Burned by the sun...

Call me crazy. Many have.

It's been suggested that i'm lazy, complaining and a downright drag.

I sit and I write, concocting a fight -

in my head, that I dread –

will never see the light -

of day.

There's apathy here -

festering in the open air -

of reality – no shade -

getting burned by the sun -

all we think to do is run -

so the bad news won't hit us -

the evil escape us -

and we emerge unscathed

on the other side of rage.

But you can't skip that step

where you won't give but you get -

the perfect world, that polished pearl -

the future you planned in your dreams

it ripped at the seams

and you won't pick up the needle to sew

to move forward and grow

or tear it down to start again -

just act!

Instead you sit in your left, you stall in your right -

you flip flop and see saw, abide by the fucked laws -

and whine when you can't have your way -

but who has your say?

The ones in the boardrooms -

the slick and sly tycoons -

may sound cliché but check.

No really, I want you to

go google and yahoo -

I want to be wrong – prove me wrong.

This world's going down

to the sound

of our silence

infighting, violence -

the wallets on wall street just laugh.

A brilliant dark craft -

the buck just gets passed -

to figureheads bought and sold -

and a drying hard mold -

burned by the sun -

harder to crack

the more we relax

so sit back and wait

the end quickens its pace

rushing towards our shrugging fat race

sitting under the weight

of dictatorial fate -

learning to breathe through gasps

ignoring imploring relapse

re-re-repeat

our noted division

a vicious addiction

to being told

who we are

what we know.

far be it from me

to change what you see

all I can do is suggest -

but if taken in jest

as most all will do

it's nothing to you

nor to me

so I might as well keep

these thoughts to myself

if all that they'll reap

is a place on the shelf

by morals and ethics and

ideas by dead presidents -

i'm not here just to be read.

I'm here to set fire

to make us move higher

above what we think we can do -

for why would they spend

the time and the money

to paint things so sunny

if they didn't fear the storm?

Politics and Poetry: The Peace Keepers

Happy hump day all - as I perused the cacophony of news stories this morning, I began tracing a red thread through all of the military, police and other various "peace keeping" and "law enforcing" headlines. And now, I will share them with you. Enjoy...

"The ultimate authority must always rest with the individual's own reason and critical analysis."

- Dalai Lama

The Cradle Will Rock: Egypt smells a bit like South America, and it's not just the summer heat rolling in. There is widespread contention over who won the seat of the first democratically elected president in Egypt, and the military is stepping up to settle it...well not settle, really just dictatorially mandate. Mohammed Mursi, the candidate from the Muslim Brotherhood, claims to have won 52% of votes while Mubaraks former aide, Ahmed Shafiq accuses the Brotherhood of "organized and persistent election fraud," further declaring his victory in the election runoff. Now, this might not sound like Chile or Argentina yet, but try this on for size: The Supreme Constitutional Court (aka a collection of Mubarak appointees and military muscle) dissolved both house of parliament last week, which are controlled by the Brotherhood and other Islamist groups. The junta (hmmm...seen that word before) then announced a new "interim" constitution that gives generals the ultimate seat of power, basically making any official or unofficial winner a frivolous figurehead. According to this new constitution, generals now have the power to pass laws, control the budget, declare war and steer the drafting of a permanent constitution. 

Now, the issue here is a little sticky. Unlike Chile, for example, neither the Brotherhood nor the ex-Mubarak monkey are attractive choices. The people were deflated about these two before the military stepped up their game. However, the question is this: do you allow someone like the Brotherhood to gain control of the presidency and both houses, thus feeding fear that Egypt will devolve into an Islamist state, or go the military route? In effect, the military staged a coup, usurping the rights of the people and declaring their choices, whatever they may be, a wash. 

Many feel that based on Egyptian activism in the past few years, even if the Brotherhood had gained control of the whole country, laws and customs that would push bitterly won progress back wouldn't fly with such an engaged populace anyway. 

Verdict? My take is that military rule is never a good thing. As one protestor bittersweetly remarked last year, "Military has no problem taking power - but can they let it go?" 

That remains to be seen, but doesn't look promising. 

I may sound naively romantic, but a true government by the people, of the people and for the people is the best - a true republic, where peoples wants and needs are reflected in the decisions of the rulers, not by a military, not by a corporation, by the people. 

Eyes are on you, Egypt. 

