America

Poison Ivies

There’s something

toxic

in the climbing

ivy

all the way

to the top

of the higher

education

totem pole.

Three ivies’

presidents

we heard

as defendants

of free speech

on their private

campuses

regardless

of threats—

documented

effects—

of anti

semitic

rhetoric.

No counter

to the hate

expressed.

No one

suggested

context

or debate;

just hate.

Why not

call out

those who

shout

genocide

as a remedy

for 

decades of war?

Unacceptable

admissions

of tolerance

that would

not

be tolerated

if other groups

were targeted.

Free speech

can be

ugly.

But why no

expression

of condemnation?

Isn’t education

supposed 

to develop

the ability 

to envelop

new ideas

and hold

more than

one view

at a time?

This war

in Gaza

has made

the campus

a plaza

for hate.

No longer

a 2 state

solution

discussed,

but disgusting

intentionally

careless

speech

that promotes

violence 

as much

as freedom.

Free speech

can be hateful,

so when grateful

for the right

to verbally smite,

the intention

is inspiration

for action.

And what action

follows

hate?

Legislate?

The lesson

from the Ivy

Presidents’

defences

is that 

the poison

released

is sickening

and could

prove deadly.

It’s not merely

the verbal

venom

spewed,

it’s the silence

ensued

in response

to free speech.

Post Impressionism

Vermin.

From the river to the sea.

Globalists.

Confederate flag.

Noose.

Ok gesture.

Welfare Queens.

Real Americans.

Law and Order.

America First.

MAGA.

Speech

can be

a weapon

that kills

the bodies

politic

and civic.

Let’s not

pretend

that words

may offend

without 

consequences.

Posting hate

through images

visual

and linguistic

is intentionally 

antagonistic

and characteristic

of the most

objectionable

among us.

Proudly

bigoted,

they promote

identity-based

appeals.

These signals

of utterly

inappropriate

appropriations

are coded 

language

that convey

affiliation

by othering

while intentionally

demeaning.

The Dog Whistles

that may have

once been

mostly political

are predictable

and critical

for everyone

to hear.

This coded

communication 

provides 

information

and plausible

deniability.

Hate speech

may be free

to post,

but the cost

of expression

that leaves 

an impression

of hate

and threat

as code

for action

is not 

an abstraction

or mere

distraction.

There is no

innocence

in a call

to violence

without

saying as much.

The impression

says it all. 

22 Years

The fictions

being told

will be sold

among

non-fictions.

There will be

volumes 

recounting

the fabricated

accounts

of corruption

at all levels

of government,

while those

deeply committed

to the rules

and rule

of law

have continued

to work

anonymously

as always

upholding

standards

that the rest

of us now

realize

have been

a privilege

to obtain 

and maintain.

22 years

after

the twin towers

were destroyed,

the threat

is now 

within.

They hate

our freedom.

They hate

our democracy.

They are not

a regular

military.

And they

brought

us

to our

knees.

In between

then 

and 

now,

so many

thoughts

and

prayers.

We are stuck,

deep in a state

of despair

and destruction;

of never

seeming

to accomplish

the mission

of creating

a more 

perfect union

without

retrograde

motion.

Our environment

is in crisis.

A generation

passed.

We can not

pass

on the next

generation.

Raging Bull

He sees red.

Pierced

by several swords

as he bleeds

and huffs,

he charges forth.

Is it really

a contest,

or mostly

spectacle?

They yell

for the raging

bull.

They too

insist they

are wounded

by elites

who woke

to oppress

them.

Ban books!

It’s parental

choice

(of a few).

No black

or gender

studies.

Oh GOD—

nothing queer!

No (parental) 

choice for

the pregnant.

The faux injured,

furious,

and dangerous

mercenaries

are willing

and eager

to disrupt,

disregard,

distort,

and deny

any perceived

threat

to their

dominance.

The raging

bull

posted

daily on

social media

may soon

become

witness or jury

tampering.

But the bull

rages on

and the crowd

loves it.

They think

he’ll care

about them

so they 

care about

him.

Senator Mitch,

the raging bull’s

bitch,

is clearly ailing

in public.

How 

terribly sad

to watch

him frozen

while the one

chosen

to lead

the party

rages 

incessantly

as the victim.

Meanwhile,

the money

flows toward

him

to pay

his defense

for 91

felony charges.

It’s hard

to know

who actually

believes

the bull

or when 

he (and they)

will finally

collapse. 

