Heat Wave

A heat wave has hit.

While some people are boasting

About their cool air,

In our house we're roasting.

Fans help a little.

But frankly I have found

That all they tend to do

Is blow hot air around.

People say, "Be cool!

No reason to fret."

Easy for them to say.

I hate to sweat!

I have to tell myself

If I'm crabby and terse,

That I should feel lucky.

Things could be much worse.

A wise man once said,

"Here's some food for thought:

When it's cold, be cold;

When it's hot, be hot."

Wise words, I thought.

I'll apply them now,

As I downed my water

And wiped the sweat from my brow.

Still, when winter comes,

I know my thoughts will teeter,

And you'll be sure to find me

Shivering by the heater.

(8-31-17) By Bob B

Dreamers in America

Providing strength in diversity

And beautiful variety,

Like strands of gold woven into

The fabric of society,

Our Dreamers here greatly enrich

American communities.

How callous it would be to close

Doors to opportunities!

Their contributions to our country

Should NOT be disregarded,

Buried in forgetfulness,

Ignored, or even discarded.

They didn't come here on their own;

Their parents brought them here.

Whatever the reasons for the move,

One thing is clear:

Brought here at an early age,

They grew to look ahead

And now have fewer ties to

The countries that they fled.

You might be an American

Citizen, but do

You understand that Dreamers are

As American as you?

(8-30-17) By Bob B

The Tip of the Iceberg

When we see the tip of the iceberg,

One thing that we know

Is there is more--much, much more--

Iceberg down below.

The moon shines on the tip of the iceberg

Creating a silvery sheen

Of gossamer, or sometimes even

A heap of velveteen.

Beating down on the mountain of ice,

The rays from the glorious sun

Melt the surface. But in the meantime,

Damage can be done.

If you approach the iceberg, you

Approach what's "forbidden."

The dangerous part is not what you see,

But rather the part that's hidden.

The shadowy base of the floating mountain

Hidden from your view

Murmurs, "If you get too close,

There's a surprise for you."

The monolithic, towering berg

Will melt eventually,

And gone will be the dangers that

We weren't supposed to see.

Until it melts, be attentive.

Don't be deceived

By bluster and appearances

Not to be believed.

(8-29-17) By Bob B

English: Fun Fun Fun

Isn't English fun to learn--

Especially spelling and pronunciation?

It's hard enough for native speakers

And is the cause of a lot of frustration!

Think of female deer, does,

And then the form of do, does.

Consider the a-s found in as

And how it is pronounced in was.

We have ears on our heads.

Add a b and you've got bears.

There's also e-a-r in earth.

And a funny e-i found in heirs.

Look up and see a star.

Add an e and you've got stare.

That is not so hard perhaps.

But why does stare rhyme with where?

Say is easy to say, all right.

But add an s and you've got says.

But if you add an s to hay,

You do not pronounce it hez!

Back to where, which rhymes with air.

But look at the e-r-e in sphere.

I before e except after c…

But what about the weird word weir?

Tough and though are always fun.

Then there's through and ought and drought.

Don't forget to drop the b

When you say both debt and doubt.

Throw in apostrophes,

And English teachers really have fits

When they are used for writing plurals

Or when it's is used for its.

Forget all the silent letters

In words like write, knot, and pneumonia.

If you said, "I made the rules,"

I'd have to say, "I disown ya!"

It wouldn't work to try to write

All the words phonetically

For Easterners and Southerners

Don't say all the words like me.

For many years I've been around English--

Hearing, speaking, discerning it,

Exploring its countless nuances.

I guess I'll always be learning it.

(8-28-17) By Bob B

Selling/Buying Snake Oil

Watch as Republican members of Congress

Hammer out the specifications

For tax cuts favoring the rich, along with

Giant cuts for corporations.

Though economic inequality

Reaches scary, outlandish extremes,

A system rigged against the majority

Shapes the politicians' dreams.

Bogus studies, lobbyists,

And lavish campaign contributions

Sway our politicians' efforts

To come up with taxation solutions.

Tax havens, loopholes, and dodges

Are great for you if you are rich.

When you can avoid paying taxes

On profits abroad, you've found your niche.

If our taxation system doesn't

Force people to pay their fair share,

Education and social security

Will suffer, along with Medicare

And Medicaid. If that happens,

It's not difficult to foretell

Who will benefit most and who

Hasn't got a chance in hell.

Do members of Congress care about us?

I have to say that it makes my blood boil

To watch them sell what some people call

"Supply-side snake oil."

Buy the snake oil if you choose to.

Unless you're rich, you'll regret it.

The system can screw us royally,

But ONLY if the voters let it.

(8-27-17) By Bob B

Passing Out Pardons

The president has caused a stir.

OH-ME-oh-MY-oh.

He has pardoned Arizona

Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

A man convicted of criminal contempt

Of court enjoys impunity.

He violated civil rights

At every opportunity.

Refusing to follow an order of the court,

He's a man who fudges

When it comes to obeying laws

And listening to judges.

