White Flag

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: ISRAEL AT WAR

White Flag

 

Black Kettle camped under a flag of peace

Where the white man told him to

At Big Sandy Creek

 

Few warriors remained at his camp

Of mostly Cheyenne and Arapaho

Old men, women and children

 

Colonel Chivington and his Colorado

Volunteers attacked at daybreak

Slaughtering people like cattle

Taking scalps and body parts

To commemorate the carnage

 

The volunteers were hailed as heroes

Until the true story was told

Black Kettle survived

 

Four years later almost to the day

A cold day November 1868

The Washita River Massacre

Completed his tragic fate

Killed by Colonel Custer

Under a white flag of peace

 

Eight years later Custer’s

Story was also complete

When he and his Seventh Cavalry

Were slaughtered in defeat

 

The white flag has no meaning

To those with murder in their hearts

As long as leaders have no honor

They will rip this world apart

 

(Note: Israeli soldiers mistakenly kill

three Israeli hostages carrying a white

flag.)

The Golden Rooster

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

The Golden Rooster

 

She rises above the Paris skyline

Gazing off into an endless plain

The seed of western civilization

The heart of artistic reign

The golden rooster stands again

 

We do not worship her demeanor

Her golden sphere we do not praise

We look to her for strength and courage

We praise her for her boundless gaze

 

She is the golden rooster of France

An eternal symbol of resurgence

When she rises all will dance

And all of France will be emergent

 

I remember when my heart was whole

The day before the spire fell

I remember all the people crying

The endless chiming of the bells

They thought the golden rooster lost

Never would our dreams be well

Our footing on the earth was tossed

All our heavens turned to hell

 

But she is risen once again

The spirit of the world revived

Buried in the ash of men

The grand lady is still alive

 

Peace in Our Time

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WAR & PEACE

Peace in Our Time

 

The community of man

(the generic man, man without gender)

has never been at peace

We have had periods of calm when

enemies have put down their arms

but soon they pick them up again

 

Humanity exists in a state of perpetual war

The same emotions that inspire works

of magnificent art and architecture

The same desires that give birth to

eternal literature and sculpture

Monuments to human dignity

Also give us conflict, rage and vengeance

 

The human animal can only find peace

when he and she and people of all colors,

shapes and measures find a way to

contain our dark emotions

 

The human animal can never be at peace

with others until he and she and people

of all stripes, beliefs and religions are

at last at peace with ourselves

 

People of Israel put down your arms

People of Russia refuse to fight

People of all nations let us find a way

to love each other as we love ourselves

Let us find a path to peace in our time

 

Dictator Lite

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

Dictator Lite

 

Tell the people out there

You don’t want to be a dictator.

I do! I do! But only for a day!

Build the wall! Drill baby drill!

 

Tell the people you’ll try to be fair.

I will. I will. But don’t get in my way!

Finish the wall! Chill baby chill!

 

Are you in your right mind?

I am. I am. But not to stay!

If I have the power there’s a price to pay!

They tell me that’s ridiculous

That it doesn’t work that way

But I’m saying it does

Dictator for a day!

Drill baby drill! Would you like to play?

 

I can turn it off and I can turn it on!

If you’re not with the ticket, baby,

Get lost! You’re gone!

I’ll be your worst nightmare!

I’ll be tough and strong!

You’ve gotta love it baby

Or you don’t belong!

Into Oblivion

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL WARMING

Into Oblivion

 

If we pretend it is not there

It does not disappear

If we wish it away

In a fit of good cheer

It will not hide in darkness

As the shadows draw near

 

We are walking into oblivion

Ears covered, eyes turned away

We are dreaming into oblivion

With little or nothing to say

 

As our oceans continue to rise

As our storms devour the land

As our flames fill up the sky

As our leaders drum up the band

As our people continue to die

We pretend we don’t understand

We configure our alibis

Bury our heads in the sand

 

We are racing into oblivion

Like a spaceship drawn to the sun

We are drifting into oblivion

Like a soldier in need of a gun

 

Viva Milei!

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WORLD DEMOCRACY

Viva Milei!

 

The world at war in this century

A battle of good versus evil

Imperial conquest has been reborn

Though it seems almost primeval

 

Viva Milei of Argentina!

A win for the forces of good

If only all nations found the courage

To act as a nation should

 

Elections are the new battleground

From Europe to Latin America

Russia and China are setting it down

In a wave of relentless hysteria

 

Milei stood up for freedom

From the forces of corruption

To welcome the gift of a tyrant

Is like summoning an eruption

 

Fight back like Javier Milei!

Fight back to save our peace!

Fight back from north to south!

Fight back from west to east!

