Sunday, February 21, 2021

Support Journalism (On Tyranny)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: ON TYRANNY


Support Journalism

 

Reporters are nearly obsolete

Journalists are a vanishing breed

To encourage truth and wisdom

Buy a newspaper plant a seed

 

Information is everywhere

But all sources are not the same

Many are merely propaganda rags

Misinformation is their game

 

We should investigate every story

We need to verify the facts

If we’re to be informed citizens

It’s not enough to just react

 

The internet is but a conduit

A simple means of communication

By feeding you what you would be fed

It creates a sphere of isolation

 

Support your local journalists

Support the journalistic creed

The truth may not serve our wants

But it may be what we need

 

Saturday, February 20, 2021

The Grudge (Texas)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: CLIMATE CHANGE


The Grudge

 

For as long as memory holds

I have held a grudge against

The great state of Texas

The state that gave us George Dubya Bush

And the never-ending wars

The state that gave us Enron

As its energy consortiums skimmed

Billions upon billions from California

Oregon and Washington

 

I have held a grudge against Texas

For holding back progress

For mass incarceration

For climate change denial

For immigration hypocrisy

For corporate corruption

For institutional inequality

For a cowboy mentality

 

I have held a grudge against Texas

For Lee Harvey Oswald

The book depository

And the infamous grassy knoll

(who could ever forget

the grassy knoll?)

 

I held onto that grudge a long time

Before I realized

The grudge was holding onto me

Before I understood

People are pretty much the same

Texans are not to blame

So much as greed

And hatred

And envy

And the need for revenge

The need to be better than

Foolish Texas pride

(not so different than California’s)

It’s the way we were raised

What we learned in school

What our parents handed down

Along with family photos

Stories and fairy tales

 

We were taught the ways of war

Of us versus them

Of good against bad

Of north against south

Of east against west

Red against blue

And black against white

But somewhere along the way

We picked up empathy

When the quake hit LA

It shook us all

When Paradise went up in flames

We all cried

When tornadoes ripped across

The Oklahoma plains

We shared the horror

When Katrina struck New Orleans

We all suffered

When the towers fell

We all mourned

 

Now Texas feels the blow

Of a relentless winter storm

And Texas is not alone

We must all carry the burden

We are Americans

We are humans

We are inhabitants of a small planet

We are one

 

Friday, February 19, 2021

The Emirates on Mars

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR


Emirates on Mars

 

There are hogs in high heaven

Butterflies in the stars

Beauty is wearing a mask

And the Emirates landed on Mars

 

Few knew they had an interest

In exploring the world from afar

But they have an abundance of money

So they used it to land on Mars

 

What more will the Emirates do

Mass produce a green energy car

Attack poverty and ban slave labor

Promote poetry enlightenment art

 

Whatever the future may promise

Lightning is caught in a jar

Possibilities have no limits when

The Emirates have landed on Mars

 

Wednesday, February 17, 2021

Floating Thoughts

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR

 

Floating Thoughts

 

Dark clouds in the northern sky

Clear skies overhead

Today we begin a new life

Another chapter to be read

 

We know not what the future holds

Be it promise or demise

We take what destiny unfolds

Revealed by our own two eyes

 

If past is prelude to the days ahead

Great hardship we will endure

Tears of sadness will be shed

Loss and mourning are assured

 

But days of wonder will also bless

Our lives with awesome bliss

The young at heart we will invest

And happiness we will enlist

 


Monday, February 15, 2021

Survival

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: CORONAVIRUS SERIES


Survival

 

Comes a time in history

When we lay it on the line

Hear the dominoes falling

Testing faith and stealing lives

It’s a battle for existence

It’s a struggle to survive

 

Another wave is coming

The vaccines in short supply

As our resistance grows weaker

The mutations seem to thrive

The rally cry goes out to all

Fight back be brave

We will survive

 