The practice of racial profiling equals

Clear discrimination.

It looks as though it also wins

Trump's approbation.

He has called the bigoted sheriff

A "selfless public servant"--

A ludicrous description to

Those who are observant.

Is this one of many pardons

That Trump extends

To others as he pardons his

Family and friends?

Thumbing your nose at law and order--

OH-ME-oh-MY-oh--

Happens when you pardon crooks

Like Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

(8-26-17) By Bob B

Afghanistan

Karma is a bitch, they say.

We still resist having to learn

That our missteps have negative

Results that will happen in turn.

Afghanistan, in 1919,

Drove out the British. A definite win

For the landlocked nation. Sixty years later--

In '79--the Russians moved in.

We armed extremists to fight the Russians.

Now, how could that strategy not

Be effective in the long run?

No skin off our teeth, we thought.

The Russians left. Our job was over.

Afghanistan was in disarray.

Our lack of support for a country in shambles

Surely helped to pave the way

For the Taliban to take control.

Anti-American sentiment grew.

The country became a terrorist haven.

It's useless for us to wish it weren't true.

For the past sixteen years American

Soldiers have fought an ongoing war

Against extremists throughout the country.

The consequences are hard to ignore.

We’ve been stuck in a vicious circle--

A deathly quagmire--a living hell.

To send more troops to a war we can't win

Is not an easy program to sell.

Have all avenues been considered?

Could the region ever be able

To find a peaceful solution by getting

All parties to come to the table?

We've gotten ourselves in a situation

Where little goes according to plan.

Must more people die or be injured

From fighting in Afghanistan?

(8-24-17) By Bob B

Some People Can Be Their Own Worst Enemy

Some people can be their own worst enemy.

Frequently, they tend to call attention

To their gross incompetence and act

Amazed when they're surrounded by dissension.

Perhaps it's just that they're oblivious

To their surroundings, or they do not care

About matters not involving them.

They're caught up in their grand self-love affair.

Their stratagem relies on subterfuge.

To achieve all their desires, they deceive.

Their focus isn't at all on what to give,

But rather on how much they'll receive.

One wonders if they'll ever pay the price

Of brushing off intelligent advice.

Being their own worst enemy, such people

Love to play the victim or the martyr.

Would it even faze them if friends said,

"You know, we really thought that you were smarter"?

How they love to catapult themselves

Into a situation and then claim

That everybody's out to get them! Then,

"Poor me!" they cry out as they pass the blame.

The words "empathy" and "understanding"

Aren't a part of their vocabulary.

If you don't agree with what they say,

Then you become their hateful adversary.

What would it take to make it clear

That they themselves are what they ought to fear?

(8-22-17) By Bob B

What a Thought!

Try to imagine how it feels--

And this does happen, bear in mind--

To be told by another person,

"Sorry, but we don't serve your kind."

Try to imagine what it's like

To hear over and over that you

Cannot enjoy the same rights

That the majority of people do

Because of the color of your skin,

Beliefs, or sexual orientation.

Humankind is crippled by

Despicable discrimination.

You can apply faulty logic

And you can be falsely pious,

Using contrived arguments

To cleverly justify your bias.

Such sophistry comes to nothing.

Falling short right from the start,

It treats humanity with contempt

And reveals a hollow human heart.

What a wonderful world we'd have

If the whole human race

Embraced the powerful idea that

Discrimination had no place!

(8-20-17) By Bob B

The Tougaloo Nine

In 1961 nine students

Crossed over the boundary line

Of segregation. Those students

Have since been called the Tougaloo Nine.

A Jackson, Mississippi, library.

March 27, the day.

The long battle for civil rights

Had already been underway.

One student walked to the counter

And very politely asked for a book

That wasn't available elsewhere. Boy!

Did she get a dirty look!

The students were told they didn't belong there.

There would be trouble unless they departed.

They could go to the "colored" branch.

That is when the read-in started.

Arrested and taken to jail, the students

Couldn't call for legal assistance.

They were kept there overnight

And rudely grilled for their passive resistance.

Police were waiting with dogs by their sides

And clubs in their hands on the day of the trial

To roughen up the students' supporters

With some authoritarian bile.

In front of the library now stands

A freedom marker in recognition

Of nine who traveled the freedom trail

And faced bitter opposition.

Obstacles remain in the path.

The struggle is far from over. We must

Honor courageous people before us

And fight for laws that are fair and just.

(8-19-17) By Bob B

Ruminating on Charlottesville

Let's call it what it is

And NOT cater to far-right haters--

Neo-Nazis, white supremacists,

And KKK demonstrators--

Who in polo shirts and carrying

Tiki torches in the night

Proclaim to us that expressing their hatred

And bigotry is their right.

Let's not legitimize

Efforts to take us back in time--

Efforts to recultivate

A prejudicial paradigm.

Trump and his administration

Of nativists and alt-right advisers,

Have openly given a green light to

Racist rally organizers.

Fringe groups that were somewhat obscured,

Have stepped into the light of day,

Emboldened by what irresponsible

Leaders might say or not say.

