The Olympics, Day 4

I guess before it's o'er,
I shouldn't let them go,
Without a comment on this whole gay thing,
In the Olympics home,

Two thousand, fourteen Russian Fed'ration,
There's this law, don't you know,
Passed last June barring the propaganda,
Of gay rights to minors, but you can show,

Vidyos of gays being lured to a trap,
Then humiliated,
Because somehow that doesn't break a law,
Why are they so hated?

I mean really?
There's no logic okay?
The act itself is solely about love,
Yet treated like they are all about hate.

The Olympics, Day 3

It actu'lly makes me cry,
Though, I'm a cry-yee sis,
Seeing the Dufour sisters holding hands,
'Fore climbing the dais,

An experience I'll ne'er have in life,
'Magine how fantastic,
Three sisters grow up together in sport,
And they ride a path to the Olympics,

Shared exper'ence strengthens their real'ty,
Giving it a real truth,
Sisterhood trumping any jealousy,
That might threaten the truce.

E'en the eldest,
Denied any medal,
Lives in a world where family ties trump,
The temptation of pers'nal regret's hell.

Olympics, Day 2

We all knew there'd be fears,
Of trouble in Sochi,
Starting with Volgograd in October,
And Umarov's decree,

Then there is the fear of the Black Widows,
Is Russia's thin facade,
As permyeeble as the United States,
In its dealings with Bashar al-Assad?

Now someone hijacked a plane wanting flight,
To Sochi to alert,
His countrymen of some vague, unknown threat,
He's prob'ly just berzerk.

Still, makes you think,
What's still coming from there,
'Tween violence 'gainst gays and Chechnyan unrest,
Athletic prowess may take second chair.

Olympics, Day 1

Olympics start today,
In Putin's resort stop,
Sochi, home of Russia's Formula One,
And Two-Eighteen's World Cup,

It hasn't seen much controversy since,
Early nineteen hundreds,
When it officially joined Russian lands,
Aft years of territorial bloodshed,

Now it's the face of a country that laughs,
At western rationale,
Strong, with allies China and Syria,
Thought's not universal,

It is fleeting,
With lessons quickly lost,
Like someone who can't let go of a slight,
No matter the interpersonal cost.

Families Held Hostage

I just can't imagine,
Were I a Korean,
With family on the border's other side,
That I have never seen.

A predicament born of the fifties,
After the U.S. split,
The country along that ol' thirty-eight,
And backed the South against the Soviets,

Then a three-year war cemented the break,
No one checking to see,
'Cause pol'tics trumps the souls meant to be kept,
If perhaps that line split through families.

It did indeed.
Imagine the torture,
Your chance to reunite with stolen kin,
Hanging on the whim of gov'ment posture.

To succeed

Every moment wasted,
Is a lesson for you,
But you must not have absorbed anything,
'Cause you're not leaving school,

Your skin is pale like an old cadaver,
Except it is stretched taut,
From laying with beer, chips and beef jerky,
Watching sci-fi films from your pull-out cot,

Thinking and saying you thought you'd be more,
To anyone who'll hear,
Who are less and less as the years go by,
As far as tears are near.

It's not too late,
History is no judge,
Nor a predictor of what will come next,
E'en an avalanche must start with a nudge.

Economic Rights Is All Rights

Was an era when race,
Was on everyone's mind,
Was understood by most that equal'ty,
Was a matter of time,

Then eventu'lly everyone agreed,
Then the laws were improved,
Then made a day of MLK's b-day,
Then the discussion was pretty much moot,

Now the talk's still about inequal'ty,
Now of money, not race,
Now it's not right if someone has no chance,
Now of boosting their place.

Ask MLK,
Ask if race is equal,
Ask what the world should look like with the Love,
Asked by him from the Amer'can people.

The Marks of Life

I look in the mirror,
As I am writing this,
The bags usually under my eyes,
Do not seem to exist,

My face is fuller than it used to be,
'Cause I've been on the road,
With less time to dedicate to myself,
As my just coffee breakfast also shows,

Despite it all my eyes are still the same,
Though they've seen different things,
A curious trait unique to just them,
Untouched by life's happ'nings.

Then there's the brain,
It gets all the eyes see,
If I could see it in the mirror too,
Would I be surprised by much distorting?

Pessimism, Yes

Time may not be stopping,
While you pause to figure,
Your stand on various moral topics,
Representing fissures,

In the future of the world where you live,
You know what I'm saying,
There's death all around, not just over seas,
And you are just playing.

So the question is, what will you decide,
When you're on your deathbed?
That you did all you could to make world peace,
Or may as well be dead.

Yes, yes, I know,
You could spend your whole life,
Dedicated to helping others free,
And ne'er get close to relieving the strife.

The Privileged Few

They say it's ne'er too late,
To chase after your dreams,
Which begs the question, if you haven't yet,
Is your wish what it seems,

Or in your heart do you really want it?
It is a scary thing,
To put as much belief in what you do,
As from everyone else you're requiring.

Then you may have to admit to yourself,
You don't have what it takes,
You'd rather live a life of mute regrets,
Than really risk the stakes.

Isn't that true?
It`s the story of most,
Even if everyone tried their hardest,
There'd still be few who have reason to boast.

Just Tired

The news is getting tired,
It is never not sad,
Lybian kidnappings, child pornography
And bombs in Pakistan.

I am not just being pessimistic,
Isn't the goal world peace?
Just ask the women sold in the sex trade,
If they anticipate a greater ease,

Computers were promising simpler life,
They could take care of all!
No inequality or advantage,
If that's really our call,

But it is not,
We know we have the means,
Until human nature changes its tune,
The news will ever be filled with such scenes.

The Key To World Peace

I don't know what's bigger,
The news is really full,
Two dead in the Ukraine, five in Egypt,
Or Bieber's public D.U.I downfall.

The first is after three months resistance,
To a corrupt gov'ment,

The second, three years since revolution,

Put in a party now ruled terrorist.

But is there any parallel to find,

When Justin, aged 19,

Once the hope of both teens and their parents,

Collapses too, it seems?

It's all the same,
The human condition,
To understand the failures of soci'ty,
Just consider your last contemplation.

This Is The Ford That Never Ends

It has been a long time,
Since I've written of Ford,
His antics had exceeded the absurd,
And council cut the cord,

It was obvious he wouldn't alter,
His behavior at all,
All of his powers had been relinquished,
No one listened to him at City Hall,

Yet he kept on fighting for his beliefs,
Ignored charges 'gainst he,
Even now he stands tall in the face of,
A new film with Lisi!