 

Speaking of Chile: For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Chilean coup, I strongly recommend Naomi Klein's book, The Shock Doctrine. I won't get into detail now, but long story short. On September 11, 1973 (yes, 9/11), the CIA helped back a terrorist coup of the prosperous and democratic nation of Chile based on economic dissatisfaction with their government. Now, 40 years later, they are still struggling. Last week, Chilean lawmakers were happy to announce a victory over the military that has ruled the country since the 70s. Their victory: repealing the "copper law," that guaranteed the military 10% of the annual income from the nation's copper mines. Instead, the Congress will set the military budget every 4 years. Sounds great...but according to Andres Velasco in La Tercera, it's not as rosy as it looks. Every other aspect of Chilean government is funded yearly. So, let's say another earthquake hits and it's another two years before you can meddle in the military budget. Education, health care and pensions would be slashed before military funding in order to finance rescue and reconstruction...yikes. Furthermore, the new law guarantees that defense spending be no lower than 70% of what it's been for the past 6 years, when copper prices were sky-rocketing and the military was richer than Trump. As Velasco chillingly writes, "Cutting social spending while keeping the military flush is exactly what Pinochet did." Pinochet, the CIA appointed dictator post-coup is casting a lasting shadow on the people of Chile. Like many seeming victories, the vast corruption of this disjointed government overwhelms the small triumphs...unfortunately, the whole damn thing needs an overhaul. 

This side/That side: Well, just in case you were still holding on to any mushy feelings about our two party system, here's a good one for you: Virginia took steps to research the growing flooding problem in the state by funding a study that would investigate causes and possible prevention. However, lawmakers had to omit any reference to "climate change" and "sea-level rise" in order to be granted the funding. Scientists, in and outside of the study say that sea levels along the coast of Virginia have risen more than a foot, and continue to rise. While Republicans agree that flooding is a rapidly growing issue, they refused to allow such terms as "sea-level rise" because it is....drum roll please...

"a left-wing term." 

Well oh my - some would say, hey, be happy they're at least looking into the problem. Well, that's not really true is it? Let's say they find that the cause of flooding is due in large part to global warming...but oh shit, they can't say that. So instead, they'll say - build an ark, God is mad, buy another Hummer and Go America! 

You can't solve a problem if you don't look at the god damn problem to begin with.

 

Literally undercovers: British minster of policing, Nick Herbert, said last week that undercover police trying to infiltrate, for example, animal-rights or anti-globalization groups have every right to have sex with group members in order to protect their cover. This announcement is met with widespread dissatisfaction and disgust after 8 women lodged a legal action against the Met (Metropolitan police) claiming that they had been "duped into forming long-term loving relationships" with undercover cops. The women feel violated, claiming that they would obviously never have slept with an undercover cop - one woman actually had a child with a policeman who just fucked off as soon as his stint was over.  Herbert's response to the suggestion of banning undercover sex was that such rigid rules would out undercover agents. Barbara Ellen, a writer for The Observer, offered this response. "I'm sure activists don't deliver ultimatums: 'Shag or we'll think you're from the filth.'" Now, maybe they will. 

I take this stance. Is everyone you've had sex with exactly who you think they are? Are facades not a part of our inherent mating ritual? I don't know anyone who is their absolute true self on a first date - I mean come on. Sex can just be sex - it doesn't have to turned into a "long-term loving relationship." Police should not lead them on to the point of having kids or picking out curtains, but let's be honest here: people lead other people on all the time. 

The only thing I would say is wear a rubber and don't promise her the world. 

And ladies, don't get all gushy with a guy who only seems interested in the secret hiding place of those Hummer bombs. 

Don’t Call Me Baby

Twisted glass and broken beams
This smoke don’t taste like steam
Let the sirens mock your lies
And please don’t call me baby

Lookin’ down on a Tuesday night
Eyes tear that face the sky
I know that it ain’t alright
And please don’t call me baby

Thinkin’ were they afraid to fly
Jump up to close my eyes
But this is far too real to hide
And please don’t call me baby
No, please don’t call me baby

I’m not the one to save
My innocence has caved!

