Sunday, February 27, 2022

The Ballad of Vladimir Putin

This is a tale of a ruler;

Vladimir Putin's his name.

Unlike a man with a conscience,

This one has no sense of shame.

 

His paranoia controls him.

His ego controls him as well.

Among our current world leaders,

We can find no parallel.

 

Running the world's largest country

Can be a challenge that's tough;

However, as large as it is,

To Putin it's not large enough.

 

So now he has sent Russian troops

Into the land of Ukraine.

Putin's great thirst for power

Is something that he can't contain.

 

Putin can't stand the idea

Of having a country next door

That's strong and democratic.

For him that's a reason for war.

 

And so he came up with excuses

To justify his attack.

How does one deal with a lying

Megalomaniac?

 

How many people will suffer?

How many people will die?

How many now will be homeless?

How many children will cry?

 

How many more dissenters

Will end up going to jail?

Which world democracies

Will Putin try to derail?

 

Who is the next to be poisoned

For speaking his or her mind?

With how many more rubles

Will Putin's pockets be lined?

 

Most of the world agrees

That Putin is clearly a brute.

Praise that day when the Russians

Finally give him the boot!

Yes, praise that day when the Russians

Finally give him the boot!


-by Bob B (2-27-22) 

Saturday, February 26, 2022

At Times There Are Not Two Sides to a Story

At times there are not two sides to a story

When there's a side that hoodwinks and distracts

The public with a far-fetched explanation,

While paying no attention to the facts.

 

A lot of us believe that truthfulness

And honesty should always be our guide--

Good investigative journalists

Check the facts so truths are verified.

 

We can see the demagogues at work.

Oh, how they twist the truth to meet their needs!

They finely tune their powers of deception

So they can get away with their misdeeds.

 

It helps when they have power and control--

Particularly when they have the latter--

And when they have supporters who believe

That lying isn't wrong and facts don't matter.

 

So if you feed me nonsense and proclaim

That honesty is not obligatory,

Then you confirm what I have just expressed:

At times there are not two sides to a story.


-by Bob B (2-26-22)

Friday, February 25, 2022

Who Does Putin Think He Is?

Who does Putin think he is

To move into Ukraine

In order to carry out his vicious

And murderous campaign?

 

His love of power has gone to his head;

His greed has hardened his heart.

He has proved that he knows how

To make corruption an art.

 

Decapitating the government

Of Ukraine: a Putin goal.

Then he can install pro-Russian leaders

And thus maintain control.

 

Dissenters in Russia who criticize

Putin's bellicose ways,

Can be arrested or worse, for Putin

Demands devotion and praise.

 

Freedom and democracies

Don't work, according to him.

But can the people vote him out?

Sadly, chances are slim.

 

He wants to show the world that he has

Control that's ironclad.

He thinks if his neighbors are democratic,

Then THAT makes him look bad.

 

Well, in truth it does, for he keeps

Russians under his thumb.

If you think things are bad right now,

Then watch what's yet to come.


-by Bob B (2-25-22)

Thursday, February 24, 2022

Stand with Ukraine!

Russian aggressors made their move.

Now they're in Ukraine.

What is Putin trying to prove?

What is there to gain?

The autocrat's messages are cloaked

In lies that Russia was provoked.

 

Stand with Ukraine as Russian forces

Put Putin's plan into action.

We already know that this of course is

More than a mere infraction.

Playing the role of boogeyman

Is part of Putin's larger plan.

 

Putin claims his forces are there

To stop denazification.

The argument, which is full of holes,

Is total fabrication.

We already know that he's obsessed

With Ukraine's interest in the West.

 

We watch as the egomaniac

Causes death and destruction

With this unwarranted attack--

Another Putin production!

Stand with Ukraine in this sad hour

As Putin basks in his ill-gotten power.


-by Bob B (2-24-22)

Wednesday, February 23, 2022

Self-exploration

How you shine your light on the world,

Your energy and self-expression,

Your sense of purpose, your urge to create,

Your individual, lasting impression,

 

Your essential values, the way

You try to relate to everyone,

How you cope, and how you see life--

That's all symbolized by your SUN.

 

The image that you have of yourself,

Your subconscious predispositions,

How you fulfill emotional needs,

How you respond to certain conditions,

 

Your sense of belonging, how you like

The feelings of being inside your cocoon,

Your longing for security…

That's all symbolized by your MOON.

 

Communication, your conscious mind,

Your logic, your reason, and how you think,

How you establish connections with others

With whom you want to remain in sync,

 

The manner in which you express your perceptions,

Your intellectual give and take

Are symbolized by your MERCURY,

Which loves learning for its own sake.

 

Your need to establish relationships,

Your sharing, your giving and your receiving,

Your values, your tastes, your urge for pleasure,

Your knowledge that harmony's worth achieving,

 

Your sense of collaboration, your need

For comfort with all that it emphasizes,

Your strong desire to protect those you love--

That's what your VENUS symbolizes.

 

What about your will-power,

Your strong initiative and drive,

Your self-assertion, your energy,

The power that makes you feel alive,

 

Your sense of individualism,

Your urge to reach beyond the stars,

Your action, impatience, and petulance, too?

That's all symbolized by your MARS.

 

When you want to expand your horizons,

When limitations would be a horror,

When you have an urgent need

To improve yourself and be an explorer,

 

When connecting with something else

That's greater than you can make your day,

When you are hopeful and optimistic,

Your JUPITER is having a say.

 

Is there a need for social approval,

For discipline and organization?

Are you a little fearful of change

And seek to establish a solid foundation?

 

Do rules and boundaries give you peace?

Do you find virtue in follow-through?

Can you be a bit rigid at times?

If so, then SATURN is working through you.

 

Perhaps you're feeling slightly eccentric,

A bit detached, in need of a change.

Maybe you're being a non-conformist,

And others find you a little bit strange.

 

Are you feeling rebellious and willful

And wanting to break with the status quo?

Are you impulsive, intense, or restless?

Then your URANUS has you in tow.

 

If you're a dreamer who's somewhat elusive,

Compassionate, and idealistic,

Who wants to be free from your ego-self

And tap into a life that's artistic,

 

And if you have the urge to assist

Those who suffer from exclusion,

Let your NEPTUNE energy flow.

Just watch out for escapist delusion.

 

Perhaps you want to penetrate

The psychological depths of being

And also feel a transformation

Of consciousness--a new way of seeing;

 

Maybe you want to analyze life,

Let go of the old, question taboos,

Explore compulsions, and try to transmute them

Into new form. Then PLUTO's your muse.

 

By tapping into the energies

That flow through us and make us whole,

We can grow from our self-knowledge

And self-exploration--a wonderful goal.


-by Bob B (2-23-22)

Tuesday, February 22, 2022

Peace in Ukraine?

For "peace-keeping reasons," says Putin,

Russian forces surround Ukraine.

To people who are able to see

Through Putin's lies the reasons are plain.

 

Attacking Ukraine's territorial

Integrity is what he's doing.

And once again the autocrat

Has freedom-loving Ukrainians stewing.

 

Russian tactics echo what

Happened back in 2014

When Vladimir Putin annexed Crimea,

Creating another ugly scene.

 

On Fox News, Putin's spokesperson,

Tucker Carlson, is praising the Russians

As he manipulates the political

Landscape in his TV discussions.

 

When dictators perform a nasty

Feat, Carlson celebrates it.

Critics say he doesn't merely

Report the news, he CREATES it.

 

It's sad to see Republicans

Praising autocratic regimes.

What a way to undermine

Democracy, or so it seems!


-by Bob B (2-22-22)