So, what to say,
In this election year?
I guess if he continues to lose weight,
The Left might yet still have something to fear.

Stop Talking

There is not much to say,
It's all been said before,
By prophets, priests, parents and parasites,
And infinitely more,

They've said everything in a thousand ways,
In an attempt to change,
The behavior of the rest of the world,
With levels of success on a wide range.

They have talked and talked about love and right,
Still many have been killed,
So is there any point in saying more,
Or just keeping it real.

Up in the field?
Don't worry 'bout others,
Just keep quiet and look out for yourself,
And avoid getting stabbed by your brother.

An Ode to Airport Food

I'm eating a cookie,
I bought at the airport,
Still dear but yet the cheapest thing they got,
With coffee, it was four.

I think I'd rather die than buy their food,
Costly crap-covered chum,
Put out to lure trapped and tired travelers,
In a corral meant to hide an ocean.

It must be challenging to prepare 'food',
On such a immense scale,
But one would think that when it is this poor,
That it should be on sale!

I'm just venting,
Like that putrid sandwich,
I'm sure they're doing the best that they can,
They can't poss'bly be taking advantage.

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day

He had no allegiance,
To elephant or ass,
Like Hegel, he believed most things fell short,
Or just scooted right past,

The real point in the fight for equal'ty:
Simply, actually love,
Not the kind that makes you someone's servant,
Or that somehow puts the servant above,

He spoke of love using the Greek 'Agape',
God's love working through man,
Your mind rises above vi'lence or spite,
Right to the Promised Land.

Then he was killed,
In nineteen sixty-eight,
In Memphis aft speaking of his own death,
How, if God asked, he would not change his fate.

Fall From The Tree

If one's a product of,
Their parents' story,
Molded by how they got by in this world,
There's something gone from me.

An epic journey in search of freedom,
Both born in poverty,
In country hills in central Italy,
Boarded a ship to a foreign country.

The moment they set their foot back on land,
They were born once again,
Like Adam and Eve in god's paradise,
With original sin.

And they made it,
No more need for rebirth,
From their loins came I to chase the dragon,
'Til I'm again reintroduced to earth!

Take It Easy

I was just singing loud,
Eagles, Take It Easy,
In a decidedly annoying way,
To my work place colleague,

He didn't seem to mind, I'm not surprised,
How can you get angry,
When you hear the words sung to you, "Don't let
The sound of your own wheels drive you crazy."?

Because actually, who else can you blame?
You cannot give offence,
You can only take it, and that relies,
On your own common sense,

Your own self-worth.
If he did get annoyed,
I would have stopped but also lost respect,
For killing a thing that could be enjoyed.

Lucky You

I love hearing me speak,
Do you not love my kind?
There's nothing worse than listening to someone,
Who can't stand their own whine,

But my thoughts are so deep and int'resting,
It really is a joy,
To hear me spew whatever's on my mind,
Without the slightest danger to annoy.

You have a problem, I have the answer,
Just look at my own life!
You think something, I'll show you where you're wrong,
No time to be polite.

'Cause it's so rare,
To be so insightful,
That if I paused to hear your opinion,
I'd deny someone else my cock and bull.

Don't Stretch Out And Wait

I just have to do it,
Can't leave things anymore,
That are so integral to my mind's health,
That I'll be left life-poor,

Even if I somehow get filthy rich,
And can live on a beach,
Which really is my heart's deep fantasy,
If I just lied there it would still need seek,

Just like my mom told me when I was young,
Tell the Un'verse your needs,
But don't just sit and wait for them to come,
Or it can't plant the seeds,

It needs good soil,
Enriched with your desire,
A commitment to face what life gives you,
Lest lethergy become your fun'ral pyre.

Martin Luther King Jr - In Anticipation of his Day

I'm reading the doctor,
Mart' Luther King Junior,
What an inspiration for everyone,
In a still fucked up world,

He was educated in divin'ty,
A scholar through and through,
Connected to Sartre and Kierkegaard,
Sought links 'tween Lib'rals and orth'doxy, too,

First put to practice what his mind endorsed,
From being a student,
Leading the Montgomery Bus Boycott,
Non-Violent Resistence!

Because violence,
Only leaves bitterness,
But standing tall for your right to exist,
Shames the decent majority's conscience.

Random Meets

Met a writer last night,
Told her I was one, too,
Well, not 'til the end of the time we talked,
And I had had a few,

It was a random meeting borne of fries,
And the space beside me,
I, a young gentleman having a meal,
Clam chowder drawing her into the seat.

Conversation was not a guarantee,
Food broke me from my read,
Logic told me don't deny connection,
For it could plant a seed,

And grow my world,
Not 'cause it's all 'bout me.
But say this meeting sparked an idea,
That fueled a life-changing epiphany!

Cancelled Flights

Sometimes you're just waiting,
Usually for a plane,
Often because your flight has been cancelled,
'Cause airlines are insane.

Any other form of transportation,
Only requires you,
To show up on time and to get on board,
And please kindly do not take off your shoes,

But when you're flying, shoes off's the first thing,
An hour before take-off,
Then if you're not bumped 'cause they over-booked,
Space allotted for your bag's not enough.

But it's alright,
You will get a free drink,
And a salami smell from the air vent,
So, it is never as bad as you think.

On A Journey

Sometimes you're in a daze,
The routine gets you down,
Until it's broken and you find yourself,
In yet another town,

Focusing on figuring out the pace,
Until there's no routine,
Your mind doesn't know it, but home will shift,
Soon becoming the last thing that you've seen,

The bridges, diners, and friendly faces,
Finding new connections,
To the moments of your past that made you,
A redeconstruction,

Of who you are,
Identity's not set,
Like you're what you eat, so too what you see,
Guess what?  You haven't seen anything, yet.

Own Your Life

Any life is, of course,
Like a true fantasy,
One is born and somehow a path chosen
That no one could foresee,

Sure there are some who would help you to choose,
Whether you like or not,
But in the end the choices were all yours,
More often than not, not what others thought,

'Cause others can't see what is in your heart,
Often others are you,
For you're oft not taught how to know yourself,
For people rarely do.

But here's the thing,
Even after you've grown,
There's nothing to say that you still can't learn,
And salvage a life that's truly your own.