Time is running forward

Time to listen to the wise

It’s an existential crisis

The great challenge has arrived

If we accept the call to action

If we act to save our lives

Stay strong hold steady

We will survive

 

Sunday, February 14, 2021

Prisoner of Politics (Alexi Navalny)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WORLD DEMOCRACY


Prisoner of Politics (Alexi Navalny)

 

Charged tried and convicted

Of daring to survive assassination

Charged tried and convicted

Of returning home to speak out

Charged tried and convicted

Of leading a movement for change

 

Suppression of dissent is not new

In Moscow or across the globe

What is new is the rising

Moscow Vladivostok and St. Petersburg

The rising of the people in protest

The rising in freezing weather

The rising against all odds

The rising against brutality

The rising against the lie

 

They cry out in unison: Let him go!

We cry out in return: Let him go!

 

The dictator should know better

You can imprison a man

But you cannot imprison an idea

You cannot lock away

The desire for freedom and truth

Self-expression and self-government

You cannot imprison a nation

 

You can poison a man

But you cannot kill a cause

Born in the heart of humanity

Saturday, February 13, 2021

Behind Razor Wire

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: IMMIGRATION


Behind Razor Wire

 

They come from Nicaragua

From Bolivia and Columbia

Individuals and families seeking

Asylum in the home of the free

How different are they

From you and me?

 

They’re not asking for a free pass

They are asking for a fair hearing

They don’t want a handout

They want a chance to realize

Just a small piece of the

American dream

 

They live behind fences

Lined with razor wire

They subsist in tents

Through all kinds of weather

Waiting for their turn

To cross the border and

Make their case

 

They have lived for years

Under these conditions

They could give up and go home

But they choose to stay

Because living in tents behind

Razor wire is better than going home

To face gangs and oppressors

They only want a decent life

They only want to breathe free

Are they really so different

From you and me?

 

As conditions grow worse

As the criminals and gangs invade

Making camp life hell

Stealing and kidnapping

Bribing and raping

Some do return home

To seek refuge there

Others hire smugglers and coyotes

With what little they can gather

Gambling on a prayer

Ending up in trucks and vans

Desperate and abandoned

On the barren desert land

They do what they can

For themselves and for their families

Are they really so different

From you and me?

 

Friday, February 12, 2021

Beyond Redemption

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: THE INSURRECTION

 

Beyond Redemption

 

Again and again we are told

Not everyone who stormed the capitol

That fateful infamous day

Was guilty of insurrection

Guilty of racial bigotry

Guilty of violent extremism

Guilty of battering police officers

Guilty of murder in their hearts

Or guilty of murder in the flesh

 

Some were simply exercising

Their constitutional rights

To gather in public protest

To speak their points of view

To make their rightful demands

Some were peaceful

Some were not racist

Some were acting on conviction

Some believed the hype

 

Maybe …

 

Maybe some began that day

On the side of misinformed virtue

But if you were among them

When the racial epithets flew

When officers hit the ground

When the mob screamed for blood

When the gallows was erected

When the cry for vengeance grew

 

If you were there then

To witness what went down

And you did not turn around

Then you are as guilty as any thug

Guilty of crimes beyond forgiveness

Guilty beyond redemption

 


Thursday, February 11, 2021

The Trial (Inciting an Insurrection)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY


The Trial

 

We have been here before

An open and shut case

The man is guilty as hell

As plain as the nose on your face

 

Never before in history

Has a president been so brazen

To attack the heart of government

Is as warped as it is craven

 

Months in the planning

There can be no doubt

The mob was primed to kill

To force Joe Biden out

 

Do not think lightly

Of what happened January 6

It was a plotted insurrection

Not some cheap political trick

 

If you think it’s all over

That it can’t occur again

The militias are still out there

And they believe they can win

 

Wednesday, February 10, 2021

History Aforethought

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR:  AMERICAN DEMOCRACY


History Aforethought

 