City’s quiet as a grave
I ain’t seen you smile in days
And you don’t know just what to say
But please don’t call me baby
Please don’t call me baby

It’s sick and it’s true
Hell’s written all over you
Rip Tide tears my mind
This ain’t no lullaby
I won’t be sleeping tight
Wide awake on this endless night
A new day reaps what’s sewn
Ain’t how you dreamt it but now
I’m grown

Twisted truth and broken dreams
That seat’s as empty as it seems
I feel your eyes now let me see
And please don’t call me baby
Please don’t call me baby

Politics and Poetry 2

• The Cradle will fall: The mayhem in Syria reached epic heights over the weekend. A massacre in the town of Houla left 109 victims dead, mostly women and children - 49 under the age of 10 hacked to death with axes and knives. The men of the town were demonstrating at the town mosque and claim that while they were away, government forces ambushed the town, killing innocent civilians. The government has claimed that this is the act of rogue terrorists. Kofi Annan of the UN sat down with President al-Assad today to make clear the international weight of these decisions. Several countries, including the US, also expelled Syrian diplomats in protest to the weekends events. All this to say...well, just to say, really. According to Annan, he "appealed to him [Mr Assad] for bold steps now - not tomorrow, now - to create momentum for the implementation of the plan."
So he spoke to him sternly about having spoken to him about at some point doing what he had spoken to him about originally.
Meanwhile, people in Houla fear another attack: "Military reinforcements have been brought in, and artillery, and we are afraid that the massacre will happen again," Mahmoud Al Houli told CNN reporters. "Four checkpoints have been set up around the town, and nothing can enter -- no food or medical supplies can come in. The electricity has been cut off. Things are desperate."
He closed with this piercing remark: "You have seen the bodies on television, on the computer, but we see them in real life."
So true. And yet, we discuss these images, these lives as if no one had to see them in real life.
If we're going to take an interest in the slaughtering of humans in other countries, we have to take a real interest. Hanging a carrot in front of desperate people's eyes is cruel and superfluous.
If we are going to stay out of it, stay out of it. This half ass bullshit is about as useful and philanthropic as standing in front of a homeless man, waxing poetic about the ills of poverty while counting your money. Come the fuck on!

Fear, fear, fear: While many of us reflected on the meaning of Memorial Day, perhaps remembering family members or saying a silent thank you to those who felt our country was worth a fight...Mitt Romney was enjoying a heaping bowl of fear with his BBQ.
At a speech in San Diego, CA, his message was clear: "The world is not safe."
"We can follow in the footsteps of Europe and shrink our military smaller and smaller to pay for our social needs...and they of course rely on the strength of America and hope for the best. Were we to follow that kind of course, there would be no one that could stand to protect us. The other is to commit to preserve America as the strongest military in the world, second to none with no comparable power anywhere in the world. We choose that course - not so we just win wars but so we prevent wars, because a strong America is the biggest deterrent to war that has ever been invented."
Let me just attempt to wrap my head around this one...military is more important than our social needs? What is your damage?! I'd like to see him give this speech at the WTC memorial - or how about to a bunch of school kids who don't know how to read but already know to hate Muslims.
And Europe relies on us?! You've got to be fucking kidding me. Even with the teetering Eurozone, there are only 4 European countries that have worse national debt than the US...guess ole Mitt was too busy polishing his gun to study up on some fucking common sense and hard facts. Good lord.
I'm no fan of Obama, but the more I hear this jack noodle talk, the more I'd like to see him pushing pens at a dead end Pentagon job - love the military so much? Go serve 'em. They deserve it.
Meanwhile, this pro-military spending loony tune is the same guy who recently said:

"You have to have a government that doesn't get too big."

What's bigger than the biggest military in the world?...


Call or Draw:
 

We crawl here on our knees and fear

Gagged and tied

lady liberty has died

call or draw

And in this mess you

wave the flag and bless

all the ones who

rape your rights for fun

call or draw

coming round that roulette wheel

coming round that roulette wheel

kill your innocence and ignorance

you can’t use them now

build your common sense,

intelligence

they won’t show you how

give it up like

virgins in a truck

all your rights in your country’s name

call or draw

are you blind?!