Stoner

A life so ord'nary,
Yet filled with epiph'nies,
Born a farmer into academic,
A wife's insanity,

Keeps him from his child, whom he loves dearly,
Who he was raising well,
Now dressed in costumes and told what to think,
In a real effort to make his life hell,

Barred from his wish to be a good teacher,
By jealousy and spite,
By a professor with something to prove,
Never e'en mind his wife!

That is Stoner,
Twentieth cent'ry Job?
A man just trying to follow his dreams,
With not a trace of ill-will in his bones.

Happy New Year!

Want this one to be good,
But you know the west coast,
When it is four o'clock in the morning,
You've had not even toast,

It's hard to put together the right words,
Especially when,
You're about to host ten thousand people,
Amidst, pins, games, interactives and tents,

For that's a window into what I do,
When I'm not doing this,
But this is something that I have to do,
Markedly on the first.

So HNY!
I hope it's a good one,
And when I say that I'm thinking of me,
But for you, too, after my own fortune!

Oil Sands Battle

Is it really worth it,
To be worried about,
Something like the affect of the Oil Sands,
On Canada's devout,

Desire to protect Mother Nature?
Probably I'd say, 'yes',
But there's another reason to fight them,
That tends to generate more true duress,

It is the chance that the economy,
Is being affected,
That the high dollar's killing worker's jobs,
Like Mulcair predicted.

It's the fear that,
The people might just rise,
Tree-huggers, unions and the struggling class.
The blues need more prop'ganda I surmise!

Must Go

There was something to say,
Now it's lost forever,
Without no time to meditate on it,
For there are no flowers,

Of inspiration or self-direction,
Just a vague impetus,
To get something down on this blank, white screen,
Lest the day go by without some genius,

Which is certainly not coming out here,
But at least it's something,
Some legacy, if but only in mass,
Like the whole history of the clergy.

Or like the bomb,
I have yet to see one,
But am in awe of the earth's quantity,
And their potential for its destruction.

So Two Thousand

So, I have reached a goal,
So, I've flipped to the past,
So I can resume the song in my head,
So many years since last,

So few people listened to it I said,
So what? That's just my show,
So I will continue per my instinct,
So there'll be something only I'll know,

So extremely obscure and unwanted,
So one day I could say,
"So, looking back now did I do something?"
So, look, this is the day!

So many years,
So many more to go,
So that I can reach ten thousand one day,
So deep in my heart, that's really my goal.

The Sickening Story of Comfort Women

This is a sad story,
You prob'ly shouldn't read,
'Bout total disregard for human rights,
A decades old foul deed,

Women made to 'comfort' mil'tary men,
Under a lot of stress,
Intended to purge their virility,
Amidst wartime's unnatural duress.

O'er two hundred thousand of these women,
Contrived into sex slaves,
Fuck you, "they're a necessary system,"
They're pawns of the depraved.

Now here they are,
Not many still survive,
With no recognition of their suff'ring,
Reliving the dread each day they're alive.

Good Morning

I'm up very early,
I have a job to do,
Can't think of another situation,
That I'd do this, can you?

I like to go for early morning walks
Softly through morning dew,
Or the odd traipse across forbidden lands,
Believe me, I have risked more than a few.

But what else will get you up early dawn,
Your body begging you,
For rest lest you bring on some fatal sick,
And incomplete thoughts, too?

It's of course work!
Dare I say it anew?
One spends most of ones life working to live,
Does that mean spending most of your life, too?

The Way To Think

This is just no way,
To express one's deep thoughts!
Here I am with two kids to entertain,
Watching, "What say, the fox?"

I should be in an arm chair, my eyes closed,
That's the way one thinks!
Not distracted by the random thoughts of,
Children randomly thinking of odd things,

Things they know nothing about for they're new,
The children, not the thoughts,
Innocence isn't the route to wisdom,
One once must have once fought.

I must get free,
And learn from my own past,
Hist'ry's proved things should be done as it's been,
The best way is the way it was done last.

Grumps

There're a lot of runners,
In old Boston MA,
Sidewalks, parks, even through the public T,
Night, morning, through the day,

They're running up your ass, towards your balls,
Wearing all sorts of garb,
Spandex, camel sacks, toques, mitts, fanny packs,
Sprinting through intersections like retards,

Splashing!   Weaving! Being all fit and stuff,
Enough to make you sick,
They could all jog right into the harbor,
I wouldn't give a lick.

'Cause here's the thing,
I like to run also,
But when I'm the guy having to watch it,
It's like seeing a car accident show.

What's Joy?

There are often last days,
The ends of an era,
That when passed seem like only just a dream,
You know what I mean, ma?

Days that make you wonder if real'ty's,
In the past or to come,
Or if one's most fantastic fantasies,
Really are less than weakest perception.

Aren't there people who drink away life,
Reliving the hey days?
You look at them, shake your head with pity,
Think they hold truth at bay.

But who are you?
A different person,
You've no clue what brings joy to someone's mind.
D'y'even know what's your mind's predilection?

Missed One

How do people do it,
When they have lost themselves,
Caught up in journeys led by their bodies,
Their souls left on the shelf,

No time to think about the world they're in,
As if time has an end,
Like what you do to keep your flesh alive,
Is existences be all and all end,

Thinking only about what must be done,
In service of someone,
Who only wants it done to serve themselves,
Again, ad naseam?

It has e'er been,
For many in this life,
With moments of deep self-realization,
That we're the creators of our own strife.

Feeling Good!

When there's not enough hours,
Or minutes to get done,
What has to get done by a certain time,
And you're feeling tension,

As someone once said to me in that case,
You're not feeding the poor,
Which really provided some perspective,
And made my shoulder blades achy no more.

Then I walked down the street, a snowy day,
Cold enough to freeze balls,
Said, "no," as I passed a man with a cup,
On my way to the mall.

It was so true!
I'm not feeding the poor,
I am too focused on not feeling like,
I've responsibilities anymore.

A Helping Hand

Sometimes things transpire,
As if the universe,
Has heard your calls and wants to help you out,
No matter how perverse,

Through intervention of the highest shock,
From places yet unknown,
Circuitously provided by those,
Who know not the act'ul truth of their role,

And if these things happened all of the time,
We'd call them normal things,
But it's instead divine intervention,
Not commonly believed,

But I've seen it,
Sure, not everyday,
I've also never seen the earth's insides,
But it's as hot as the sun, so they say!