If you could see these events

Through the telescope of time

A century removed from now

When the passion has long subsided

When the partisan divide is tempered

When we’ve healed the great divide

Would we see things differently

Would we alter our actions

Would we take another look

 

If we could read history’s verdict

Would we see the great betrayal

With new and open eyes

 

If we could hear history’s decree

Would it alter our perspective

If Benedict Arnold knew he would

Live in eternal infamy

If Jefferson knew he would not be

Forgiven his crimes and misdeeds

If Sirhan and Oswald knew

They were being played for fools

If the Germans knew how it ended

If the South knew would they defend it

Would they sacrifice all dignity and pride

If they knew they were on the losing side

 

Would things be different today

Or would we just continue on

This march of shame

 

Monday, February 08, 2021

Support Democratic Institutions (On Tyranny)

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: ON TYRANNY

 

Support Institutions (Take a Stand)

 

So many things we take for granted

Before they tremble and fall

So many things we hardly notice

Until we make the call

And find no one home

It is then we are alone

And vulnerable

 

Institutions of justice

Institutions of law

Institutions of government

A free press and news media

Election officials

A civil society

 

Institutions do not support themselves

They cannot survive without the care

Of the people they serve

 

When the law is belittled

Take a stand

When the press is condemned

Take a stand

When a man claims to be above the law

Condemn the lie

When the ballot box comes under attack

Fight back

 

Institutions exist to protect democracy

It is our solemn duty to protect them

Even at the cost of our safety

Even at the cost of our lives

 

(See Timothy Snyder, On Tyranny)

 


Sunday, February 07, 2021

Vetting the Guard (On Tyranny)

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: ON TYRANNY

 

Vetting the Guard

 

To don a uniform of the state

To wear a badge

To carry a gun in the line of duty

These are honors

That require responsibility

 

Insurrection and oppression

Have never achieved success

Without the acquiescence

Of the police or military forces

 

The price of service must include

A thorough vetting to assure

Loyalty to justice and democracy

The institutions of government

 

Those who carry deadly force

Must be beyond reproach

Of sound judgement and character

Free of prejudice and hate

 

We know it is a dangerous job

It extracts a heavy toll

Those who serve faithfully

We thank from the depths of soul

 


Saturday, February 06, 2021

Military Coup (Myanmar)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS


Military Coup (Myanmar)

 

Beware military strongmen

Who claim to know what’s right

Nine times out of ten

The people lose this fight

 

The cornerstone of the republic

Is a peaceful transfer of power

When the military takes over

Our prospects become dour

 

There are many would be kings

It seems a basic human flaw

But if we want to maintain freedom

We need the rule of law

 

Do not sacrifice your rights

To any power hungry thieves

For when we make that woeful choice

We will perpetually grieve

 

Friday, February 05, 2021

Vaccination Free

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR:  CORONAVIRUS SERIES


Vaccination Free

 

Who knows what the future holds

But for now I’m vaccination free

Two weeks for full effect

It is an astonishing thing to see

 

They say some react poorly

I do hope that isn’t me

For it’s a miracle of science

A gift of life to the elderly

 

Now I wait for two more doses

To protect my loving wife

The day cannot come too soon

To resume a normal life

 

So let it be and let us prosper

Get your second shot today

To overcome the deadly virus

There is no other way

Thursday, February 04, 2021

Objective Truth (On Tyranny)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: ON TYRANNY


Objective Truth

 

“Post truth is pre fascism.” – Timothy Snyder *

 

In the absence of objective truth

We reside in a world of fantasy

We imagine what we want to be

And invent our own reality

 

In the absence of objective truth

We are islands in an endless sea

Without connection to our fellow beings

All alone without friends or family

 

If we accept objective truth

We find a basis to communicate

Objective facts and causal reasons

Things we can substantiate

 

If we are free to fantasize

About the present and the past

Then we will talk and never listen

And our connections will not last

 

* From On Tyranny (Tim Duggan Books)