North America Internal Combustion Engine Era Diorama Rant
In a smoky diorama, under glass
At the corner of the century,100 million were asked
To choose between a facile man, who presented himself cleverly
Hiding his real designs
And a complex man, presenting himself poorly
Hiding his hopes and dreams.
As I peered through the screen
They chose the latter in their numbers. But
High office was awarded to the one
Who played a better legal game.
I shook the glass in disbelief, put it aside
Waited for a while, and picked it up again.
Four years on, the facile man
Was widely understood, to believe
That the problems of his nation
And of its interests in the world
Could be solved by war
And by threats of war
Economic pressure on the poor
And a heavy gag of fear.
This time the masses chose him, by a narrow margin
Or so it appeared, depending on
Assessments of mysterious reports
Of polling station irregularities
From somewhere called Ohio.
The glass steamed up
Got really murky
At this point.
I called in our resident anthropologist.
She studied the little creatures
And the chaotic scene they made
And she kindly interpreted:
That appears to mean that 50 million creatures
Adults of the species
Who live complicated lives, seem smart enough to survive
In an unforgiving system, to educate their kids,
And get their families fed
Somehow and nonetheless,
Expect a facile man
Who serves the combustion machine
To bring solutions to their table, even after
His comprehensive exposure
As a creature deluded by grandeur
[...] Read more
poem by Frank Bana
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