Use Your Brain

Something's brewing up there,
The seed of an ideer,
I'm hoping if I just leave it up there,
It will come out all clear,

Just spew out of my brain a finished thing,
'Cause I've been laboring,
Even if my consciousness don't know it,
Like that Lee don't know Jones' plans, oo wee!

What else do you think the brain is doing,
While you're muddling about,
Using hardly any of its power,
Like your kids when you're out,

It is plotting,
You better know its plans,
And get it started on some useful ones,
Or live like a pair of arms with no hands.

Intrinsic Value

It sure feels like Christmas,
In this Boston Starbucks,
I know because the song playing says so,
But I don't care that much,

I'm immune to these messages of joy,
These purchasing prompters,
It's a shame that buying can't be forgot,
I don't think that's what humans were made for.

We're made for loving each other so that,
We can keep on growing,
Making cool stuff that improves the world,
And improves our knowing,

Instead, somehow,
We've attached some value,
Completely exterior to all things,
As if nat'rly it was always meant to!

You Are Unique

It is overwhelming,
Trying to stake your claim,
When everywhere you turn there's another,
Person seeking a name,

Like in order to succeed in this world,
There are mountains to climb,
Made of millions of bodies climbing, too,
Pulling on your clothes to try and get by,

Of course it all depends on where you are,
Amidst this mountain range,
There are those who find helping hands who help,
Them find wealth and fame.

They're lucky ones, 
They may have talent, yes,
But no more than many others who work,
And find themselves in the mountain's abyss.

If I Should Die

If I suddenly die,
Check the veins in my head,
Sometimes I feel a pain in diff-rent spots,
Something pops, and I'm dead,

Or maybe check inside my intestines,
Sometimes after I eat,
My stomach hurts, there's sensitivity,
'Cause I've had dairy products or some wheat,

Also, I've always thought this nagging cough,
Was due to the weather,
Or pollution particles in the air,
Like a tickling feather.

That could kill me.
Look, all I am saying,
It's possible that I could one day die,
But no autopsy should you be paying.

Meh

What does it mean when dreams
Get more lucid and real,
As if you're slowly transitioning to,
A world where you just feel,

A world where people don't worry about,
Whether you make sense,
As if what is really important is,
One's act'al existential exper'ence,

Which is what it is I like about you,
You are just like a dream,
Forgetting what I did a minute past,
Exac-itally like me.

Now I forget,
What we're talking about,
So let us just discuss for a minute,
How dreams leave you feeling no fear or doubt.

You Are What You Eat

Should I have eaten Poo
Pad Pong-Garee last night?
I can't say I'm feeling fantastic now,
Though I'd left not one bite,

But now I'm halfway between believing,
Something has gone awry,
And that I'm just tired this early morning,
That this will pass by the time I arise,

Then there's the crab-induced lucid dreaming,
Spawning self-reflection,
Like the discomfort one feels from Peyote,
An hallucinogen.

I guess we'll see,
If I get through today,
Then this event's helped me form who I am,
Which is a Poo Pad Pong-Garee-No-Way!

Fighting for Health

Cold, cold, please go away,
Surely, I can fight you,
If my mind asks the body just rightly,
There will be no more flu,

'Cause that is how every ailment is fought,
No matter what docs say,
If mind controls everything body does,
Then battles for health are under its reign,

So maybe I need to send some pills down,
To begin the parlay,
Or meditate, I really don't care which,
I don't have time today,

Nor the next, too,
I am a busy guy,
If my body can't get that through its head,
I'm going to have a talk with my mind!

On Track

It's hard to stay focused,
That's all I've got to say,
Thinking about thinking about it more,
Will just ruin my day.

That being said, you could e'er take the tack,
That focus could arise,
In spurts like the expulsions of geysers,
Or in escapes like the blink of the eyes,

As long as your mind doesn't lose the thread,
S'there's no need to return,
But only find yourself where you left off,
With no need to relearn.

Then all's the same,
As if you went years,
Without a break in your concentration.
Time's real just when memory interferes.

In A Rush

Sometimes things just work out,
Like the world wants it to,
Like there's a force that controls everything,
And has a hard-on for you,

As if you’ve discovered a connection,
Not explained by science,
As if there's anything that couldn't be,
Like those ignorant claim with defiance.

E'en if God himself took me to his pad,
As if he existed,
I'd search through his medicine cabinet,
To prove he could be dead,

Without his meds,
Just like any of us.
Th'only reason he's seemed unknowable,
Is he's keeping us from the IRS.

Good Morning

This one's a throw away,
Just have to get it done,
Like when you need to clean your plate with bread,
Because it's tradition,

But does that mean you've attained quality?
Well, you have in a way,
Making such an act nat'ral as breathing,
Is like modifying Mom Nature's ways,

Or telling the world you're something not right,
According to its laws,
Like so many things that are now nat'ral,
Solely, only because,

Someone once dared,
To stand up for their rights,
Stating that what they are is just alright,
Then also being brave enough to fight.

Back on Smack - I Mean Track

Now that engrossment's gone,
Like Mandela's demise,
Ukraine and Thailand protests, Jung-on's unk,
Have been moved down the line,

We'll return to Rob Ford,
The police have released more evidence,
By order of a judge,
And everyone's suspense,

So now we know that he's done heroine,
Not really a big shock,
He offered five kay and a car for him,
On film while smoking rock.

He's still all smiles,
Nor will police arrest,
Begging the biggest, ultimate question,
Is he forgiven by the elect'rate?

R.I.P. Mandela

How d'you fit such a life, >
Into sixteen short lines,
Already taken up by these three here?
Words compromised for rhymes.

Born of royalty, a runaway, too, -
Forenamed "troublemaker",
Tata was a boxer, runner and proud, -
He'd early int'rests in the black future,

Learned g'rrilla warfare in Ethiop'a, -
Were you aware of that?
A lawyer asking for arms from China, >
So justice could be had.

A time's product.
Think what we could all be,
If our great minds need not fight injustice,
Or for human rights, love and liberty.

The Yemeni Knot

Ex President Saleh,
Likened ruling Yemen,
Sim'lar to "dancing on the heads of snakes".
They event'lly bit him,

Aft thirty years, end of two-eleven,
Protests forced him away,
Sprung up in the midst of the Arab Spring,
No amount of dancing could help him stay.

