All sins forgiven when confessed

They never thought about the cost

 

In innocent lives and human suffering

In generations sworn to hate

All to grasp that illusive ring

To stake claim to their eternal fate

 

Now some would like a new Crusade

For another century of blood

Exchange the bullet for the blade

Watch the stream become a flood

 

(Trump’s choice for Defense Secretary

is a champion of the crusades.)

 

Buying the Presidency

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

 

Buying the Presidency

 

With the blessings of the Court Supreme

That lifted limits on contributions

Elon Musk has bought the White House

Along with all its institutions

(which he may ban from existence)

 

He pumped a fortune into propaganda

Without restrictions on content

He won a seat at the table of power

Now we’ll discovery his intent

(we can be sure it isn’t pretty)

 

Will the president sit him down

And attempt to put him in his place?

We’ll find out about his ego

Will he tell him to his face?

(and what a face it is)

 

I’m the richest man on earth, he’ll say

And I’d hate to tell you twice

If I want rice for dinner

By God, we’re having rice

(he brought his own chef)

 

You may think you have the power

But there’s not much you can do

If you’d like a talk with Vladimir

My office will approve

(and so the story goes)

 

(Musk puts up 750 million to elect Trump)

 

Trying Times

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: UKRAINE

Trying Times

 

“These are the times that try men’s souls…”

 

  -- Thomas Paine, The American Crisis

 

As it was in America circa 1774

So it is today in Ukraine

It is a hard fought and bitter war

Sometimes it seems in vain

But those who stand it now

Through winter’s harshest strain

Deserve the eternal blessings

Of all who love Ukraine

 

We cannot blame the ones who fall

Who can’t endure the pain

For many answer to the call

Before their hopes are slain

Who cannot climb another wall

Though their love will never wane

 

Forgive them for their changing hearts

Their loyalty is plain

The war has broken them apart

We fear it breaks Ukraine

But those who stay the course

Will stand forever tall

The heroes of this dirty war

The love of one and all

 

(Ukrainian soldiers flee the battlefield.)

 

The Fall of Damascus

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: SYRIA

The Fall of Damascus

 

In the absence of opposing power

Damascus will fall

 

Iran is weakened by the Israeli war

Russia cannot answer the call

Their soldiers are preoccupied

Up against a Ukrainian wall

The Islamic State is still alive

Turkey is fighting the Kurds

The rest are divided into disparate tribes

Awaiting the latest word

 

In the absence of an opposing power

The remaining powers thrive

 

What happens next nobody knows

Save that anarchy will reign

A constant struggle only grows

A land of chaos gone insane

The civil war will carry on

Until some party wins

The tyrant of the day is gone

The tyranny begins

 

In the absence of opposing power

The prevailing wind grows strong

 

Democracy in Seoul

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WORLD DEMOCRACY

 

Democracy in Seoul

 

The declaration of martial law

In South Korea has failed

Their parliament reacted swiftly

Democracy has prevailed

 

The people gathered in the streets

As they tried to block the Assembly

But the people’s ministers saved the day

A day that will live in memory

 

The day their republic survived

Their president’s thirst for power

If not for the people’s courage

It would be their darkest hour

 

It is one of so many reminders

How fragile a republic can be

The people must always stand ready

To rise up for the right to be free

 

Some say it could not happen here

Others say it has come to pass

The lesson of Seoul is very clear

One failure could be our last

 

The Hand of Vengeance

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

The Hand of Vengeance

 

Kash Patel is the hand of vengeance

J. Edgar Hoover reincarnate

He will serve at the president’s pleasure

Wo to those who arouse his hate

 

He has sworn to have his vengeance

Against all and every enemy of state

Members of the opposing parties

Journalists for Politico and Slate

 

J. Edgar was an American disgrace

Subversion was within his powers

His enemies vanished without a trace

It was our nation’s darkest hours

 

Patel is cast from the same mold

His reach extends far and wide

His gaze is dark and his hand is cold

He will stand at the president’s side

 

The people must rise to answer back

To safeguard our Bill of Rights

Our republic is coming under attack

We will never give up the fight

 

(Patel to be named FBI Director)

Tears for Syria

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: SYRIA

Tears for Syria

 

There are no good guys in Syria

All the world’s powers are engaged

For every force and philosophy

There is a cause to be enraged

 

The Russians and the Iranians

The Islamists and their jihad

The Israelis and the Americans

From Damascus to Islamabad

 

A civil war in perpetuity

There is no end within our sight

An endless maze of incongruity

A twisted, never-ending fight

 

If there is one good thing about it

It is the draining of resources

The warmongers on all sides

May be running short on forces

 

Syria under its dictatorship

Has become a warlord’s playground

There can be no good solution

A collective failure all around

 

The Streets of Tbilisi

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WORLD DEMOCRACY

The Streets of Tbilisi

 

Three nights of protest on the streets of Tbilisi

A rage against the government that will not quell

Riot police use violent means

Turning the streets into Georgian hell

 

The government caved to Russian interests

After fraud claimed the latest election

Civil servants and ambassadors resigned

A massive representative defection

 

The Georgian people wish to join the union

To move away from the Russian beast

They are waging a war for democracy

They want their meddling to cease

 

The Russians are fighting on a dozen fronts

They are swimming against the tide

They are running short on resources

Lending strength to freedom’s ride

 

The struggle does not end here and now

They will carry it forward forever

If you ask them when they will surrender

They will answer with pride: Never!

