Data Farms

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

 

Data Farms (AI)

 

They take more than they return

With their massive data thirst

The raw energy that it burns

Could hardly get much worse

 

Its intelligence would tell you

It’s the worst thing we could do

These greedy companies sell you

A promise that is not true

 

The consumption of so much force

Without any objective use

Is plotting out a course

That will shake foundations loose

 

Don’t you see where this is going?

This obsession with AI

Its consumption ever growing

Will soon absorb the sky

 

In the end they’ll all agree

That these monolith machines

Serve no fundamental need

To keep this planet clean

 

For they do not need clean air

Dirty water keeps them cool

Why would they even care?

They will play us all for fools

 

Preparing for War

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

 

Preparing for War

 

As American warships converge on Caracas

It seems clear we’re preparing for war

We accuse Maduro of heading a cartel

But we sound like the mouse that roared

 

That Maduro is not a virtuous man

Is a report that is hardly surprising

That we want to upend him as our plan

Is assured by the latest uprisings

 

The collapse of the nation that Chavez built

Creates a climate of grim desperation

But there is no proof of Maduro’s guilt

In the transfer of drugs through his nation

 

Our president too is in desperate need

His popularity is in deep decline

For a man motivated by power and greed

A new war against drugs falls in line

 

So if they put our troops on Venezuelan soil

We should all demand to know why

We may want to control Venezuelan oil

But the drug link is an obvious lie

 

Balance of Powers

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL POLITICS

 

Balance of Powers

 

Russia is an imperialist nation

The United States* should know

We’ve tried our hand at occupation

We wanted our empire to grow

 

We tried to conquer Afghanistan

After the Soviets came up short

We tried to conquer Vietnam

To make Saigon an American fort

 

We tried to subjugate Iraq

In the false name of democracy

Forced to give their country back

And admit our own hypocrisy

 

I truly hope we’ve changed our ways

But no one can be sure

When we invade we tend to stay

Our motives aren’t quite pure

 

Now Putin wants his empire

He wants Georgia and Ukraine

He’d rather set it all on fire

Than admit it’s all in vain

 

The world is balanced between powers

Russia, China and the western states

As we near the final reckoning hour

We must place our trust in fate

 

* United States of America

 

Monsoon

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: GLOBAL WARMING

 

Monsoon

 

Floods have taken hundreds of lives

In the Kashmir region of Pakistan

In a place that tests your will to survive

A harsh and unforgiving land

 

The floods trigger the landslides

A torrent of flowing mud

A river of death far and wide

A consequence of the flood

 

The monsoons visit every year

The people take it in stride

Bury the dead and shed their tears

Rebuild and stand with pride

 

Each year the rain grows stronger

Each year they bury more

The monsoon season is longer

The flashflood waters roar

 

This too is global climate change

And yet we hear no warning

It seems the earth is now estranged

In the years of the great warming

 

Fighting Fire with Fire

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

 

Fighting Fire

 

Texas started this fight

Will we turn the other cheek?

Knowing well it is not right

The fierce against the meek

 

Let’s be very clear

They are devaluing the vote

They very last thing you will hear

Is the sinking of the boat

 

They want to steal the next election

With their gerrymandering plan

They are spreading this infection

Hoping you won’t understand

 

Our democracy is at stake

If we fail to take a stand

Stop the steal, slam the brakes

Send a message across the land

 

You fight this fire with fire

That’s the only way it works

Our republic’s not for hire

To these power-hungry jerks

 

 

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