No surprise the agile mind needed to rule,
Look at where Yemen sits,
'Tween strict Sheikhs to the north and chaos south,
Al-Qaeda in its midst.

So, who's to blame,
For this latest car bomb,
And continuous gun fights in the streets?
There may be too many snakes to pick one.

Changing Time

Sometimes there is no time,
Like literally, none,
Like if your deadline was the death of you,
You would now be no one.

Like even if you knew that you had time,
To live when you've finished,
Even if you thought you had fifty years,
Your whole mind's focused on what you've been dished,

Like time itself is compressing your spine,
Like it is something real,
Like moments of it's only what matters,
No longer how it feels.

There was a time,
When all it ever did,
Was feel like something after it had passed,
'Cause that was the only time that mattered.

North Korea Shake-Up

Chang Song-thaek has been fired,
Dismissed by his nephew,
In North Korea, a place so tight-lipped,
The story mayn't be true,

But if it is, the news is double-edged,
Like torturing satan,
Can you justify a horrendous act,
If it is a just compensation?

Not that Chang was an abs'lutely bad guy,
Or his ex'cuted peeps,
Midst the dearth of ninety-eight he coolly,
Fed the people bark and leaves.

That's pretty smart,
P'haps a sign of genius,
Jong-un should've sold him to U.S. banks,
To teach them how to more better squeeze us.

The Ukraine Is Not Weak

Twenty-two years post r'lease,
From Soviet control,
Ukraine's baggage has not disappeared and,
Russia's gotta red soul,

Well, it's more like the old pow'rs still got juice,
And the Ukraine still needs,
Vast economic benefits from them,
Free to walk, but still only on its knees,

So the people've stood up, demanding deals,
Be made with the EU,
Riots, protests of hundreds of thousands,
Stormed gov'ment buildings, too!

Even in Risk,
Its pressures are varied,
Constantly needing to nurture new ties,
And those to which it's already married.

More Thailand Upheaval

It's a course in protests,
Trying to understand,
The course of events leading to latest,
Gen'ral strikes in Thailand,

Since ending monarchy in thirty-two,
Thailand's had the gamut,
Mil'tary rule to moc-democracy,
Leading to today's confused government,

Led by the sis of ex-leader Thaksin,
Who mil'tary did end,
Now saving her 'gainst calls o'er TV by,
Ex-deputy PM

Khun Thaugsuban.
Now riots in the street,
Are fought with tear gas and water cannons,
'Til either c'rruption's or c'rruption's defeat.

The Way of the World

Watching the Avengers,
Kang has appeared to them,
Claiming Captain America troubled,
The Time-Space contin'um,

The Hulk calls Kang a "Stupid Future Man",
But can't overcome him,
The Captain's willing to die if it means,
Saving civ'lization.

Thor, Iron Man, The Wasp, Hawkeye, et al,
Cannot defeat this man,
Who sounds a lot like actor James Earl Jones,
But seems like a villain.

Just goes to show,
No matter what one says,
Actions will always speak louder than words,
Utilitarianism's the way!

About My Body

I have tiny nipples,
Which I once thought was odd,
For it seemed that everyone around me,
Had a big-nippled bod,

Which meant, of course, that I was not normal,
Something was wrong with me,
But now that I've got a little older,
I find advantage that they're so tiny.

Firstly I avoid chafing when I run,
Which act'lly isn't lots,
And besides, my chest is so damn hairy,
Shirts cannot reach my dots.

Still, I love them,
Two less things to fret 'bout,
Which leaves just an infinite bunch of things,
About my body about which to pout.

What I Know

Sometimes when I'm thinking,
'Bout abs'lutely nothing,
I wonder why I try to think at all,
When not is so freeing,

And so much is put upon memory,
I've never needed that,
It's only ever caused me stress at times,
For peeps 'bout whom I don't give a rat's ass,

Then there is pressure just to understand,
I know many people,
Who haven't needed that skill in their life,
Have food on their table.

What do I know?
Enough just to get by.
I'll let the ones with the capacity,
Be soci'ty's answer to random whys.

An Honduran Election

Election time again,
In the cocaine turnstile!
Aft' the two oh nine controversial coup,
There's more to make you smile,

After inexplicable silent hours,
Smack mid 'lection updates,
Honduras claimed an irr'versible trend,
The National Party holds the mandate.

The wife of ousted Zalaya, Castro,
Once leading Hernandez,
Lost to him and election observers,
Have issued no comment.

Who really lost?
The Honduran people,
E'en now mired in vi'lence and corruption,
Democracy here's been pretty feeble.

Good Luck for Ford

It's no surprise the polls,
Have remained high for Ford,
Much to the chagrin of so-called thinkers,
Who think voters want more,

But in fact they just want less for themselves,
Mostly want less taxes,
And while Rob gets paid, but can't change a thing,
What they see's that council now relaxes,

Free of the tether Ford put on the train,
Property tax goes up,
Yes, partly to pay for the Scarb'rough subway,
Which is the mayor's luck,

'Cause there's no plan,
He never worked with one,
The budget was in surplus when he won.
Now the city's cash-strapped with dwindling funds.

A Confederacy of Dunces

You just can never know,
No matter how good y’are,
If what you do’ll be appreciated,
While your mind is still thar.

Take John Kennedy Toole for example,
Pulitzer Prize winner,
For A Confederacy of Dunces,
Posthumously published aft’ self-murder,

The book was rejected time after time,
And John was sensitive,
Though loved by students for his charisma,
Ain’t filled a will to live.

But if he did,
Imagine what he’d write,
A genius nurtured and art supported,
A mind let to feel that living is right.

Riding The Snow

Well, the snow's come again,
There's no turning back now,
Like jumping of cliffs, then changing your mind,
Or reversing a vow.

You can always gather  all of your friends,
And truckloads of shovels,
Maybe some battery powered heaters,
Remove the snow and begin your revel!

What's the point, there's a surfer with one arm,
Strong in her God belief,
Selling swag, getting married on TV,
No snow, no frigid grief.

But it was hard,
Whether on waves or snow,
One has to learn the path they're meant to make,
E'en though many never actually know.

Lands In Dispute

If you're in an airplane,
China's declaration,
You have to answer a couple questions,
Or risk annihilation.

If you're over the Diaoyu Islands,
An area they've named,
East China Sea Air Defense ID Zone,
So its state sovereignty is maintained.