freedom ain’t a right you know

and those who lead

spin these lies for bribes

call or draw

coming round that roulette wheel

coming round that roulette wheel

kill your innocence and ignorance

you can’t use them now

build your common sense,

intelligence

they won’t show you how

Politics and Poetry 1

Hey Revolutionaries,

Reading these posts, you may think I suffer from extreme indecision and wavering dedication. Although those are both sometimes true, I have been trying to figure out the best way to use this blog, and now have a new idea: Politics and Poetry.
Without getting too into specifics, suffice it to say, that those two things are the meat of my writing.
Now, instead of writing whole posts dedicated to one political topic, I'm going to do bullet points of a few - the news, my take, etc. At the end, I'll have a poem to close it out. Without further adue...politics and poetry, entry 1:

• Birthers: Members of the extreme right, aka, much of the right, just won't let go of Obama's eligibility as president. Although his birth certificate was released by the White House last year, that's just not good enough, it seems. Some harp on the fact that because Obama's father was Kenyan and not a US citizen, it negates his citizenship...um...since when? My mother didn't become a citizen until I was 20 but I'm sure as shit an American citizen. Go back far enough and even the guy holding a "President Jihad" sign is no more American than Kim Jong Il. Still others are convinced that the certificate was a fake. Needless to say, this isn't doing wonders for candidate Romney's campaign. While he tries to focus on the economy and the shortfalls of Obama's term, many of his constituents pull the spotlight towards the entirely superfluous and ridiculous subject of citizenship. It's working on convincing many swing voters that the right is ripe with extremist nut jobs that care more about conspiracy theories than fixing this country. Well...judging by Romney's comment on our wonderful "safety net" for the very poor, I don't think it's much of a stretch to say he's out of touch. However, if you know anything about me, you know I feel that both sides are out of touch with anything but corporate bottom lines and career politics. But I digress...Iowa Republicans have now written into their party platform that all presidential candidates, starting this year, must "show proof of being a natural-born citizen."
In Arizona, Secretary of State Ken Bennett announced that he may keep Obama's name off of the ballots if he does not receive valid proof from Hawaii on Obama's citizenship.
I wonder if anyone has noticed the tumbling world market or the drone controversy...

• European Ties: We may not give much thought to the fact that Europe's economy is faltering, but we should. We are linked inextricably to the fate of the Eurozone. We may not have much stock in Greece but if Italy, Spain and Ireland follow suit, many of our exports would falter, thus hitting our domestic economy hard. Not to mention the slowdown in China - all in all, it is a dangerous time in the global economy and while we focus our energies here, it is vitally important to stay up to snuff on the goings on outside of our own borders.

• Egypt Election: Today was election day in Egypt. A 70 year old woman remarked in joy at this being the first time in her life that she has ever voted. The polling will take place over two days and tens of thousands of monitors are patrolling to make sure that the election is fair. It is the first time Egyptians will not know the outcome of a presidential election until the ballots are cast. This is a huge step for Egypt - being that they are the largest and arguably most powerful nation in the Arab world, this election will set the tone for others in the region. By wednesday afternoon, monitors mentioned only minor violations such as voters trying to convince others before heading in to vote. On the ballot are 13 candidates, including a representative from the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohamed Morsi, Amre Moussa, who served as foreign minister under Mubarak and headed the Arab League; Abdelmonen Abol Fotoh, a moderate Islamist running as a respected independent; Ahmed Shafik, who was Mubarak's last prime minister; and Hamdeen Sabahy, a leftist dark-horse contender.
While tension rides high that the interim military government will try to hijack the elections, loudspeakers atop tanks broadcast to the contrary, assuring voters that as soon as elections are over, power will be handed over to the president-elect.
Having followed the uprisings last year, and watching the 16 month interim, where reform was slow but dedication was unwavering, I hope for the best.
We could learn much from Egypt and the Arab Spring.
I'll leave you with this thought: if the people of a dictatorship can create, in 16 months, the first democratic presidential election in the history of that nation, why can we not find our way back to it?


Fool's Oasis:

How many men have you heard lying
as they dropped the ball?

And how many flags did you see flying
when the bombs fall?

How many friends would you hear dying
before you hit the wall?

Is it strange that they despise?

Oh this fool’s oasis...
this
fool’s
oasis.

Ever seen your hands stained red?
How does it feel when you go to bed?
A baby dies, a soldier cries -
we look with apathetic eyes...

Is is strange that they despise?

Oh this fool’s oasis...
this
fool’s
oasis.

Into the bomb,
into the bomb,
into the bomb
shelter.
Into the bomb,
into the bomb,
into the bomb
shelter...