poems about power

Livid

He becomes livid when
Anyone dares question
His authority, unaccustomed
To being challenged for
Even the most reprehensible
Behavior toward those
He looks down upon or
Perhaps never had to think
About at all before they
Got all uppity and decided
To stand up to his cruelty.
A life lived without the
Need to apologize for
Any action, any slight
Uttered with absolute
Arrogance, impunity,
Vestiges of empire,
Purported rights.

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Destinations

Things never turn out well
When people put their
Hopes and dreams in
Violence, hardness,
False bravado,
Trying to project strength
Where only fear resides.
There are so many other paths
Leading to far more
Beautiful destinations
Than dread,
Places where love is the norm.

Every Single Day

You don’t know what
It’s like to be forced to
Be deferential, to
Constantly defuse situations
That could rapidly escalate
Just because someone
Knows he can overpower you,
To have to laugh at
Comments you loathe because
You don’t want things to
Go terribly wrong,
To keep your opinions
To yourself lest you
Bruise an overinflated ego,
To have to fend off
Unwanted advances
Every single day,
To have people sneer at you
When you speak up.

Dominant

Contrary to what some
People believe,
You can’t oppress a group
That is in power,
No matter how much its
Members screech and holler
And pretend that they
Are victims.
The dominant group
Is just that, dominant.

Health Problems

I hear you’ve been
Dealing with some
Health problems lately.
Cheer up, I’ve got
A plan to get you
The help you need.
Forget all that confusing
Stuff about single-payer,
What I’m offering is
Vastly better.
Simply take all the
Extra money you have
From your $7.50-an-hour
Job and put it in
One of these magical
Accounts guaranteed to
Pay for almost nothing.

Fit of Rage

As soon as he realizes
That he will have to
Provide health care for
His underpaid employees,
He breaks into a remarkable
Fit of rage, screaming that
He’ll be unable to absorb
The costs and that he’ll
Have to raise prices.
Lost in all the bluster are
The human beings that toil
For him, night and day,
And can’t make ends meet,
Especially since he
Reduced everyone’s hours
To skirt the new laws,
While he relaxes
In his opulent mansion.

Beyond Their Own Needs

All the members of a
Small group are given an
Equal amount of money and
Asked to either give part of
It to their fellow members
Or keep it for themselves.

Most participants choose to
Give some of their money away,
The well-being of the group
Being more important than
The accumulation of wealth
For personal gain.

In every group, there are one
Or two individuals who do not see
Beyond their own needs and
Cavalierly decide to keep
What they have while continuing
To receive money from the others.

Wait Fifteen Minutes

He tells me to wait
Fifteen minutes and
Everything will be
Taken care of,
I thank him for his help,
Feeling some relief.
When I follow up,
I find out he did nothing.

Making Decisions

Sitting on his high perch,
Absolutely enamored with
The sound of his own voice,
Pontificating endlessly,
Tediously, greatly relishing
His contemptuous, haughty,
Condescending pronouncements.
An intoxicated appointee,
He savors every delectable
Morsel of sovereignty and
Dominance he wields,
Making decisions far too
Important for a person of his
Vanity and numbness,
A sweep of the hand,
A dead, arrogant smile.