(I utilize a Liars song title in this repetition)
A strip mall
the dumb in the rain
ten minutes in soggy
run quicker than
shoes don't care
several scared cheetahs.
who you are.
A skinned cat
more than one way.
A shelled turtle.
to rock.
A principled stand in the age of compromise.
to rise headily like
a
balloon made of cheetah pelts.
a
dictator made of poor man corpses.
a
nation mourns its symbolics.
Ten minutes soggy
the dumb in the rain
cheeks in the crowd
a recovery! a recovery.
turn toward home
a line at the crosswalk.
A large swaggering man, knowing the value of
turtle shells a well placed phrase balloons.
hot air
a strip mall to the poor man's corpse.
leave it to crumble
the dumb in the rain
or it will always be with us
in their tattering shoes
boots, these boots are leather, they
know who you are.
Showing posts with label moderate politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label moderate politics. Show all posts
Monday, 8 April 2013
Friday, 9 November 2012
poli #3. post, post, post.
So. Here's the wrap-up on my end: I had a pre-election "here's why I voted for Obama" post (I wanted to post it pre-election to avoid either the smugness of victory or the bitterness of defeat.) There's a copy of it saved, un-posted, on this very blog. I wasn't quite finished with it, then hey, ran out of time. I also had plans for a "here's why you should vote however you see fit-- third party, go for it" post, because I do believe that the two party system can create a stagnation of choice and ideas. I've never seen a third party vote as throwaway, and I deplore the guilting that party-liners (especially Dems) heap upon people who aren't satisfied with the mainstream candidates. I also wanted to issue a plea for civility, but sorta sunk my own ship with Poli Post #2 (you can just scroll down.) That post was late at night, I was fed up with a lot of things (only some political) and so I went for it. But it was a lot more troll-i-er than thou than I was hoping.
But hey, I get angry sometimes, and when people are angry, they aren't always fair.
The large reason I didn't end up going through with my planned regimen of posts is simply a time/energy combo, but up until Monday night I was planning on busting a few out on Tuesday before results were known.
But Monday night, I was at Big Mario's, eating a pizza and drinking a Rainier, pre-hosting a poetry reading at RHH. I am generally used to being the oldest person there besides the staff, so when a couple roughly my folks' age came in, got some tequila, a beer, couple of slices and started talking to me, I was a little surprised.
They were visiting from Nevada-- North Nevada, they were quick to specify; the conservative part. They were here to visit Seattle for a dramatic topographical getaway, and to have conversations with people and try to convince me to vote for Romney. I told them my ballot was already mailed off. Once we got through the initial sweepy-volley of recriminations about "Young people" in "cities," we were actually able to hit on some common grounds, or at least talking points. I'd give a more complete rundown (he-- the guy did more of the talking-- does want universal heathcare, but felt Affordable Care act was poorly written and timed, to which I am open, however, the former is hardly a talking point on the National Republican Agenda; I am more than open to the idea that maybe the U.S. doesn't take China seriously enough as a threat, but both of us were sort of stymied on the "so what" part of that question-- he believes we'll all be dead in 25 years from an invasion) but I have a lot to do today, so I'll leave with these observations:
1) when they said they wanted to have a conversation, they actually wanted to have a conversation. People of all stripes are always saying "lets have a conversation" when they mean "let me talk."
2) After that, I didn't have the heart to post any vitriol or half-intellectual screeds on my political choices. There is, quite literally, the whole rest of the internet for that, and pictures of cats.
3) I doubt either of us was going to change eachother's minds. But it's good to get out of the echo chamber, and easier to do so in person, over pizza.
4) I don't also have the heart, or will, to get on any Gloat-Trains. I am happy Obama won. I am ESPECIALLY happy that pretty much any Senator who said at best ignorant, at worst vile things about rape was handily defeated. The referrendums in Washington went largely my way. But I'm tired. Like a lot of people, like arguably, the President himself, I'm really exhausted by the finger pointing and blindness of punditry.
I don't know how the American Voting Populace can go from Ignorant, Neanderthal Racist Hicks, to Informed, Motivated Individuals Who Believe in the Cause and Are Getting Involved in a span of two years, or (conversely) Intelligent, Self-Sufficient Patriots to Money-Grubbing, Ignorant Dependents in a mere two years, but hey-- who knew? These are the sort of implied dialogues whenever a side wins/loses and it's hard not to get eye-rolly at that.
Also. I wish Libs would admit that MSNBC is basically the lefty version of Fox News and should be treated as such.
anyway. I won't go so far as to post something about being given "hope" re: healing a divisive land, or whatever, but I will say that I left the conversation feeling better about the people behind the politics than I went in, and I think I'd say that even if things didn't go my way.
But hey, I get angry sometimes, and when people are angry, they aren't always fair.
The large reason I didn't end up going through with my planned regimen of posts is simply a time/energy combo, but up until Monday night I was planning on busting a few out on Tuesday before results were known.
But Monday night, I was at Big Mario's, eating a pizza and drinking a Rainier, pre-hosting a poetry reading at RHH. I am generally used to being the oldest person there besides the staff, so when a couple roughly my folks' age came in, got some tequila, a beer, couple of slices and started talking to me, I was a little surprised.
