Saving Social Security

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN POLITICS

 

Saving Social Security

 

The solutions to the problem of the

Social Security fund

The fund that ensures retirement

For each and everyone

Is not as complicated as politicians say

Just make a simple adjustment

To how much the wealthy pay

 

Extend collections upward

Adjust the payments down

Overnight the fund is solvent

And placed on solid ground

Make it a moving standard

Proportionate to the facts

We’ll call it by a simple name

The Saving Social Security Act

 

The elder folks should never be

Abandoned by the nation

From sea to glorious sea

Let’s offer up salvation

A fund that’s always guaranteed

That never will expire

A simple and eternal seed

When we grow old and retire

 

Police State

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AUTHORITARIANISM

 

Police State

 

Crime in the district is down

Don’t let the facts get in the way

The Guard is coming to town

It’s law and order day

 

The district is not the first

They’ll be coming back to LA

From there it only gets worse

They’re coming to town to stay

 

There’ll be no more demonstrations

No more protests of any kind

Welcome to the police nation

Want a job? Get in line

 

They’ll have your number and your name

They’ll know exactly what you’re up to

The dirty immigrants are to blame

Put em all in an immigrant zoo

 

Your freedoms and your rights?

Just how much do they mean?

The dimming of the light

Among the worst we’ve ever seen

 

True History (revisited)

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: TRUE HISTORY

 

True History (revisited)

 

Let’s replace true history

With a tale of American heroism

There isn’t any mystery

But a lot of phony mysticism

 

There were no civilized tribes

When the explorers crossed the sea

There never was a genocide

We let the natives be

 

The Africans were valued guests

They were never made to serve

Their lives were comforting and blessed

They got what they deserved

 

The internment of the Japanese

Was meant to keep them safe

Most of them were very pleased

They learned to know their place

 

Civil Rights came and went

But nothing really changed

All our rights were heaven sent

The protests are deranged

 

America is always right

We’ve never lost a war

We are the keepers of the light

We always lift the poor

 

(Trump orders a reorganization of

the Smithsonian to reflect his image

of American greatness.)

 

Immigration Man

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: IMMIGRATION

 

Immigration Man

 

Have you seen that immigration man?

Have you seen that immigration man?

Have you seen that immigration man?

I’ve been hearing his name all over this land

 

Looks just like a military man

Looks just like a military man

Looks just like a military man

Baton and rifle in his hands

 

Round em up and carry them away

Round em up and carry them away

Round em up and carry them away

Got no money? You ain’t got no say

 

Family man, wife and kids at home

Family man, wife and kids at home

Family man, wife and kids at home

Run and hide, forever you will roam

 

Farmer says they’ve got a job to do

Farmer says they’ve got a job to do

Farmer says they’ve got a job to do

The man says, we’ll take em when they’re through

 

Have you seen that immigration man?

Have you seen that immigration man?

Have you seen that immigration man?

I’ve been hearing his name all over this land

 

(after Woody Guthrie’s Vigilante Man)

 

The Fate of Ukraine

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: UKRAINE

 

The Fate of Ukraine

 

Ukraine is a sovereign state

In whole or in part?

Subject to negotiations

That long forgotten art

 

Zelensky may not attend

Discussions of his country’s fate

Europe’s promise to defend

Ukraine may come too late

 

Trump and Putin will decide

The nature of this “compromise”

They think Zelensky must abide

Despite the fact that Putin lies

 

Will we reward his war crimes?

His brazen act of aggression?

If we give him what he wants this time

What then will be the lesson?

 

That power trumps the force of law

That nations can be occupied

That everything we know is flawed

That decency can be defied

 

Do not allow this travesty

This outrageous abomination

For that would be a tragedy

Akin to subjugation

 

Legitimizing the Occupation

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: ISRAEL

 

Legitimizing the Occupation

 

The Israelis stand alone

They wish to own the Gaza Strip

The bitterness has only grown

Netanyahu’s lost his grip

 

Can you legitimize an occupation?

By force and strength of arms?

If Israel is a criminal nation

The world should be alarmed

 

The genocide will never end

If Netanyahu has his way

These actions he cannot defend

His path has gone astray

 

Good people of the Israeli nation

Stand up to this abuse

This is his reckless abomination

He does not stand for you

 

You are one step from condemnation

One step away from scorn

Rise up with righteous indignation

Or curse the day you were born

 

 

Don't Feed the Beast

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: EPSTEIN FILES

 

Feed the Beast

 

When the monster is approaching

When he’s knocking at your door

Refuse to let him in

Unless you know what for

 

The monster always wears a mask

You will never see his face

If you should meet him do not ask

He is always out of place

 

She is a dirty cheater

She never plays it fair

If you should ever greet her

She’ll catch you in her lair

 

They will take what you most treasure

They will roast you for a feast

They’ll consume you at their leisure

Do not feed the beast

 

The beast is waiting for you

He’s knocking at your door

She’ll whisper she adores you

It’s then you’ll hear the roar

 

(re: Epstein and Maxwell)

 

The Ghost of Sitting Bull

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: TRUE HISTORY

 

The Ghost of Sitting Bull

 

We do not see his face

We do not hear his cry

But in this time and place *

His spirit never died

 

Sitting Bull was fierce in battle

Soft spoken in repose

He led the bison, not the cattle

He left behind his ghost

 

These days we have no chiefs

As bold and true as him

He held strong to his beliefs

His light will never dim

 

His spirit lives today

In the people who remember

He led his tribe the Lakota way

Sustained the dying ember

 

That ember turns to flame

A flame that always burns

His courage was his fame

From him we all can learn

 

* The sacred Black Hills

 

Neverending Tragedy

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL WARMING

 

Neverending Tragedy

 

The flood of the Guadalupe

Was the beginning of a tragedy

After so many needless deaths

The response is a travesty

 

They’re still waiting for a hand

And they’ve waited long enough

FEMA said: We understand

The state of Texas said: Tough!