Part Time

This is the part

when the deep

state of things

associated

with disruption,

corruption,

and threats 

of violence,

lies 

at the heart

of the party

gunning

for power 

at any cost.

Lies 

are spun 

with projecting

behaviors

and controls

on the other.

This time

feels scarier.

We always 

think that.

If the 20th

Century

was 

The American

Century,

punctuated

by wars

each decade,

the 21st 

Century

is the 

Anti-American

Century

punctuated 

by terrorism

and self

destruction

between 

global

crises

shutting us

down

each decade

until we

shudder

constantly.

The trauma

is here

at home

this time.

We watched

the parting

of the sees-

those who see

Anti-Dems

as the prize

and those

who see

Democracy–

once prized–

at stake.

Seeking 

to reawaken

through

Anti-Woke

speech,

the put-to bed

theories 

of Nazis,

Fascists,

“States Rights”,

and women’s health

no longer 

their’s,

are imposed

among numerous

other outrageous

bans and acts .

We thought

time

had played

its part

revealing

a singular

direction

toward

freedom

with liberty

and justice

for all.

But this part

of our story 

is new.

This time,

a POTUS

could be

convicted

and elected.

He would not

be able

to vote

while serving

time

imprisoned.

And then 

there’s

the part

about 

a pardon.

Time

to do

your part!

Whine and Cheese

We have come to expect

Elections 

As traditions

Despite each one

More existentially

Significant

Than ever.

We know 

The show

Must go

On

And on and on

So money

Can roll

The dicey

Game of politics

That is performance

Without art.

It’s a total 

Drag,

(And that’s

Not allowed

Anymore

In some places),

Watching candidates

Dress up 

And exaggerate,

Mugging

For cameras

At cheesy events,

Whining about

Who’s

Destroying us

And how

The stakes

Have never

Been higher.

Do voters want

The Cheese Wiz?

Not just the ersatz 

Savory goo topping,

But a master of faux

Sentiment?

Or the whining

About witch hunts

And hoaxes?

The Deep State

Pedophiles

And Alien

Invaders

Across 

The boarder?

As candidacies

Launched,

Horrible Haze

Enveloped

Much of the 

Country.

Toxic air

Emanated from

Canadian fires,

A result of dry 

Earth, 

A result of

Climate Change. 

Our political

Climate has

Changed 

Profoundly

While the same

Whine and Cheese

Is served

As though

They will persuade

Or reassure

Donors 

If not

Voters

That politics

Ages well

Like

Whine

And cheese. 

Unfortunately or Fortunately

Unfortunately,

CNN hosted

A Trump Town Hall

Where the haul

Was his.

He steered the show

With audience

Applause

And laughter

With him,

Not at him.

It was 

Trump shtick

That sticks,

Unfortunately.

Fortunately,

Despite what he

Spews,

E. Jean won her

Suit

And proved the power

Of Truth

Can still exist

And enlighten.

The female inner

Life is fortunately

Becoming realized

As valid

And worth

A fortune.

Unfortunately,

It is terrifyingly clear

That the bullying

And lying

And obfuscating

And grifting

Are disregarded

And even

Cheered as

Smart tactics

Regardless of 

Consequences. 

Fortunately,

The DOJ has

Increasing evidence

That we can 

Only hope

Makes its

Way to a

Courtroom

SOON.

Unfortunately,

The shamelessness

And immorality

And assaults

Continue full force

And we are 

Captive.

Fortunately,

Santos was arrested

As the House

Is tested

Negotiating

The debt ceiling

Sealing

Their brand

As unfortunately

Cynical 

And unserious

About bipartisanship.

Fortunately,

The Summer

Of Indictments

Is not 

Far away,

And I believe 

There are 

More of us

Who grieve

For the USA

Than for our

Individual

Selves.

Spoiler Alert

You already know

What will happen.

It’s more 

Like a rerun 

Than a new

Show

Of thoughts

And prayers

After 

Each Episode.

Now every day

Is spoiled

By mass murders

En masse.

Families forever

Ruined.

Communities shattered.

And those 

Who relish

Spoiling

The possibility

Of success

Of an opponent

Will stand by

Horror,

And allow

Us

To be terrorized

By the tyranny

Of the crazed

With weapons

Of war

In anywhere,

USA

Any time

Because 

Freedom

To terrorize,

Maim,

And brutally

Murder

Innocent

Actual children

And their friends,

And teachers,

And preachers,

And relatives

Is freedom 

Of their

Sort.

