Under The Influence

In the influencer

era,

an influx

of flummoxing

speech

and behavior

is driving

the culture,

media,

and politics

such that

verbal tics

become

propoganda 

tricks.

The most 

influential

and least 

presidential

still has 

the potential

to create

torrential

storms.

He inflicts

pain

while feigning

affliction

from unfair 

prosecution,

and his claims

of innocence

bring cognitive

dissonance.

He relishes

the influence

he has,

while

denying

plausibility

of influencing

the rioting

and the rest

of the insurrection.

Under The Influence,

we’ve been 

driven

to the precipice,

where every 

action

and utterance

feel consequential,

if not 

existential. 

Driving

while intoxicated,

the indoctrinated

keep drinking 

in 

the bathtub

gin—

a homemade spirit

of amateur conditions

against prohibitions.

We need 

Dry January

to Sober

October

to remember

November

requires

each of us

to be

a defender

of democracy.

Your influence

is needed

until

his is defeated,

which may

continue

from confinement.

There’s no 

requirement

for influencing

beyond the appeal

to how people feel

or wish 

to be

regarded.

So while 

we’re bombarded

by the craven

Maven 

of Influence

(and verbal

flatulence),

don’t let his

petulance

and contaminants

drive you further

under his influence.

Drive with focus

as the

auto

reply.

Old Spice

It stinks

to holy hell-

the old man

smell-

that leaves

the future

behind.

Like bad

body spray

that won’t go

away,

the redolence—

the prominence

and dominence

of intolerance—

is fetid.

Shamelessly 

reeking

while constantly

seeking

money

and political

support,

intent to 

distort

and contort

the law,

I remain 

in awe

that he can

clench

the nomination

with the stench

of abomination.

Ballot removal

has found

approval

in some states

thus far.

His odor

persists

as he 

insists

he’s clean

as he vents

his spleen

on the rest

of us.

Meanwhile,

the elder

once fiesty

pol

needs to call

a life line.

He smells 

fine,

but too benign

and in

decline,

which is sad

and also

terrifying.

Gimme that

Old Spice

as when 

he was

Vice,

or entice

someone

else to run.

Voters want

vim

and vigor,

(and some 

want vinegar);

we can’t 

let it

all

come undone.

The new year

upon us

when we’ll

vote for 

the POTUS

should be

one for 

the ages.

And their

ages 

will play

into the fray

with a bouquet

of toilet water. 

So hold

your nose;

here it goes:

2024 is here.

Volunteer.

Persevere.

Be sincere.

And vote.

Here’s 

to a high note

ending

with all

that’s impending:

we’ll be

sending

the offending

away.

Flossing

I have never 

been much

for New Year’s

resolutions,

though

I tend 

to set

goals

anyway.

Of course

I forget 

the goals

I set

within weeks.

But 

at the end

of each

year

I promise

to adhere

to flossing.

My oral hygiene

is otherwise

pristine

with electric

toothbrush

and water pic.

But flossing

consistently

continues

to elude me;

I hate it.

It’s gross.

And my teeth

are too close

on one side.

That aside,

I know

it’s important

and despite

this chore

I abhor,

I want to

explore

the spaces

between—

flossing

as metaphor.

In 2023

the unexpected

tested

my ability

to adapt.

Being 

in the space

between 

what had seemed

to be

solid structures,

then fearing

erosion,

with protruding

particles

that needed

removing,

I often chose

merely

disapproving

hoping

to let

stuff dissolve.

But from

the personal

to the political

I now resolve

again,

this time

publicly,

to floss

each day;

to clear

a space

where no

articles

or particles

of what was

otherwise

digested,

remain

taunting

my tongue.

Committing 

to thread

instead

of mere 

disgust,

even when

there’s plenty 

of disgust

to discuss,

I intend to

explore

the metaphor

of flossing:

tossing

my own gunk

away

to better survey

all the stories

we replay

and say

on assumption

post

consumption.