People were injured in the discord;

A counter demonstrator was killed.

Let's not allow desires for odious

Racial injustice to be fulfilled.

A president who says he wants

To make American great again

Is really much better at

Making America hate again.

(8-16-17) By Bob B

You Trust the Wizard?

So you trust that the Wizard

Will get you home again?

When you're left behind,

What will you do then?

Many see the Wizard

In different manifestations

And fail to recognize

The charlatan's limitations.

Is he a giant head,

Full of fury and ire?

Is he a heartless monster

Or a raging fire?

Don't you realize

You've made a huge mistake

By putting all your trust in

A flimflam man, a fake?

The show fools many

Who don't see past the façade--

Who scorn others who try

To open their eyes to fraud.

He doesn't want the people

To see what he really is--

To see how he has managed

To acquire all that's his.

He will try to convince you

That what he sells you is fair.

Then one day your find

He's nothing but hot air.

Just be grateful when--

And it couldn't happen too soon--

The sly, slippery Wizard

Sails off in his hot air balloon.

(8-12-17) By Bob B

Praise to the Leakers

Praise to the leakers who take a risk

To rout out corruption, wrongdoings, and lies.

We have the right to know the truth.

A thousand thanks for opening our eyes.

Praise to the investigative press--

Brave, ubiquitous, and alert.

Exposing deceit and hypocrisy means

Sometimes having to dig up dirt.

Praise to the heroes who fight for our rights,

Exposing themselves to insults and scorn.

We take for granted most of our freedoms,

The loss of which one day we could mourn.

Praise to all the defenders of truth.

Don’t be bullied into submission.

Your vigilance will guide us when

Integrity suffers from malnutrition.

(8-9-17) By Bob B

Home Here on the Earth

(Sung to the tune of "Home on the Range")

I hope there's a place where the whole human race

Can survive the weather extremes--

Where most of the herds don't ignore experts' words,

And we ALL have clean rivers and streams.

Chorus:

Home here on the earth,

Where we all want to live out our dreams--

Where it would be strange to deny climate change

And life's not as bleak as it seems.

When certain jackasses don't restrict greenhouse gases

And they couldn't care less 'bout the earth

And they cause many schisms with trite euphemisms,

They ignore the planet's true worth.

Chorus:

Home here on the earth,

Where we all want to live out our dreams--

Where it would be strange to deny climate change

And life's not as bleak as it seems.

When the USDA says starting today

Saying "carbon" is strictly taboo,

Their major concerns are the greatest returns,

And to hell with what might be true.

Chorus:

Home here on the earth,

Where we all want to live out our dreams--

Where it would be strange to deny climate change

And life's not as bleak as it seems.

When the experts say, "Wow, we are feeling it now,"

And they watch the ice melt at the poles,

You don't have to be a genius to see

The importance of certain controls.

Chorus:

Home here on the earth,

Where we all want to live out our dreams--

Where it would be strange to deny climate change

And life's not as bleak as it seems.

(8-8-17) By Bob B

52nd Anniversary, But...

Fifty-two years ago

The people of the US saw

President Lyndon Johnson sign

The Voting Rights Act into law.

Our leaders and our Supreme Court

Have since struck down important protections

That came with the VRA,

Affecting our freedom and future elections.

Our right to vote is under attack--

A blow in the gut to Uncle Sam.

The president's new Voter Fraud

Commission is real sham.

Applying more obstacles

That make it harder for people to vote

Is not conducive for keeping our

Democratic values afloat.

The reasons for the assaults on our rights

Are obvious and calculating.

Believers of democracy

Should find them all infuriating.

It's sad and scary to see our leaders

Limit our rights with no remorse.

But clearly for our president,

That, good people, is par for the course.

(8-7-17) By Bob B

All Is Not Well in Trumplandia

All is not well in Trumplandia we hear.

Investigations are closing in,

And all efforts to find or maintain

Integrity are wearing thin.

Untold uncertainty looms;

Unhealed sores are starting to fester.

The leadership position has been

Usurped by the court jester.

Vultures wait in anticipation

While jackals feast on defenseless lambs.

The court jester has wily perfected

And art of confusing facts and shams.

The naïve crowds hear "Hoax!" and "Fiction!"

And think the jester is being funny.

Their grating cheers drown out the call:

"Follow the money! Follow the money!"

Snake oil is in demand.

Distractions are the name of the game.

The focus has shifted from seeking the truth

And doing what's right to passing the blame.

Structures are crumbling, and yet the push

Is mainly on finding the wherewithal

To place on the country's southern border

An unnecessary wall.

In the Big House, day after day,

The leaders are playing musical chairs.

While donors and supporters watch,

Their eyes carefully guarding their shares.

Credit is taken where credit's not due;

Trust and dependability scatter.

A dream come true to a few becomes

A nightmare when the wrong things matter.

All is not well in Trumplandia.

Shhh! The world can't know. But wait!

You say the cat is out of the bag?

Then it's too late! It's way too late!

(8-5-17) By Bob B