Demand action

From every

Leader

And

Neighbor

And

Person

You know.

Spoiler alert:

For Mothers’ Day

I honored

My mother

With Contributions

To Moms Demand Action

For Gun Safety

And to the

Brigid Alliance.

Moms are being attacked,

And dare I say

Tortured 

Daily,

By fear

And actual assault

On bodily autonomy

Of themselves

And of their living

Kin.

My mother and father

Taught their children

To participate

And contribute

And improve 

Our communities.

I relish the gifts

My mother

Continues

To share with me

That inspire me

Each day.

You don’t need

Me to alert you

To those who

Would rather

Spoil our capacity

To live safely

Than limit

The possibility of 

One less

Shooting.

Demand better.

Do something.

Anything.

Don’t expect

Someone else

To contribute

Or sign

Or call

Or protest

So it’s done.

Sorry to spoil

It for you,

But your inaction

Is complicity.

Just like 

Thoughts

And

Prayers. 

At least 

For Mothers’ Day

Please do something

To contribute

To stopping

The current

Insanity

Killing us

Daily

While expressing

Condolences.

Off Spring

This Spring feels way, way off.


Weather aside, 

this season of renewal 

has been one 

of oppression,

even for what has been

a years-long pattern.

The blooming of authoritarianism

and the reemergence

of overt and repressive

racism and misogyny

seems to have started

with the former

guy.

But of course, 

we know,

that like Fox,

the crazy

needs the audience.

And the audience

has been around

for a long time.

The former guy

became known for

Birtherism,

spreading lies 

for the sake

of stirring up

not merely

opposition,

but

racism

and all manners of hate,

against 

President Barak Obama. 

Trump didn’t invent

Birtherism. 

He saturated the media

with false claims

and false questions.

He wanted to be

the guy 

who wrestled

in the ring 

of public discourse,

coarsening 

the conversations

for everyone.

And this birthed

a candidate

which birthed 

a movement 

front and center

of grievance,

lies, oppression,

even violence,

while raising money

and hoarding

and never-ending

shamelessness

(and crimes)

upending 

and threatening

until….

This climate change

has already devastated,

and the pandemic virus

of authoritarianism

is spreading

around the globe. 

Forget 

RINOs,

now there are 

dinos—

democracies

in name

only.

Well, we see

crocuses of justice

beginning to blossom,

but fear

an off-season

frost

may impede 

healthy blooms

of justice

(despite Thomas, et al).

We thought

a Garland

would braid so much

evidence together

after Trump was

leaving such

an obvious mess,

but the pathetic

and yet 

successful

power grabs 

and conspicuous

cruelty 

and despotism

from every level

of government

flagrantly unleashed

upon the 

innocent,

makes me want

to stay

in the fetal position.

But birth

takes labor.

A LOT of labor.

And pushing.

This Spring

feels off, 

and I want

more than 

a break.

The push

toward justice

and accountability

will require

our insistence,

not merely 

watching or

scrolling

news with nausea.

Do something

to let your reps

know that

American democracy,

racism,

misogyny,

violence,

gun safety,

healthcare

(especially for women),

ethics,

justice,

and more,

matter.

This is Spring

training. 

It’s past

time

to get in the game.

First of All

The first

former POTUS

to be indicted

after being

the first

POTUS 

to be impeached

twice,

will begin

to face

consequences

for the 

first time.

Who knows 

how this

will go?

The precedent

for the President

is being set

and it feels

like the first

reckoning

with American

ideals,

especially regarding

“and justice

for all”.

At first,

the fear 

of violence

seemed to 

make too

many people

reticent about

any indictment.

Will it be bad

for the country?

No justice

has been

bad 

for the country.

(And the world.)

And this 

is likely

to be 

the first

of more

cases

against

the guy

who first

tried

to subvert 

the 2016 

election

with a 

$130k

check,

then tried 

to subvert

the 2020

election

with the call

to Georgia 

that everyone

heard,

and then

he tried

to subvert

the Electoral

College

with fake

electors,

and then

he invited

armed protestors

to march

to  The Capitol,

offering to 

accompany

them,

and watched 

while

they stormed

and desecrated

the building,

threatening our

lawmakers

and the VEEP

and massacring

police.

Meanwhile,

he hoarded

classified

documents

and stored

them at 

his property

in Mar a Lago.

But first

things

first.

All the rest 

will be 

firsts

for a former

POTUS,

and for 

all of us

who dare

to care

about 

the rule

of law

for everyone.