Friday, December 9, 2011

Yule Gruel

It’s right before Christmas and all over the news
Politicians are vying to earn the most boo’s.
Occupy’s camped out in D.C. to dare
Anonymous donors their faces to bare.

Candidates practice their lies in their heads
While a fourth of all children go hungry to bed.
Mitt Romney wears flip-flops, Newt Gingrich a sneer,
The truth is not something they’re willing to hear.

When they go on TV, they preen and they pander --
Their purpose in life is to get up our dander.
The latest Not-Romney so hateful and brash,
In two months or less he will burn and he’ll crash.

This goon squad will soon have more places to go,
On book tours, TV shows, to keep the cash-flow
When, what to our wondering eyes will appear --
But a Forbes billionaire on a platform of fear!

It’s Mayor Mike Bloomberg, that Big Apple prick
(We know in an instant it sure ain’t St. Nick)
More rapid than most trades his insults they came
As he whined and he sniffed and he cast about blame.

“Now teachers, now firemen, each union and student
The rich can’t pay taxes, it just isn’t prudent,
For my millionaire friends, for the Street that’s named Wall
I have rid parks of campers, and smashed one and all.”

But as dry leaves that before wild hurricanes fly
When we meet with an obstacle mount to the sky
Throughout the country, our Occupy grew
With hearts full of outrage and a mic check or two

And thus in a twinkling a new hope is born
We’re just saying No to political porn
But Mike won’t give up and he’s gone on a tour!
In hopes that the Oligarchs still will endure.

He’s the face of the Third Way and fiscal restraint,
And as for his running, he insists that he ain’t.
But Shrillionaire Mike in his plea for austerity
Is making quite sure of his place in posterity.

And the Ghost of Ayn Rand, a right crabby old elf
Haunts Congressional Halls with her Cult of the Self.
Cut off their food stamps, cut off their heat!
Make the poor suffer from their heads to their feet.

With holidays coming, the Pubs get enjoyment
From refusing to fund any more unemployment
They claim that the poor are too lazy to work.
While they fill their own pockets with government perks.

But by laying their thumbkins in front of their nose
Treating voters like garbage and rich people’s foes
They’ve caused a revolt and are getting epistles.
Human rights manifestos are flying like missiles.

We shall hear them exclaim, as they flee out of sight:
We won’t run again! Adios, and Good Night!





6 comments:

Valerie said...

WELL DONE!!! Thank you for that bit of wisdom and humour. It deserves to go viral! I will do my part by sending it off to all my progressive friends.

As much as the MSM, Corporate Democrats and Conservatives have tried to marginalise the Occupy Movement, it rings true for too many Americans this Christmas. I have already had friends write to me and share that they have told their children not to expect much in terms of gifts. I assume that is a common theme this year.

Living in Australia I never heard whether or not Black Friday turned out to be much of a win for stores. I heard about the crazy shoppers but overall, did Americans keep on buying or are they being prudent and paying off existing debt - or the bills? While I personally think it isn't a bad thing that Americans are over the crazy spending pre-crash/bailout, it is too bad spending less isn’t so good for the health of the economy.

And with the European Common Market (is it even called that anymore?) on the verge of collapse due to default/austerity and with American investment banking houses on the hook for insuring much of the European debt, these are uncertain times for all of us – even in Australia, which is in a fairly good position economically.

Karen Garcia said...

Hi Valerie,
Thanks! From what I hear, the opening up of stores on Thanksgiving did not in fact reap record profits for retailers. Sob.

Valerie said...

Excellent interview on Democracy Now (thanks Will for turning me on to DN - I always think of you when I watch it)with George Papandreou, former Prime Minister of Greece. He is ever the diplomat but anyone listening to the interview can read between the lines. Amy Goodman is, as always, the brilliant journalist asking the important questions. http://www.democracynow.org/2011/12/9/exclusive_ex_greek_pm_george_papandreou

Valerie said...

OK - just catching up on my Democracy Now hours. This is also an interesting little tidbit from the climate deniers on the right - http://www.democracynow.org/2011/12/8/his_nickname_is_george_w_obama

It won't come as a surprise to many of us that Obama is hailed as a the 2nd coming of GW Bush to the anti-science, pro-polluting climate deniers but I thought I would pass it along. This should be very embarrassing for a Democratic president.

And why is it that pro-choice supporters have to put up with the pro-abortion tag and we don't slap a pro-polluter tag on the climate deniers? Just askin'.

Denis Neville said...

Yule Gruel is a fitting tale for this holiday season, Karen.

“The only blind person at Christmas time is he who has not Christmas in his heart.” – Helen Keller

The true meaning of Christmas is absent this Yule for those Grinches, and their small hearts (if they have any at all) will definitely not grow three sizes.

The truth is not something they’re willing to hear.

George Orwell said “political language…is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.”

Thomas Jefferson wrote, “Whenever the people are well informed, they can be trusted with their own government.”

These are times of universal deceit. Orwell’s Goldstein explained this as Crimestop, protective stupidity from dangerous thoughts that were inimical to Ingsoc, the official ideology of the totalitarian regime in Oceania. And it is terribly sad that a large number of voters seem prepared to vote for them.

But as dry leaves that before wild hurricanes fly…

William Pfaff offers a gloomy commentary on the Occupiers versus the Occupied, and reminds us that “It was the brutal and seemingly interminable Depression and unemployment that followed the Crash that created the conditions in which German democracy collapsed. Its successor, National Socialism, ended the Depression, and put the German economy back on its feet. In case anyone has forgotten.”

http://www.williampfaff.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=547

Anne Lavoie said...

@Valerie

In regard to your question as to why we don't 'tag' them polluters, I think your choice of words points to the crux of the matter.

Instead of saying that we have been (name-)called pro-abortionists, you said tagged. Do we dare 'tag' them back as polluters? You are being careful with your words. Once burned, twice shy.

It's a sad state when we the very word name-calling is being avoided, even when it is used against us. When the Word Police moves in, even occasionally, we know we have to be careful. The Thought Police are close behind.

Democrats have their own 1%. They are the financially comfortable who enjoy the status quo and don't want to rock the boat for fear of losing their summer cottage or other privileges of their current status.

The Democratic 1% isn't content to enjoy simply enjoy their own comforts, they want to use their influence to protect themselves at the expense of the rest of us, by silencing us. They have some important things in common with the OTHER 1%.

It has become more important to maintain their lifestyle and their image of civility than to fight for our very survival in this country. Just look where their social niceties have taken us and where they would like to keep us.

As Pauline from NYT said in today's Gail Collins piece, Democrats "dance around the attacks". The Democratic 1%, including the DNC, other Democratic leaders, and those who have inserted themselves into the various media and internet websites, control not just their message but try to control ours.

For God's sake, don't dirty up a website by slumming with the 99%. Don't use name-calling, however apt, when you could impress everyone by using hundreds of words to explain and convince, rationally and intellectually. After all, it is simply primitive to appeal to emotions.

Everyone know that the lowly, vulgar 99% name-calls/tags others with a one or two word label only because they lack the intellectual capacity for more than that.

No, it's not lack of backbone, courage, or insight, as Pauline speculates. It is intellectual elitism and snobbery. The sooner the 99% Democrats realize that, the better off we all will be.

Here's some common phrases that express what I am trying to say but I lack the capacity: The 1% 'act like their sh** doesn't stink', and 'they wouldn't say sh** if they had a mouth full of it.'

'... and the broom you rode in on'