Capitalism Rampant

Simple questions should require

simple answers from government,

but are mostly obfuscated

by elected officials

who dance the dance of politics,

as they shelter the wealthy

from economic mistakes

the public always pays for.

Crushing corporate failures

cost the nation jobs and homes,

yet rewarded those who caused collapse

who were quick to abandon

the faltering ship

with golden parachutes.

As lending institutions

lend too much to be repaid.

the makers of disaster

huddle on super-yachts,

ask congress to rescue them

and spare the punishment

for harm caused to the people,

while they still indulge

in extravagant pleasures.

Endangered Republic

Instead of proceeding

to a glorious future,

the republic of dreams

painfully faltered,

blindly confusing

the hope of control

of the turbulent world

in the constant confrontation

with stubborn resistance.

Mired in debt, foreign wars,

the threat of terror,

the loss of homes, jobs,

symptoms of decay

that could be arrested

by science and invention,

if we haven't lost the hunger

for rapacious achievement.

Degree of Difference

White collar crime

was never considered

worse than violent crime,

since injuries were unseen

and blood was not shed.

Yet economic harm

inflicted on the victims

by ambassadors of greed

has affected so many

and certainly requires

drastic punishment.

Torturous Tomorrows

Once when our country still made things

people believed in the future,

looking forward to tomorrow

and the rewards for their efforts.

Somehow our land went astray,

perhaps betrayed by the wealthy

who sent their capital abroad

in the quest for greater profits,

perhaps deceived by our leaders

who placed personal ambition

above the public well-being,

perhaps squandered by  our people

when we lost raw vitality

that once built opportunity.

The future will determine

whether we emerge from torpor,

or submerge in the second world.

Malady

A people may endure

long after their nation

loses its vitality,

but are forever changed.

Gone is enthusiasm,

urgency, anticipation,

hunger for accomplishment,

leaving a drab residue

of day to day existence,

diminished expectations,

a dreary struggle to survive

a desolate destiny

we fear will befall

our imperiled country.

Gary Beck/Blossoms Of Decay