But Japan also claims these islands theirs!
They call it Senkaku,
Both asked U.N.C.L.O.S for it,
In nineteen eighty-two.

What will happen?!
From war they both won't hide,
Over this gas-rich sea bed between them,
And symbol of nationalistic pride.

JFK Today

It was fifty years ago,
Eleven 'fore my birth,
Still etched in my mind as if I was there,
Enduring nation's curse,

Many stories have been written claiming,
The real truth of that day,
Who really shot President Kennedy,
Cuba, Mafia or the C.I.A.

Would but my own death be shrouded as such,
In so much mystery,
One way of ensuring eternal life,
Of someone's memory.

So, R.I.P.,
Thanks for keeping alive,
The thought that there could be a president,
Who'll truly fight on the peoples' side.

A Day Early

There'll be no time at dawn,
When I'm up anyway,
To fulfill my oath to write a new Wath,
Each and every day,

A task meant only to last 'til year's end,
A semi-random date,
To fulfill an arbitrary desire,
Based on a love of numbers I'll ne'er sate.

In a world that appears to put more weight,
On one 'stead another,
Which is something that is hard not to do,
As human, I gather.

Yet, still I say,
"I will put value there,"
And this is based on nothing but my heart,
A conundrum I sometimes just can't bare.

You Are What You Eat

Sometimes my belly hurts,
Us'ally after food,
A pain wells up at the top of my gut,
And it does not feel good.

I know it has something to do with me,
And what my body likes,
But I've never taken the time to see,
What disagrees with me that I might bite,

It's a funny thing when your body talks,
And you don't understand,
Sometimes I think listening to it does,
Make me less of a man,

It kinda does,
Or, less of a human,
For everything that I cannot eat,
Is insult to my digestive system.

Put Myself Out There

I put myself out there,
'Pressed my thoughts to others,
Who didn't ask for what I had to say,
It affected my nerves,

So much so that I have lost confidence,
Not, though, in what I do,
More balking at the task of reaching those,
Who would agree with my poems as true,

Both in message, also in sentiment,
It's a very rare thing,
To have such a combination of both,
And to get peeps list'ning.

And then there's time,
Both amount and qual'ty,
The factors for communication awe,
Not to mention one's own morality.

Foggy Tuesday

How much can you be tied,
To what others do do?
Well let me tell you, 'cause I'm sure you've thought,
Without them there's no you.

It is true your life would have no meaning,
Without those around you,
Nothing you do doesn't have as its goal,
Participation of at least a few,

No matter what, you want recognition,
The only way to know,
That your actions actu'lly have value,
Even just for show.

So, yes, you need,
The others in your world,
However, you can always weigh yourself,
Against those who love life more than they should.

The Door

There is a door somewhere,
Painted white, that is old,
Some time long ago it ope'd to a home,
With tales ne'er to be told,

It has windows that at one time might show,
Horror, joy and sadness,
These are never absent from any life,
That has reached as far as adolescence.

The same door has moved and now opens to,
A room with naught to share,
Until life spends any time within it,
A new life it must bear,

That it thought done,
The wood had opened up,
Just to find new 'life' and a coat of paint.
Would it could scream out all the acts it once snuffed.

Faith In The Existence Of Others

It is time I join in,
On the conversation,
Assume what I have to say is as real,
As th'rest of the nation,

As if my mind is not sep'rate from those,
Billions of other folks,
That express their experience of life,
Through their naturally expressive form.

Isn't this the goal of each, everyone?
Whether written or said,
Whether rearing, working or murdering,
Lowly or richly bred?

I do not know,
If it even matters,
If anyone understands anyone,
Or if it's all just meaningless chatter.

Second Chances

As you're getting older,
And you finally accept,
That your body will die far, far before,
Your brain would like to let,

The world starts slipping by,
'Cause there is far, far more you'd like to do,
So people remember,
What's it like without you,

For heaven forbid you don't leave your mark,
Because everyone thinks,
It's a far, far better thing that I do,
And everyone else stinks,

But it must be,
A land far, far away,
Where everyone is given equal rights,
And given the chance to have to express their say!

Sorry, Can't Ignore Ford

Don't need the BBC,
To catch up on Rob Ford,
Just wait five minutes in a crowded room,
The topic's in full force,

This time he said 'pussy',
He said 'PUSSY' to a room of news hounds,
Other than stunned gaffaws,
The 'ffect was to dumbfound.

Now when he speaks in the council chamber,
The councilors turn their back,
He's threatening to sue is former staff,
For what the police asked.

If there's no crime,
He's managed to create,
A new tone at Toronto City Hall,
Which, if he's re-ellected's, here to stay

Ford's Beyond Reproach - Far Beyond

It's all come to a head,
Mayor Ford's been called out,
By council after a police report,
Revealed sev'ral more counts,

Information gleaned from former staffers,
I should just make a list:
He drank on the job, they'd go buy him more,
Too, they got called names like, "liberal bitch",

One night he was seen with a prostitute,
Racial slurs were common,
One staffer refused a drive home from him,
After he chugged, like, rum.

Well, 'twas Vodka,
I changed it for the rhyme,
'Cause there's not much else I can add to this,
It's gone past something I can criticize.

Please Do Not Read This

So here we go again,
Life has decided that,
Although I've managed to squeeze in some time,
Think at all, no I can't,

Just pump out the words as if they they've meaning,
There's not much difference,
Than most of the words born into this world,
'Cept these are writ for all to scoff at hence.

So who is in the right in this event?
Surely, it can't be wrong,
To express your thoughts for expression's sake,
In a poem meant as song!

Maybe it is,
Your time's also precious,
I think I'll title this accordingly,
To keep the good relationship 'tween us.

Under the Wire

I almost f'got today,
Now it's almost over,
Like everyday leading up to this one,
The next, and moreover,

There are distractions all over the place,
Because it's late at night,
And I usually write in the early morn,
My head cleared by the early morning light,

Now, I'm afraid, there is not much to say,
But, I cannot stop now,
I've a quota for the rest of the year,
And time is counting down.

So there you are,
A hobby become task,
If I don't write a Wath each day 'til Jan,
I'll have failed a self-imposed random ask.

Happy Remembrance Day

Is't hypocritical,
That Iran had to spake,
'Bout not advancing its nuclear program,
With nucl'ar-weapon states?