Here’s 

to a cleaner

and healthier

space

we create

by resolution

and constitution

(and prosecution)

and evolution

and conclusion.

Flossing as metaphor

in 2024—

clearing space

to embrace

the better,

and to rid us

of the disgrace

that has threatened

our health.

Happy 

and Healthy

New Year!

The Nutcracker

I never understood

how a nutcracker

could

be

a favorite

gift

until now. 

Oh how sweet

the suite

has been

this week. 

Like the famed

ballet

our nutcrackers 

today

are soldiers

of the good

and just.

The Nutcracker

kills

the menacing

7 Headed

Mouse King,

allowing

the land 

of the sweets

to thrive.

Earlier this week

The Mouse King

made references

to his preferences

for dictators

and his desire

to hire

those 

who will impose

restrictions

and revenge.

But our 

Nutcrackers

have been

cracking

while

the nutty

keep attacking,

because

it’s what

they do.

Now Rudy

owes Ruby

and Shaye

a ginormous

pay day,

and more

to come

because

he won’t

succumb

to accountability.

Judge Engoron

closed the door on

the lies

of the “expert

witness”

of the Mouse King.

And Bravo,

Colorado,

for disqualifying 

the horrifying

candidacy

of the Mouse King.

Letitia James,

Fani Willis,

Jack Smith,

and so many

other

Nutcrackers

among us,

are doing 

the work

of justice

as we wait

for Christmas

whatever

time of year

it comes,

bearing

the gift

of blocking

The Mouse King

forever.

Heart Failure

Dis-ease

was becoming

chronic.

We became

fatigued.

Politics

became nauseating.

Ego edema

created swelling

that made

us 

unrecognizable,

as we 

itched

and twitched

for something

better.

Our organ

for filtering

waste

became wasted

on itself,

the damage

progressive

with conservative

treatment.

But conservative

now means

conserving

the dis-ease,

not the balance

or flow

to ensure

functionality.

And with

a sick

body

each organ

of the organization

becomes

compromised

without compromise.

This

is what 

being

seriously ill

feels like.

Our heart

is failing

us.

Waste

and bile

are no longer

filtered,

and our heart

is giving

out.

The heart

is our

center

with right

and left

sides

that need

each other

to fulfill

its task.

Our heart

is the core

of our

life.

Our heart

is our 

purpose.

History

is our brain.

It stores

the stories

that give 

meaning.

We have always

had a mean

history 

alongside

lofty aspirations

and accomplishments.

Our heart

and brain

contain

us 

but strain

us 

when either

is drained

of functionality,

no longer

self regulating.

History

(and therefore

life)

is a spiral.

But viral

contagions

can attack

various parts

of the body,

as we learned

in 2020.

The most

essential

part 

of us,

the heart,

is failing

us

from abuse

and under use, 

as it has

and hasn’t

before.

We can

restore

our functionality

without

the cult

of personality

and criminality

or sentimentality.

We see 

our own

banality

of evil

and those

who have

lost

their humanity.

Our heart

was attacked,

and the walk 

back

to recovery

is painfully

slow,

a feature

and a bug

of democracy.

But now,

the enemy

of the good

is not 

imperfection;

it’s insurrection

and rejection

of our heart. 

We must

reject

the heartless,

no matter

how taxing.

Don’t

just sit

there.

It’s bad

for

the heart.

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.

Art is Hope

Art

is hope.

Even

this expression

of mine,

mining

for 

some lesson

to lessen

my anxiety

about 

our society

and politics,

is crafted

in the hope

that we

connect.

Classical

works

and modern

classics

soothe

with reminders

of brilliant

skill

and technique,

and reminders

of unique

voices

in other

eras

and moments

that still

speak

to us

today.

The arts

often 

define

the times

in which

they were

created.

In this century,

identifiable

styles

have been

reincarnated

and mixed

together.

New

textiles

are used

that last

forever

in the earth

and sea

leaving debris

without

learning.

Our current

moment

feels

inartful;

lazy,

simple-minded,

destructive,

and hateful.