 

The Irony

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: MAGA

The Irony

 

The irony of Make America Great Again

Is that they hate America

They hate everything America stands for:

 

Democracy

Rule of law

Institutions of civil society

Peaceful transfer of power

Free and fair elections

The right to vote

The right to protest

The advancement of freedom

A nation of immigrants

To welcome with open arms

No one is above the law

 

You can say they were duped

You can say they knew not…

But this time it was clear as fresh water

This time they absolutely knew

They understood and embraced it

To the principles of the nation

To the founders and defenders

To the keepers of the dream

They delivered a straight message:

F*** you!

 

The Cathedral (Notre Dame)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

The Cathedral

 

She rises from the ashes

All our hearts must overflow

The tears we shed in sorrow

In pure joy we now let go

 

A monument to human grace

At the core of western civilization

A tribute to artistic achievement

At the heart of the French nation

 

She stands now for our resilience

The stubborn loyalty of our race

We refuse to yield to memories

The sacred beauty of this place

 

Notre Dame stands once again

Where she will stand for all time

Beyond the glory of mortal men

Beyond the beauty of all rhyme

 

She is the ultimate of our being

She is the heartbeat of our song

We hear her dancing and singing

And we must dance and sing along

 

(Re: Jean-Louis Georgelin 1948 – 2023)

 

Bombing Beirut

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: ISRAEL AT WAR

Bombing Beirut

 

The eldest of the elders still remember

When Beirut was Paris of the Middle East

Today’s Beirut is a river of tears

 

Once the envy of the world for its

Culture, art and ancient architecture

Now it is a wasteland of ruin

 

Once prominent on the list of destinations

For wealthy tourists from Europe

Today it is a forbidden city

 

Israeli bombs shatter the air in Beirut

For the crime of housing their enemy

 

Israel no longer remembers

The Paris of the Middle East

 

Israel does not remember its beauty

Or its once famed hospitality

 

Israel bombs its enemies into oblivion

History and Beirut be damned

 

Reaching for Gratitude (Thanksgiving)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

Reaching for Gratitude

 

In the overwhelming times

Of dread and disappointment

The relentless days of gray

The dismal nights of longing

The endless drone of mourning

We extend our wanting arms

Our open palms of yearning

The simple grace of gratitude

 

I am grateful for the autumn bloom

Of bright and glowing colors

The oranges of Hieronymus Bosch

The sunsets of Maxfield Parrish

The colors of enlightenment

The forever changing earth

 

I am grateful for the friendships

I have built over the years

The ones who never turn away

Despite the madness or the tears

 

I am grateful for my family

What greater fortune can there be?

The warm embrace of family bonds

The strength of the family tree

 

I am grateful for good tidings

That warm our worried hearts

That single promise of forever

We will never be apart

 

I am grateful for so many things

Far beyond my reach or touch

For all the things that give me hope

I confess it’s all too much

 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Heartless

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: IMMIGRATION

Heartless

 

How do you tell a child

This world no longer wants you?

How do you tell a child

You must leave your home?

 

Millions of mothers and fathers

Aunts, uncles and grandparents

Must now have that conversation

To prepare for the uncertainty

Of the days that lie ahead

 

Juanita, you are not welcome here

Jose, it is time to go

Your friends are not your friends

Your teachers will not protect you

The police are now your enemies

They will take you from your home

They will place you in a cage

They will make you feel alone

Your family is your only refuge

There is no one else

It is time to go

 

Yesterday is yesterday

Say goodbye to all you know

All that was is no longer

What remains is a lonely road

 

The Chinese Hack

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: CHINA

The Hack

 

A weapon of war or the men in black?

A declaration of warlike intent?

Beyond all doubt the Chinese hack

Reveals a heart and motive bent

 

The Chinese have been our friends

In business and in trade

On them the corporate world depends

The nation’s workers we betrayed

 

In Xi Jinping we placed our trust

Now we’d like to take it back

Our good relations will go bust

In respect for the Chinese hack

 

China clearly wants to reign

Far beyond the Asiatic sphere

This hack will leave a lasting stain

That all the western world should fear

 

The global balance has gone wrong

The global train is off the tracks

We curse the powerful and strong

Strike back at the Chinese hack

 

Tulsi Gabbard

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN POLITICS

Tulsi (Fox in the Henhouse)

 

The fox is guarding the henhouse

The hens are running scared

The cat has cornered the mouse

Betray her if you dare

 

She is on Putin’s payroll

We’ve long known it is so

She delivers Russian talking points

On all the rightwing shows

 

Now Tulsi holds the keys

To all our secrets and our plans

Our weapons and our strategies

And where we’ll make a stand

 

If that doesn’t give you pause

You’ve lost all sense of reason

What she will do despite our laws

Will tempt a charge of treason

 

I do hope that I am wrong

But I fear that I am right

She will sing a Russian song

And she will fight the Russian fight

 

(Tulsi Gabbard announced as

Trumps choice for Director of

National Intelligence.)