Who're also the Security Council,
Permanent member states,
Whose interests are so, so divided,
Some say the United Nations is fake,

That it's an opiate for the people,
That the goal's peace, though fake.
What a topic for this Remembrance Day,
Ninety-five years today,

Sixteen mil dead,
Nineteen wars to today,
Since "the war to end all wars" was finished.
Musn't known human'ty when that was spake.

Help From The Storm

Your heart has to go out,
T'the Philippine islands,
Slammed by devastating Typhoon Haiyan,
The worst hit is Tacloban,

Power went out and the estimates said,
That one hundred were dead,
Then that increased to one thousand had died,
Now thousands and thousands estimated.

Homes destroyed and many people displaced,
This is what Nature does,
We spend time waging war against ourselves,
Like She belongs to us,

But She doesn't,
We're all at Nature's whim,
We would do good to remember this fact,
And save for international helpin'

All Is One Part 2

There's something I's thinking,
I can't remember now,
A thought of such depth and great importance,
Nothing's been as profound.

Perhaps you've had the same experience,
Moments of clarity,
If but ev'ryone at once had that thought,
For that moment we'd fin'lly have world peace,

If but we had a button we could push,
That would unlock our brain,
Recognizing the thought that we all share,
That makes us all the same.

Is this the case?
Is there something "human"?
Maybe we're all made from a diff'rent cloth,
Whose deep thoughts share no common connection.

The New WWF - World Wrestling Ford

It's purely fantastic!
Enough to enthrall,
The wrestling sideshow taking place o'er at,
Toronto City Hall,

First up's the Iron Sheik,
Who visits the office of Mayor Ford,
Decrying his crack use,
Which the Sheik's used before,

Then there's the footage of Rob's wrestler rant,
Who shows up the same day?
Brutus the Barber Beefcake with advice,
'Bout Rob changing his ways!

It's just surreal,
I'm really hoping then,
That the Honky Tonk Man enters the ring,
A once rival of Ford's ally Hogan.

Speed of Life

I don't have much time, now,
And it's not going to stop,
Plus there is all this time I have to spend,
Eating, sleeping and stuff.

It's enough to act'lly make you crazy,
If you stop and think through,
How long it takes you to know what you want,
Then the remaining time allowed to you,

So the best thing to do is just forget,
Try to live in the now,
That's the point made by seers of many years,
Though it's not that clear how,

How in one's life,
You can change th'speed of time,
I've been living in the future so long,
It feels too late to change the speed of mine.

Step One of Twelve for Ford

I guess I can't ignore,
The latest from Rob Ford,
He stood in front of the world yesterday,
And he gave this report:

“Yes, I have smoked crack cocaine,” the man said,
Embarrassing, but smug,
He said, "I kept this from my family,"
But more, "Especially from my brother Doug,"

But he won't step down as T.O.'s mayor,
"The past is the past", yo,
"I was elected to do a job" and,
There's a lot more to go.

He might be right,
Act'lly may be his goal,
There's so much to distract from his record,
Voters may not see'ee's not fulfilled his role.

All Is One Part 1

There is a phrase I know of,
Something like, "All is one",
The notion being we're all composed of,
The same kind of atoms,

Or quarks or whatever named particles,
That are viewed from effects,
And general theories of how they move,
We've just not been able to see them, yet.

Though there's more to the sense of this saying:
If you break yourself down,
To the trees, to others, to ev'rything,
You're intrinsic'lly bound,

We are all one,
Hurt one's to hurt you more,
So, to be willing to hurt someone is,
Self-sacrifice of the highest order.

Fall Back

I don't know what it is,
P'haps 'cause it's unnat'ral,
Can't get my head 'round daylight savings time,
Especially this Fall.

I woke up at five thirty this morning,
And when I think of it,
Can't solve if I'm up earlier or not,
Which then makes me feel like an idiot.

And when I go to bed at eleven,
Is't ten or twelve at night?
Can't believe I have to spend my dear time,
Figuring out this plight!

And for what, y'know?
Either way, I've to live,
I'd rather spend my time contemplating,
A conception that is more inclusive.

Happy Birthday To Me

Th'moon ate the sun, today,
In a rare eclipse event,
First the sun was seen surrounding the moon,
Then was no more present.

The first is Annular turned to Total,
All on my birthday,
A good sign for those with sun in Scorp'o,
Portending positive change on the way,

I also put on some old clothes today,
Bought eighteen years ago,
To wear for my interviews with authors,
On CBC Rad'o,

Those were good days,
When the world seemed larger,
Though as the moon gets out of the sun's way,
P'haps more options will be uncovered.

Before Thy Judge

Just 'cause you think someone,
Is an absolute git,
Does not mean you've spoke some absolute truth,
Or that you've sucked the tit,

Of Mother Nature's abs'lute perception,
There's really no such thing,
Just state your views to the git in question,
And you'll see what "point-of-view" really means.

Your experience or station in life,
Gives you no upper hand,
Who you are's completely arbitrary,
As're the ones that you've panned.

Please excuse me,
For stating the obv'ous,
But if you're looking for a better world,
You'd do better being like everyone else.

I Don't Think Ford's Done

It's hard not to report,
As if the world don't know,
That the footage of Mayor Ford's been found,
Of him smoking crack, yo,

It's been the linchpin that's never been there,
Though, 'spite what the news gleaned,
Rob never said that it didn't exist,
He said it's one "that I have never seen..."

Now you have to wonder if it matters,
I know we care downtown,
We pinkos who listen to those maggots,
But those living around,

Everyone else,
They think he's a great guy,
Nothing's come out but that he may smoke drugs,
Which you could argue's his personal life.

Happy Harrowing Halloween

There is nothing scary,
'Bout Halloween no more,
With all the answers we've had from science,
We're 'magination poor,

Like when my son was out at recess time,
And he looked at the wall,
He said a ghost came out of it, and then,
He lost track of 't chasing a soccer ball.

He didn't consider what it might do,
Which is a ghost's power,
For they have no physical properties,
Worthy of a cower.

What we need is,
More faith in the unknown,
Recall that the knowledge that we possess,
Is a scratch from inside a coffin's dome. (ooOOooOOooOOoo)

The Evil Trees

There comes a time each year,
The very air changes,
Warmth flies away to some far, far off land,
Replaced by cold ranges,

It's a little season we all know 'bout,
I like to call it fall,
The death season that kills all plants alive,
Except for those that the devil does call,

Those evergreens come to mind as evil,
Something that doesn't die,
To me reeks of deals with unsav'ry sorts,
Planning to steal and lie.

