OFF TO CANCÚN / FLY ME TO CANCÚN

OFF TO CANCÚN

 

So if you're a U.S. Senator

And your state is besieged by cold,

Extreme weather, putting the state

In a catastrophic stranglehold,

 

With power outages, houses flooding

From bursting pipes, people dying,

Shortages of food and supplies--

The situation terrifying--

 

How do you help your constituents?

How do you show them that you are in tune

With all their pain and misery?

I know: why not fly to Cancún?

 

Ask Ted Cruz. That's what he did.

He did it for his kids, he said.

Why suffer here when he could

Play on a Mexican beach instead?

 

Actually, he cut his trip short,

And flew back home earlier than planned,

Only because he'd gotten caught

And had to leave the sunny strand.

 

Cruz reveals how little he cares

About the people and dodges attacks.

In a crisis, leadership matters.

And that is something the Senator lacks.

 

-by Bob B (2-19-21)

 

FLY ME TO CANCÚN

 

(This poem can be sung to the melody of the song "Fly Me to the Moon" by Bart Howard.)

 

Fly me to Cancún

So I can play upon the sand.

Let me get away from Texas.

Cold I can't withstand.

I want to play…in the sun.

I want to play….Who will miss me?

 

People in my state

Should understand what it's about.

I don't think the government

Should have to bail you out.

Just blame the Dems; they're the cause.

Yeah, blame the Dems, and their laws.

 

Anyone who wants

To leave can do it if they choose.

I am being attacked

Just because my name's Ted Cruz.

Some people say I'm not fair.

In simple words…

In simple words

I don't care.

-by Bob B (2-19-21)

Rush

He died at seventy years of age;

His words had poisoned a nation.

Much of what he ranted about

Was total fabrication.

 

White identity politics:

He set a blueprint for that.

And when he criticized liberals,

He upped the thermostat.

 

Race-baiting for him was certainly

Par for the course.

Constant attack was his strategy,

With no hint of remorse.

 

Being politically INcorrect

To show his point of view

And crossing the line of propriety

Were what he loved to do.

 

True he had his loyal fans

Who would never condemn

His bigotry and conspiracy theories.

What is wrong with them?

 

The Capitol insurrectionists,

Naturally, he'd spout,

Were NOT thugs, but patriots!

Figure that one out.

 

When giving him the Medal of Freedom

Despite his divisive ways,

Trump insulted all the people

Truly deserving of praise.

 

There are some who’ll jump for joy,

Knowing that Rush is gone.

But sadly all his vitriol

Continues to live on.

-by Bob B (2-18-21)

A Painful Remembrance

On Valentine’s Day three years ago

A high school shooting shook the nation.

Seventeen lives were taken in Parkland,

Florida, an indication

 

That something is wrong--terribly wrong--

In what has been called "the land of the free,"

Where easy access to weapons of war

Led to this brutal killing spree.

 

Each year after the deadly occurrence,

People meet to remember and pray,

While those directly affected by

The shooting suffer day after day.

 

Parents, siblings, relatives, and friends--

Before that nightmare--never expected

For loved ones to have to experience

The horror to which they'd been subjected.

 

And yet there are some people who call

The shootings in Parkland a "false flag."

Tell that to parents of kid after kid

Who left the school in a body bag!

 

That too many lives are lost in deadly

Shootings here is a bone-chilling fact.

We MUST do more than merely remember

The lives that were lost. We must act!

-by Bob B (2-17-21)

The Ballad of Ashli Babbitt

This is the tale of a woman;

Ashli Babbitt's her name.

She lost her life by becoming

Involved in a dangerous game.

 

She'd spent some time in the Air Force--

Fourteen dutiful years.

Later she worked with her family.

Then something snapped, it appears.

 

Her social media postings

Showed her recent romance

With crazy conspiracy theories

And an anti-immigrant stance.

 

Trump's deceitful distortions

Were something to which she held fast.

Her trip to the Capitol Building

Would end up being her last.

 

So say good-bye to Ashli.

