He was afraid of
Peace and love
An all it might do
To upend his life,
The time he’d have
To spend looking inward,
Examining his warts,
Why he believed
What he did,
His abiding mistrust of
Others and championing
Of causes that
Damaged others.
Worst of all,
He’d have to spend
Time with himself.
A tepid condemnation
Interwoven with further attacks,
Utter lack of decency.
Craven swindlers
Showing their hands,
Driven by the fear that
People who don’t
Look like them and their peers
Will take over and
Make them pay for their
Transgressions,
The dread that keeps all
Illicit conquerors,
Subjugators,
Awake at night.
Begrudgingly dropping off
His kids at the summer program,
Only after repeatedly being
Asked to by his wife,
Without consideration of
Arriving too early and forcing
The staff to act as babysitters,
An interruption in a life where
He’s never had to think of
Anything but himself,
Throwing his weight around,
Never asking for permission,
Everyone there to acquiesce to
His every imposition.
She lives with the
Husband she feels
She deserves and who
Treats her exactly
As she was treated
In her own family,
An object to be
Possessed,
Controlled,
Suppressed,
Made to be subservient
And cater to the needs of
Someone who believes
He deserves to be waited on
Because that’s what
He saw as a child.
It’s only a matter of degree
Between the negation of contrary ideas
And the elimination of dissidents,
Crossing the line is far too easy
For those who crave only power
At the expense of humanity,
History dismally repeated
With nauseating frequency,
Brooding adolescents yearning
For prestige, authority,
Some feeling of importance
In a realm absent morality,
Where everything feeds
One impotent ego.
They razed another
Section of the old town
To make way for the new
Towers that will house
People far better off
Than his family, which
Has lived there as long as
Anyone can remember.
Not a single question was
Asked or history considered,
An insatiable need for
Space imposes its will
On the former community of
Regular people working
Modest jobs to survive in
Their ancestral homes.
It was around the time of
Their divorce that he began
Taking an inordinate interest
In his children.
Where he had once been
Absent and aloof,
He now regarded the situation as
A quest for justice
In the face of immoral oppression,
His desires superseded by
Data, history, and common sense,
A jilted ex-spouse fuming at
Having his privilege revoked.
He founds an organization
Dedicated to supporting
His dubious cause.
Lihua, can you
Help me with this?
Now! I said.
What’s gotten into you
This morning?
So slow.
Today is mopping and
Cleaning day,
Get the supplies.
I’m meeting my
Friends for lunch,
I’ll be back at 3:00.
I want everything
To be perfect,
Don’t make me look bad.
A few companies
Collude to limit the
Choices available to
Consumers, oligopoly.
The fixed, painful,
Exorbitant cost
Of everything,
Lack of competition.
A rigged game,
Every move benefiting
Corporate
Behemoths.
Flagrant muggings
Perpetrated by
Sleazy swindlers
In expensive suits.
