Dangerous belief systems
Built on hatred of
Some other group,
Steeped in abuse,
Minds forced shut,
Self-described victims
Victimizing others,
No room for negotiation,
All or nothing,
Complete annihilation.
It doesn’t have to
Be this way.
Companies can make
A lot of money and
Pay their employees well.
CEOs can pay themselves
Slightly less,
Build one less mansion,
So that their workers
Can buy a car,
Afford a mortgage,
Send their kids
To college,
Take a vacation,
Set some money aside,
Enjoy life.
Inequality doesn’t
Have to be the norm
Unless those at the top
Want it to be.
A troubling nightmare realized,
The order of things turned
Upside down in a deliberate
Assault on decency and kindness.
No semblance of empathy remains,
Pillage to your heart’s content,
Nothing matters but money,
The righteous new way.
He can choose
Any path really,
His wealth allows him
To pretty much do
Whatever he wants,
Whenever he wants,
In any way
He wishes to.
It’s not so hard
To make someone
Else’s life a
Little easier,
More rewarding,
Worthwhile,
Empires can be built
With kindness,
Sharing doesn’t have
To be an expletive.
He elects to
Pay low wages.
And so we find ourselves
Where we’ve always been,
Ignoring sincere pleas
For peace and love and
Hurtling instead toward
Facile vengeance,
The familiar path to
Collective misery,
Huddled in enclaves
Terrified of others,
Darkness strangling the light.
Don’t give up on the dream,
Remember that we’re
Capable of much better
Than out-of-control
Fear and hatred,
There’s another path and
We’re the ones to walk it.
Nobody wants
To be on the bottom,
Especially not them,
Which makes them
Supremely susceptible
To anyone suggesting
They can regain
Their former glory,
Which never really
Existed in any form.
He’s fine with government programs
That help him and the people
He’s comfortable with,
Which excludes those who
Don’t look, think, and experience
The world like him.
Talking to friends,
He complains that those people
Have had a free ride for too long.
What’s he ever gotten,
Except for everything?
She was raised to be a
Good girl, follow the rules,
Respect authority, answer
When called, smile when
Addressed, defer when
Pressed, put others first.
She met a familiar young
Man who swept her
Off her feet, told her
What to do and when to do it.
Her conditioning complete,
A life of smiling subservience.
Every single man
In her life has
Been more than happy
To tell her what to do.
She’s dutifully
Followed their advice,
Even when it makes
No sense to her.
She’ll fight for
Their right to
Dictate her fate
At every turn.
They conveniently
Look the other way
As she gleefully
Serves them.