 

Freedom

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

Freedom

 

There are two kinds of freedom

Freedom from and freedom to

Freedom from oppression and restraint

Freedom to say, think and do

What you would do if you were free

Freedom is not the same to you

As freedom is to me

 

Some people do not need freedom

Others should not possess it

 

No one should have the freedom

To impose their wills on others

Every woman should have the freedom

To be a loving mother

No one should possess the freedoms

To torture, rob and kill

Everyone should be free

To sit peacefully and still

 

One person’s freedom is another’s curse

It often depends on who gets there first

 

Sunset in America

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

Sunset in America

 

Pledge loyalty to the tyrant

Bow down before the king

Farewell to our republic

What horrors he will bring

 

We had a choice to take him down

He gave a dozen warnings

Can you hear the trumpet sound?

Our great nation is in mourning

 

It is sunset in America

The light has gone away

Lady Liberty is dead and gone

We bow our heads and pray

 

Will we ever have a chance

To undo what we have done?

If the tyrant has his way

We will live under the gun

 

Will you bow down to the king?

Will you sing his endless praise?

When he demands your loyalty

Will you bow or will you raise?

 

Resistance

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: DEMOCRACY

Resistance

 

When the Nazis took over France

Some yielded, some fought back in vain

Others would form a resistance

That colored the Nazis in shame

 

When our time comes to resist

They will never know our names

We’ll be hiding in the shadows

We’ll be causing the enemy pain

 

It will be our solemn duty

To resist at every turn

When they try to put out the fire

We’ll say, Burn baby, burn!

 

Let us hope that day never comes

But if it does let’s be prepared

Let it not be said of our generation

That when it came nobody cared

 

Do not pretend it cannot happen

It can if we turn our backs

If the people rise and awaken

This train can get back on track

 

Sacrificing Ukraine

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: UKRAINE

Sacrificing Ukraine

 

Have we lost our sense of honor?

It is an old refrain

America soon forgets her word

Will we sacrifice Ukraine?

 

Have we lost hold of our foundation?

Our fundamental core

The world’s defender of democracy

Is it worth fighting for?

 

Have we become what we opposed?

The silence of the night

What was dull now is golden

We’re no longer in the fight

 

We gave our solemn word

We made it clear and plain

We will stand with our allies

We will not sacrifice Ukraine

 

What becomes of world democracy

Do we buckle under strain?

What more will we sacrifice

If we sacrifice Ukraine?

 

Destroyer of Democracy

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

Destroyer of Democracy *

 

Destroyer of democracy thy name is Trump

Like a junkyard dog that lives in a dump

You bark at everyone you see

You tell yourself they’re just like me

 

You look in the mirror and call out Scum!

You see yourself in every bum

You saw the news and said It’s true!

But that’s not something I would do

It must be someone else instead

Let’s turn the whole thing on its head

 

I am the King of all I see!

And that includes democracy!

I’m not the man they say I am

And if I am who gives a damn!

 

* Trump calls out Biden

 

The Hooligan Riot (Dublin)

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WORLD DEMOCRACY

The Hooligan Riot

 

They came together in Dublin

The hooligan fringe of the right

O’Grady, O’Reilly and Finnegan

They were bursting to start a fight

 

So they used the attack of a madman

To run up the flag of hate

They fueled a riot with mayhem

The facts came out far too late

 

They burned what they could not bash

They bashed what they could not burn

As the flames turned slowly to ash

There were lessons for Dublin to learn

 

You are not immune to the madness

That is driving all of Europe insane

With a hatred that all should detest

And a willingness to inflict pain

 

It is time to strengthen the walls

That protect institutions of state

For a democracy may well fall

If our fears become too great

 

War Crimes in Africa

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: WAR CRIMES

War Crimes in Africa

 

Burkina Faso is under a curse

Islamic warriors press their cause

They murder, burn and worse

Without regard for humane laws

 

Two million people are displaced

Thousands have been killed

A smile of glory on their face

An interpretation of god’s will

 

Their god must be a god of rage

A god without compassion

A god at home in another age

When cruelty was in fashion

 

There is no place for holy wars

In a world of modern nations

Reserve jihad for ancient lore

And pray for your salvation

 

Tears for Henry

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

Tears for Henry

 

The man who toppled Salvador Allende

The man who championed dictatorship

The man who won a Nobel Peace Prize

For carpet bombing Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam

The man who never saw a strongman he didn’t love

The man who held Nixon’s hand through

The sorry days of Watergate

The man who said we should never let an election

Stand in the way of our interests

The man who was in love with power

The man who tried to forge an empire

 

He died today at the round age of one hundred

One wonders if he negotiated a deal with the reaper

How many lives for one old man?

Shall we shed a tear for Henry?

How many tears did he shed for Chile?

How many for Argentina?

How many tears for Southeast Asia?

How many for the innocents lost?

 

I am sorry for his family

I’m sorry for those who loved him

I’m sorry for those who fell to his diplomatic sword

But I have no tears for Henry

He was and always will be a war criminal

A man without a heart