What a sad reason to die!--

All for having supported

A president's giant lie.

 

When she arrived at the building,

She probably thought, "What the heck?"

And broke in with the mob

With a Trump flag 'round her neck.

 

A plan to take back the country

Was how the event was billed.

Instead it was a coup,

And Ashli was shot and killed.

 

Some people call her a martyr;

Some people call her a saint.

But most people here will tell you

That those are two things she ain't.

 

When we bow down to tyrants

Who break the existing rules,

We demonstrate the danger

Of fools being led by fools.

 

So say good-bye to Ashli.

What a sad reason to die!-

All for having supported

A president's giant lie…

All for having supported

A president's giant lie.

-by Bob B (2-12-21)

Whiteness in America

I have a hard time understanding

This whole thing about being white

And what makes being white so special.

I CAN'T comprehend it, try as I might.

 

"Special" here means using “whiteness”

To hold others down with unfair laws

Or other discriminatory treatment--

Injustice that should give all people pause.

 

I am of northern European

Background. That is just who I am.

But if my forebears had come from Mars,

Frankly, I wouldn't give a damn.

 

I must accept myself--that’s true--

To be who I am, but I'll come clean:

I'd be content to be any color--

Black, white, or in between.

 

Privileges that come with being

White for many are in effect

Exactly what those very same people

Fear losing and choose to protect.

 

What a shame that is! To me

It absolutely makes no sense

To keep your sense of privilege

And do so at someone else's expense.

 

If only we could find a way

To make such treatment disappear!

Life could be so much more

Harmonious here on this earthly sphere.

 

Be who you are, but learn to appreciate

Others for who they happen to be.

Walk in their shoes, live in their skin,

Hear what they hear, see what they see.

 

White, brown, black…whatever.

Let's unite as people--as one.

NOT other people, but false pride

And prejudice are what we should shun.

-by Bob B (2-10-21)

Do Not Live for Tomorrow

Do not live for tomorrow.

Try to discover how

To cherish every moment--

To live in the here and now.

 

Appreciate your loved ones.

Let their lives express

A deep connection to

Your inner consciousness.

 

Be sensible, though.

Don’t squander away

That which gives you a sense of

Security today.

 

Make the best of every

Moment, whether it be

One that’s filled with sadness,

Or one that’s filled with glee.

 

When your time is up--

Something you can’t forestall--

It would be sad to find out

That you never lived at all.

-by Bob B (2-8-21)

Your Re-imagined GOP

Hey, come join us. Be a part

Of what our Party has come to be:

The re-imagined, highly unorthodox,

Radicalized GOP.

 

Proud Boys and other radical groups,

Step on up; display your charms.

You have found a home with us;

We welcome you with open arms.

 

White supremacists, don't worry:

The GOP won't shy away

From giving you a place where you

Can spew your hate and have your say.

 

QAnon folks, some of your

Conspiracy theories are right up our alley.

Of course, you'll be expected to

Show up at each Republican rally.

 

One of our leading goals is to make

It harder and harder for people to vote.

Overturning election results

Is something else that we promote.

 

If we say Dems are anti-American

And scream "Socialism!" enough,

We can pretend to be patriots

And dare the Left to call our bluff.

 

Facts are not important to us

As long as we can be in control.

Equality and justice both

Play for us a minor role.

 

We don’t care how wacky you are;

We just rely on your total support.

The key words that guide us now

Are "loyalty," "gaslight," "distract," and "distort."

 

Of course, we yell out "Unity!"

With fingers crossed behind our backs.

Power is where it's at, and we

Thrive on power to the max.

 

When it comes to rules, flout them--

Unless they serve your needs at the time.

The end will justify the means.

Not to believe that would be a crime.

 

The obstacles to achieving power

Are certainly NOT insurmountable.

We like accountability,

As long as you don't hold us accountable.

 

If probity is not an issue,

You are going to like what you see:

The re-imagined, highly unorthodox,

Radicalized GOP.

-by Bob B (2-6-21)