Perhaps it 

is reflected

in the minimalist

fashion

suggesting

dispassion,

despite

passions

flaring

24/7.

We need

art

to hope

to cope

to scope

out 

new paths

of thought

and action.

Hardly 

distraction,

art’s attraction

is creative

extraction

in reaction

to now

with hope

that tomorrow’s

sorrows

will be less

severe

and fear

will be transformed.

Art is

transformation,

which

gives me

hope.

Terminator Too

A second

term

will

be the first

time

we will

come to terms

with our own

demise

as a democracy.

Trumping

up

conspiracies

and other

theories

in order

to grab

the presidency,

the 45th

POTUS

seeks 

not just

a rematch,

but to hatch

a plan

for the Mar-a-Lago

man

to remain 

in the White House

the rest

of his

life span.

The four year 

term

would be

terminated

along with

the Constitution

and any 

institution

that he terms

problematic.

He’s like

a termite—

hiding 

just out

of sight

behind

the walls

before 

they crumble

from years

of the pest’s

consumption,

until

the destruction

is structural

damage.

He seeks

to avoid

a prison

term

(or 4)

by running

for President

of MAGAstan.

Coining

and coopting

terms 

of speech

for agreement

that the breach

with democracy

is somehow

other

than his.

The deep 

state 

of subversion

and

his perversion

are on display

every

day.

In terms of

options,

one thing

we can 

do

is hold

those who 

enable,

even seemingly stable,

to account.

The MAGA

malignancy

requires

proficiency

in democracy

to build

resiliency.

Despite 

imperfections,

rejecting

deflections

(and certainly,

insurrections),

is a starting point

for keeping

The Terminator

from seeking

a forever

next term. 

The problem

ain’t 

Biden;

it’s those

hidin’

behind 

The Terminator

along with

The Terminator

Too.

Gag Reflex

A Gag 

Order

was reinstated.

You know 

what that 

means:

a dare

to air

and impair

potential

jurors,

witnesses,

clerks,

and anyone

associated

with each

trial

of the vile

former POTUS.

He taunts

what he wants

with the confidence

of no consequence

to him. 

The running gag

is no joke

however much

he needs

to provoke

and invoke

“rights”

that are wrong.

That reflex

is strong

but doesn’t 

belong

only to him.

The say anything

world

in which 

we live

could use

more thought

before

speaking freely.

Of course

celebrity

adds intensity

to any message.

So retractions

soon follow

as they swallow

their pride 

trying to hide

their ugly

or stupid

side.

And now 

universities,

struggle with

absurdities

beyond fraternities

as asymmetries

highlight

bigotries

and hostilities,

no longer on

the peripheries

of campus life.

Everywhere

people

seem to reflect

less

and sloganeer

more.

Meanwhile….

“We’ll see

what happens,”

as he likes

to say,

now gagged

and bound

by law 

and order. 

His Gag 

Reflex

effects

everything

coming up. 

Men O’ Pause

The pause 

has been

paused.

For a moment,

pregnant 

with possibility

for release

and aid,

the pause

extended

and portended

hope.

Eight more

hostages

freed,

they agreed,

and that

was that.

We know

that Blinken

and Biden

are, 

along with Qatar,

attempting

to broker

more than

a Jack Benny

pause. 

But it’s Bibi’s

war

while more

and more

information

reveals

received

details

of Hamas’

depraved

planned assault

on innocents

as long

as a year

ago.

Let’s just pause

here

and take in

what is clear

in this mess.

Destroying

Hamas

and leaving

Abbas

will not

go well.

And now 

with this intel

it seems

to smell

of rot 

and hubris

and perhaps

obtuseness

that has led

to a horrible

war

against terror.

Another pause

as growing calls

for the incursion

to cease

for the release

of the rest 

of the hostages,

seems to be

the best

we can

expect

for now.

As long

as Bibi

can pause,

the cause

of this war

persists

and he

resists

prosecution.