"And why", you ask,
"Am I harshing on trees?"
They have gotten away for far too long,
Feigning nice, while causing atrocities!

No Real Anger At Spying Allies

Let's just all be honest,
It's really no secret,
That all countries spy on ev'ry other.
You take what you can get,

In relation to your abilities.
So when the wall's thin, your ear's pressed to it,
You peak at my email,
Just 'cause you can do it.

The only reason countries are "angry",
Is to pretend they don't,
Also practice this nefarious act,
So the public don't know.

Plus, they all talk,
Germ'ny's slap's a nudge, too,
Saying, "let's just get through this discomfort,
Then get back to doing what countries do."

Hey, Let's Rape The Land Again!

Thank god for First Nations!
Would us explorers think,
To consider our effect upon the land,
Being consummate dinks?

Elsipogtogs've rallied,
For many, many days,
'Gainst Fracking that will surely be happ'ning,
If SWN is left to play,

Willy-nilly on the band's property.
You know what Fracking is?
Pump scads of gallons of chem'cal water,
Deep in Nature's abyss,

Then extract gas,
Now you can walk away.
Ethics again is completely ignored,
In the name of our economic gains.

Friendship

Friendship's greater than love,
It spans 'cross space and time,
It doesn't matter the last time you met,
Everything is e'er fine,

You can express your love to a good friend,
With no fear of 'ssumptions,
No obligation to see the other,
No unreasonable expectations,

Friends remind you of the person you were,
And are a reflection,
Of how true you've been to who you once were,
With no discrim'nation,

I pity those,
Who've sacrificed friendship,
In the name of finding success in life,
From some notion that there's no room for it,

The Mind's Death

N'matter what your mind says,
It has little control,
Over the body in which it is housed,
When it decides to go,

Like when you have cancer beyond repair,
You're alive with an end,
More predictable than the av'rage guy,
So there is no luxury to pretend,

That you might live to a hundred and five,
Many people do that,
To put off doing what their heart desires,
Just a trick in their hat,

Like mind cancer,
Spreading lies in your thoughts,
For what could you call it other than death,
When your true dreams and desires just rot?

Summing the Senate Spending Scandal

Looks like prorogation,
Didn't succeed, this time,
In stifling debate on a gov scandal,
S'Tories could realign,

Like the robo-call prorogue of oh twelve,
Do you remember that?
What about Afghan detainee treatment?
"Prorogue Two Thou-Nine" was where it was at!

 But now parl'ment's back, and so is Duffy,
Claiming what I had thought,
That Steve was in on the expense pay-back,
Though he says he was not.

And how 'bout Pam?!
She really seems upset.
This is just two sens of one hundred, five.
We haven't even scratched the surface, yet.

Meditating Again

I meditate again,
Though, I have started slow,
All the reasons why I used to love it,
Once more begin to flow,

Like the thoughts that visit me as I sit,
Solving varied problems,
As if they're there in my mind all along,
And I just wasn't able to find them,

To do it I get up extra early,
But that's, in fact, okay,
For ev'ry minute of meditation's,
Extra pep in the day.

It reminds me,
Who I am, what I love,
To think I left it for so many years,
It's proof we're being oppressed by our gov!

A New Place On The Map

They're eighty-nine more towns,
'Til the Olympic Torch,
Makes it to southern city Volgograd,
Where a bus has been scorched,

By an Islamist suicide bomber,
The video's online,
From a group led by Doku Umarov,
A Chechnyan rebel with a thousand lives,

Who has lifted a moratorium,
On attacks on Russia,
In order to disrupt the Sochi games.
Now you wonder, donchya,

Why, when you think,
Of the world map these days,
Do countries appear and then disappear,
Based on the violence and deaths that's been staged?

Who Has Time To Worry?

Have you seen the pictures?!
The smog's thick as pea soup,
In the Heilongjiang province town Harbin,
Poor Beijing's had a coup.

It's news like this that puts into perspective,
How fucked up the world is,
If there weren't genocide and famine,
All decent folk would be incredulous.

But a person has to choose his battles,
Well, many have no choice,
It is hard to decry the sky falling,
When the state took your voice,

Or killed your child,
Or foreclosed on your home,
Add human desire to make sense of life,
Most just want the news to leave them alone.

The Resilience of the Suicide Bombing Trade

There's so much I don't get,
About so many things.
Let's try suicide bombers in Iraq,
'Cause of recent killings.

The thought is that these are Sunni Muslims,
Mad at the Shia gov,
For keeping them out of pol'tical posts,
Security forces showing no love,

So over five bombs killed more than eighty,
One at a funeral.
This just in the last two days alone,
Suicide bombers all.

Not to be terse, 
But, how can someone see,
How so many innocent people die,
And think, "suicide bombing is for me."?

Guinea's True Hope

Quotations, when used well,
Can be beautiful things,
Like in, Guinea ruling party "wins",
Known as the RPG.

One of the most "stable" nations around,
At least in Africa,
Since leaving "Soc'lism" in the eighties,
After thousands fell to its agenda,

Still, it is a nation of immense "wealth",
Its people the most poor,
These "elections", delayed three years just prove,
What fighting might be for.

Though, Europe's "there",
E'en though it's broke with France,
They've got a "think-tank" called the Crisis Group,
To save itself from its own failing "plans".

The Privacy Bullshit

What is all this hoopla,
About one's privacy?
Furor abounds about the NSA,
Spying on you and me,

Reading our pers'nal emails, taping calls,
Not in our minds just yet.
What's the danger of this information,
If you really stop and reflect on it?

We should really just have nothing to hide,
What we act'lly resent,
Are either things we've done that aren't nice,
Or anti-'stablishment.

But think 'bout this:
Wouldn't life be quite grand,
If there was no fear of being who you're?
Then there'd be no privacy to demand.

Just Because You've Proved Time Doesn't Not Exist, Doesn't Mean It Does

There is much evidence,
That Time really exists,
Through the observation of change through time,
That's not tricky, is it?

The fact that if you take a canister,
Then you fill it with gas,
And the molecules begin all lined up,
They will get pretty mixed up fairly fast,

Somehow shows us that Time is a real thing,
'Cause chances are they won't,
Return to the shape from whence they did start,
And often they just don't,

Yet one believes,
That given etern'ty,
They must return, I guess infinite times,
Which is the real problem of this theory.