 

When the cameras went away

The politicians did the same

Leaving no one there to say

What happened here is a shame

 

The Feds will blame the state

The state will blame the Feds

Meantime the people wait

An act of God someone said

 

But God did not fail

To heed the ample warnings

And God did not rail:

There’s no such thing as global warming!

 

 

Preparations

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: CATASTROPHES

 

Preparations

 

A threat to all of humankind

Duck and cover under desks

Let’s pretend we’re deaf and blind

What has created such a mess?

Have you ever wondered why?

Our preparations are in jest

Out of sight and out of mind

Let us hope it turns out best

Everything will be fine

Maybe – more or less

 

The storms are growing ever stronger

The wrath is ever greater

Hurricane season is even longer

And autumn is even later

The future is looking dark and grim

Shadows falling everywhere

Our chances growing very slim

Yet we are not prepared

The light is growing dim

Stand up if your care

 

We search for something better than

The path that we’ve been walking

A better way to understand

The measures we’ve been blocking

The time is now to get prepared

Disasters will not end

Ignore the pattern if you dare

It’s just around the bend

Here, there and everywhere

It soon could be the end

 

Moving toward Peace

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GAZA

 

Moving toward Peace

 

The League of Arabian Nations

Has moved the ball toward peace

Condemning Hamas and October 7

Instead of attacking the Israeli beast

 

The UN has recognized Palestine

As an independent sovereign nation

Along with Canada, France and Turkey

We demand an end to subjugation

 

The Arab League made their demand

That Hamas lay down its arms

In exchange they demand the Israelis

Should cease and do no more harm

 

It is time that genocide finally end

This vengeance has gone on too long

On all nations we must depend

To right this horrific wrong

 

We ask the good people of Israel

To demand an end to the war

To your leaders we beg your appeal:

Let the genocide be no more

 

 

Global Warming Blues

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: CLIMATE CHANGE

 

Global Warming Blues

 

A great wave of sweltering heat

From Boston down to Baton Rouge

Pounding people to the beat

Of the global warming blues

 

We knew it was coming down

We’ve seen this heat before

The coil’s come unwound

We fear what lies in store

 

Old folks in their old folks homes

Will suffer most of all

Except for those who live alone

They’re up against the wall

 

But everyone will feel the pain

When the power grid is lost

And all involved will feel the strain

When it’s time to pay the cost

 

You’ve heard from the talking heads

You’ve seen it on the news

You’re shaken and you feel the dread

Of the global warming blues

 

The Final Hour

RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: DEMOCRACY

 

The Final Hour

 

Freedom is no longer free

The brutes have come to power

We have entered our last plea

It is nearing the final hour

 

We thought we could fight the machine

With the weapons that words provide us

The machine doesn’t know what it means

We’re desperate for someone to guide us

 

Justice is no longer just

Decency was devoured

We’ve lost all sense of trust

We’re approaching the final hour

 

We believed the good would prevail

By the strength of our institutions

The four pillars would never fail

We would push for better solutions

 

But freedom is no longer free

And justice belongs to power

We swore that this could never be

We’re nearing the final hour

 

Yet there is time to make amends

There is time to forge another path

Before the road of history bends

Before the despot’s wrath

 

The Epstein Files

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: TRUMP

 

The Epstein Files

 

Livid are the MAGA folks

Near exploding with rage

They didn’t get the joke

They’re certain it was staged

 

The didn’t see the humor

They didn’t even smile

Like waiting for the rapture

They’ll have to wait a while

 

They were promised revelation

Transparency and more

An Epstein file sensation

Open up the iron doors

 

The pedophiles were trembling

With fear and trepidation

The ranks were disassembling

The depths of deprivation

 

But when the files were opened

Surprise! There’s nothing there

The world’s most powerful men

Would never be laid bare

 

MAHA

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: TRUMP

 

MAHA

 

You divide us by our shades

You make enemies of our friends

You make innocents afraid

Some wounds will never mend

 

You attack our institutions

Freedom of the press

It’s clear you’ve no solutions

You just create a mess

 

You didn’t end the wars

You only made things worse

We don’t know what’s in store

The global warming curse

 

So now you’re in a daze

Striking out in all directions

The issues that you raise

Are like a strange infection

 

It just won’t go away

That Epstein thing is growing

There’s nothing you can say

Without the people knowing

 

Make America Great Again?

I don’t think you’re being fair

It’s Make America Hate Again

Does anyone still care?

 

 

Starvation in Gaza

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GAZA

 

Starvation in Gaza

 

Remember the Holocaust

Remember the concentration camps

Remember Auschwitz and Buchenwald

Remember Dachau and Langenstein

Remember the images of starvation

Skin devoid of flesh covering skeletons

Gaunt faces stripped of hope

Eyes pleading for relief

A portrait of inhumanity to man

An exploration of the lowest depths

Depravity and desperation

 

Remember the perpetrators

Remember the solemn promise

Never again, never again

 

Now look to Gaza

Familiar images on darker skin

Hopelessness and desperation

Living skeletons and bodies devoid of flesh

 

The victims become the perpetrators

And the cry becomes the accusation

The condemnation, the curse

Never again, never again