They were visiting from Nevada-- North Nevada, they were quick to specify; the conservative part. They were here to visit Seattle for a dramatic topographical getaway, and to have conversations with people and try to convince me to vote for Romney. I told them my ballot was already mailed off. Once we got through the initial sweepy-volley of recriminations about "Young people" in "cities," we were actually able to hit on some common grounds, or at least talking points. I'd give a more complete rundown (he-- the guy did more of the talking-- does want universal heathcare, but felt Affordable Care act was poorly written and timed, to which I am open, however, the former is hardly a talking point on the National Republican Agenda; I am more than open to the idea that maybe the U.S. doesn't take China seriously enough as a threat, but both of us were sort of stymied on the "so what" part of that question-- he believes we'll all be dead in 25 years from an invasion) but I have a lot to do today, so I'll leave with these observations:
1) when they said they wanted to have a conversation, they actually wanted to have a conversation. People of all stripes are always saying "lets have a conversation" when they mean "let me talk."
2) After that, I didn't have the heart to post any vitriol or half-intellectual screeds on my political choices. There is, quite literally, the whole rest of the internet for that, and pictures of cats.
3) I doubt either of us was going to change eachother's minds. But it's good to get out of the echo chamber, and easier to do so in person, over pizza.
4) I don't also have the heart, or will, to get on any Gloat-Trains. I am happy Obama won. I am ESPECIALLY happy that pretty much any Senator who said at best ignorant, at worst vile things about rape was handily defeated. The referrendums in Washington went largely my way. But I'm tired. Like a lot of people, like arguably, the President himself, I'm really exhausted by the finger pointing and blindness of punditry.
I don't know how the American Voting Populace can go from Ignorant, Neanderthal Racist Hicks, to Informed, Motivated Individuals Who Believe in the Cause and Are Getting Involved in a span of two years, or (conversely) Intelligent, Self-Sufficient Patriots to Money-Grubbing, Ignorant Dependents in a mere two years, but hey-- who knew? These are the sort of implied dialogues whenever a side wins/loses and it's hard not to get eye-rolly at that.
Also. I wish Libs would admit that MSNBC is basically the lefty version of Fox News and should be treated as such.
anyway. I won't go so far as to post something about being given "hope" re: healing a divisive land, or whatever, but I will say that I left the conversation feeling better about the people behind the politics than I went in, and I think I'd say that even if things didn't go my way.
Thursday, 16 June 2011
Faith Without Works/Ties that Bind/Toby Shiner's Jacket.
jewelry rained from the top of the sears building and
the hockey jerseys glowing in the light of the carfires
raised chants, broke windows, someone tweeted pictures
picked up by the news.
in the largely empty workroom a computer plays anarchist
folk rock from the thirties. we drink prime whisky on a
brown carpet. the novelist unfolds deserting the "movement"
slowly, halting to shake his head. "we were just kids."
bleak unraveling of belief in brick and mortar and black masks.
conflicting reports as to what this actually means.
a sort of populist chaos. the petulance of spoiled children.
inevitable release of Id in a building full of people,
the outflow of violence. loud noises! ooh, shiny! fuck the fuckers!
at my 19, the ponytail had ceased to be political. the
les schwab jacket, two sizes too big, gifted by a friend was
also not a political statement, or an ironic one, but it did
make me feel bit harder than maybe I was. when the protests turned
to riots turned to A Battle In Seattle and cameras swarmed
and my co-reporters at The Polaris took their tender skin to get
broken by rubber bullets on the second day, bragging on
the fuckedupness of the thing I knew that I had to finish the week
without these bragging rights, the anarchy of the restless, the bravado
of tourists.
the hockey jerseys glowing in the light of the carfires
raised chants, broke windows, someone tweeted pictures
picked up by the news.
in the largely empty workroom a computer plays anarchist
folk rock from the thirties. we drink prime whisky on a
brown carpet. the novelist unfolds deserting the "movement"
slowly, halting to shake his head. "we were just kids."
bleak unraveling of belief in brick and mortar and black masks.
conflicting reports as to what this actually means.
a sort of populist chaos. the petulance of spoiled children.
inevitable release of Id in a building full of people,
the outflow of violence. loud noises! ooh, shiny! fuck the fuckers!
at my 19, the ponytail had ceased to be political. the
les schwab jacket, two sizes too big, gifted by a friend was
also not a political statement, or an ironic one, but it did
make me feel bit harder than maybe I was. when the protests turned
to riots turned to A Battle In Seattle and cameras swarmed
and my co-reporters at The Polaris took their tender skin to get
broken by rubber bullets on the second day, bragging on
the fuckedupness of the thing I knew that I had to finish the week
without these bragging rights, the anarchy of the restless, the bravado
of tourists.
Wednesday, 30 September 2009
Also, I'll Have Rabies
In three days
when they've put the raptors back in their cages
and catalogued all their favourite magazines
now used to paper prison roofs
I will drink coffee still
shaking and dressed in newspapers
as I walk blind to my job at the morgue
where I will daydream of shoe polish
and proper sausage preparation
while outside the drums keep going
and my one half-dead co-worker
says nothing except
how different things were
just three days ago.
when they've put the raptors back in their cages
and catalogued all their favourite magazines
now used to paper prison roofs
I will drink coffee still
shaking and dressed in newspapers
as I walk blind to my job at the morgue
where I will daydream of shoe polish
and proper sausage preparation
while outside the drums keep going
and my one half-dead co-worker
says nothing except
how different things were
just three days ago.
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