Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Another ditty--about politics in general.

When I learned PoliSci in my youth

The Right in Congress behaved with couth.

They’d debate with vigor, speak their truth,

Spar with Demos, nail and tooth.

(But then, as friends, share gin/vermouth.)


Rancor, if it flared, was fleeting,

Seldom lasting past a meeting.

No hint, no possibility of cheating,

Not by Dirksen, Ford or Kenneth Keating.

(Even while Tricky took that beating.)


But now the system’s gone awry.

Each issue’s posed as do or die.

No longer is there speech, reply.

Repubs rant and speakers cry.

(Some, indeed, shout out, “You lie!”)


Their pundits, steeped in vanity,

Report with relish this insanity,

Filling time-slots with inanity,

Neglecting genuine calamity.

(For rhyme and meter, I name Hannity.)


Reason, thought, are viewed as vices.

Blind reaction now suffices.

Each law becomes one born of crisis,

Stalled and blocked through artifices.

(Labeled parliamentary devices.)


I posit to you this no-brainer:

Which of these pairs is insaner:

Limbaugh/Beck or Bachman/Boehner?

If you must pause, could it be plainer?

(Another question: Which pair’s vainer?)

Monday, April 18, 2011

Chris Hedges is the man.

Okay, to be politically correct, he's the person. Check out his most recent speech. (Text and video are available at the link.)