death

by

cancellation of fireworks…

event canceled

i asked
the brown bag prophet
if it
bothered him
that
the city
had
cancelled
the annual fireworks
he
said
ain’t nothing
to
celebrate
this
fourth of july
won’t even
make
a good wake
for
a dying nation
a nation
with
an ever growing
body bag
count
bagging up
blacks
and
browns
those grown
and
those
who’ll
never
get to grow
shot dead
as they read
what a great nation we are
should have read
we were
and
when we’re done
bagging up
the nra’s
school lunches
we’ll starting
filling up the bags
with
botched abortions
or
young mothers
who died
giving birth
to
a child
demanded by
and
abandoned by
good christians
protecting
a moral code
written
on rice paper
promoted
by
demigods
of
greed
so please
don’t ask me why
i’m
not celebrating
or
upset
about
cancelling
a fantasy freedom event

by

initiate plan b…

said smirking

child
i am so upset
all
my retirement plans
have been
turned
upside down
i had
just
located
the perfect flat
in
tokyo
but
now
the whole
thing’s
questionable
no
it’s not
the economy
i
just saw
plan 75
and
now
all i can
think
is
me
in
wasabi
flavored
soylent green

 

 

 

by

engaging but predictable…

an old poet

although the ending
has been
figured out
most people
seek to delay
reading
that final page
opting
to 
reread
earlier chapters
wondering
how the outcome
might have been
different
maybe
a change in
dialogues
or
characters
would have altered
the conclusion
but
more likely
such changes
would have only
added
a chapter or two
without
affecting the end
plus
the current list
of
scenes
protagonists
and
antagonists
is what
has made
the book
so interesting
had we not been
so
engaged in the text
we
might
have noticed
how quickly
the end
was approaching
oh
even
scribbling
analytical notes
in
the margins
has not changed
what’s
on those
final lines
and
yet
we tarry
on
that
next to last page
our fingers poised
to turn
the page
afraid
of
what
we
know

by

gang violence…

gang violence

crimes range
from
theft
to
murder
millions have died
it’s about
long-standing rivalries
common
criminal activities
designed
to
accumulate
money
and
power
unrivaled levels
of
violence
a race war
with
semi-
and
fully automatic weapons
used
for
drive-by shootings
and
residential persecution
and
in an effort
to
enhance
their reputation
they’ve
been willing 
to stage
violent attacks
against
women
and
children
this gang problem
in
the us government
has been
inflamed
by
the infiltration
of
gang members
to
the supreme court