The voices won’t
Leave him alone,
Abiding insecurity
Gnaws at his being.
It’s entirely possible
In his mind that someone
Will burst through the door
At any moment.
They’ll steal his things,
Desecrate his domain,
Leave him penniless,
Vulnerable, destitute.
It’s always that way
With freeloaders,
They take what they want
And hurt good people.
He vows to do everything
Possible so that those
Leeches don’t get anything
That’s rightfully his.
Stay out of our
Business, we don’t
Like meddlers.
We take care of
Ourselves out here,
Don’t need your help.
Self-reliance is
Our way of life,
We make our own fortunes.
The dust covers everything,
A gritty blanket of
Dream-erasing misery.
Fervent independence
Falls by the wayside
As fields wither, lives unravel.
Urgent calls
For government help
Arise in chorus.
The plutocrats’ envoy
Sits comfortably across from the
Predictably deferential journalist,
Smugly spouting platitudes about
Fairness and an even playing field.
Carefully scripted deceptions
Disguise dark ulterior motives.
From his lounge chair,
He nods approvingly,
You tell those lame media jerks.
Around him the infrastructure crumbles,
He recently lost his job,
Gas prices sky high,
Feeding the beast.
It’s a frigid day
In Antarctica and
In the hearts of
Five pompous penguins appointed
To make lofty decisions.
Deferring to a small group
Of the fattest birds,
They cackle self-righteously
While funneling sustenance
To the select few.
Their benefactors
Squawk knowingly and
Slip them a few extra fish
While multitudes
Starve on the shore.
So easy to discard,
An afterthought
Requiring no careful
Consideration.
Reduce worth,
Render insignificant,
Nothing but a haplessly
Toiling number.
Remove any vestiges of
Humanity,
Disconnect,
Abandon.
Where are your papers?
Show me your identification.
Crooked smiles betray
Inner brokenness.
Limit the rights of others,
Satisfy thirst for control,
Demean – marginalize – subdue.
Imposition of capricious rules,
Ostensibly to keep the order,
De facto keeping people down.
Nothing but complete subservience
Will do for reactionaries
Who have never known anything
But abusing power.
If my child were hurting,
I would do everything in
My power to make sure
She is OK. I would commit
Revolutionary acts like
Setting my own stuff aside and
Putting her needs first.
My thoughts, opinions,
Pronouncements, obscurements,
Insecurities and complications
Wait their turn so I may take
Care of my child instead of
My own issues for a change.
Clad in armor
Fit for war,
Weapons ready to
Subdue radicals.
Public square
Hurriedly vacated,
Fleeing through
Smoke and water.
Voices stilled
This day but
Never permanently,
Indomitable spirit.
Perverting everything
To support a brutally
Selfish worldview,
Welfare for the rich,
Cast everyone else aside.
Nothing hinders
The inexorable march
For power and spoils,
The hoarding of putrid symbols
Of external satisfaction.
Unaware, uninformed,
A passive populace observes
The overt assault,
Predators circling
Another helpless wretch.
