I'M A MAN

i dug in my heels
in hard, clay dirt
like a man
i stood upright
ready to make my stand
ready to fight

i stumbled and fought
i said, "i can, i can"
so i fought to stand up
erect once again
'til the water came up
turned all to quicksand

as i sank to new lows
i gritted my teeth
i visualized
i quaked at
what might lay beneath

i shook off my fear
i waited for slaughter
i opened my eyes
my heels dug in water

i walked azure waves
i saw a new land
i learned not to fear
i became a new man.

I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG...

of the divided states of america
and to the corporations and banks
'cause they are people too!
a divided nation
(not only because we are bi-lingual)
for which it stands
two nations
under a "God"
sorry athiests!
who favors the wealthiest
and denigrates
women, immigrants, gays and unions
for we are WASPS
who believe in the "right to work"
which in real terms means
the right to enslave workers
because they can't form a more perfect union
much less any kind of union
because corporate america is gonna' squeeze you some more
and i thought the republic was
of the people, by the people, and for the people"
and liberty and justice for all?
it's just a myth
because there are those
who would re-write the constitution
both dems and repubs, or libertarian
and because we have a congress
that doesn't work anymore
and it's a damn shame
because the country
used to work just fine.

RUNNING

you saved my life
the eternal run
a mantra unfolded
on verdant trails
i heard my hearbeat
a wind in sails
and breathed fresh air
like native men
from way back when

and i left the world behind
the world of machines
and broken dreams
for the run
so clean and true
a pristine view
of what man lost
at such a cost
my feet pound on
and on and on

to future dreams
not banker's schemes
i love the run
the rush
the sweat
without regret
an hour a day
maybe more
it feeds my soul
i need no more.

JUST SEARCH AROUND

need a college?
just search around
not like my kids did
they went to ivy league joints
you'll have to go to community college
not princeton
not yale
not harvard
just search around
for managable college debt

need retirement funds?
forget about it
the states have squandered your dough
unions are being busted
social security ain't guaranteed
just search around
for a job in your 70's
maybe you can be a greeter at wally-mart
since we outsourced all your jobs
why not?
it's good for your health to work
since you won't have affordable health care
just search around

we are men and women of God
we want to lead your country
steal from the poor
give to the rich
we are the new robber barons
coming to your hood
the fabulous one-percenters
who have a new vision
for the wealthy in this country
hail to the banks!
all hail to wall street
search around and make good investments

oh! you don't have any money
you must be poor and lazy
infirmed
the wrong color
the wrong sexual leanings
or maybe you're just a woman
search around
there's hope for you
say your prayers
be God fearing
and trust us
work hard
prosperity is right around the corner
just search around.

MAN COULD HAVE BEEN GREAT

Man could have been great. He came out of the trees and learned to stand on two feet. He learned to walk then to hunt and with the skins of animals protected himself from the winds, the snow and the rain. He learned to seek the shelter of caves and later to build more elaborate huts. He learned to delegate authority, to farm, to gather to create art, and finally to war on other tribes for more stuff.

Greed and perniciousness now defined man. Rome and Greece rose above it all with great ideas of Democracy and beauty only to fall from decay within, because of greed, murder and animalistic behavior. Holy Wars mutilated the innocents throughout time. Most of it was done in the name of GOD. As technologies developed, man became more sophisticated in weaponry and lies. The innocents were still murdered or the lucky ones were put in sweat shops to earn money for the aristocracy.

I fast-forward to today, and see how man has developed slavery and double-speak to a fine art. Unions are bashed, state pension funds are in arrears, Congress in on a permanent vacation, human values are smashed by dictatorships. Our own politicians are suggesting that children pick up a broom to clean their schools, in order to save the states some money. We have presidential candidates either hiding their past, or not willing to show how much money they've made for the last ten years. People are hurting all over the world. Take away jobs, help for the needy, fire the teachers, the policemen, the firemen, the carpenters, the electricians, the plumbers, and up the salaries of bureaucrats, politicians, CEO's of corporations, and what do you end up with?

The IMPLOSION of a once great Democracy. Obama and Romney are more concerned about ammassing great wealth, and the backers who hold great wealth, than the commonwealth. Believe it. Neither one of them could swing a sledge hammer all day long. They never had to work for a living. In all due respect, I think Obama might make more than half-a-day, while Romney would whine, and probably sit on his ass, or try to pay someone to do the work for him. This is just my opinion after watching both FOX news and MSNBC. I have two evils to vote for, and I guess I'll vote for the lesser of the two. So far, Barrack Obama is my man. Taxing the wealthiest of Americans the same amount of tax that a working man has to pay, seems like a fair deal to me.

Maybe after all is said and done in world affairs, and the nuclear nightmare comes, what is left of us will all climb back up into the trees. Maybe this new "generation of men" will remember the past mistakes. They will climb out of the trees, learn to walk, make tools, then weapons, then go to hunt, grow food, and discover their neighbors. God help us all.

I LONG FOR THOSE DAYS

i long for those days
of adolescent haze
meeting up at the park
drinking beer in the dark
running wild on the streets
tapping our feet
to the primal beat

oh how i long for those days
of parties and muscle cars
begging old winos
to buy us liquor from bars
going to dances
and teen hops galore
wearing my best just hoping to score
a teenage queen
a girl of my dreams
to take to the drive-in
and do stupid things
to impress her and keep her
but it was all about change
'cause for a kid in the 60's
there was no home on the range

we longed for the streets
the surge of urban life
rumbles and music
cigs and delights
not enjoyed now
'cause there is fear
in the air
it ain't really clear
how to be a kid
without being cowed

i guess this is why
i long for my days
when there was'nt a future
there wasn't a past
the present was good
it just couldn't last
i long for those days

HOW TO ROLL

study hard in school
don't take any shit from anybody on the playground
if attacked by a group
always pick the biggest guy
gouge his eyes out or grab his windpipe
hold on 'til he turns purple
never give an inch

at work
be the first on the job
the last to go home
work 2 or 3 jobs
until you secure a better position
save your bread
don't buy fancy cars or clothes

buy real estate as soon as you can
double up on your mortgage payments
keep your body and mind in shape
don't waste your money in bars
only date girls you would take home to your mother
keep your mouth shut at work
don't gossip

protect yourself at all times
always have a "plan-B"
when you are old, diversify
buy stocks, bonds, annuities.
make sure you have enough to retire
never carry any credit card debt
this is how to roll.