It is National Poetry Month, so here is my attempt at some Poetic Justice. For the prose version on this topic see this week's Journal-Standard's Pulse section (For the Love of Community).
Elections belong to the people. It is their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they will just have to sit on their blisters. –Abraham Lincoln
The charges were starting to mount,
Found guilty on each and every count;
Friends, buddies, cronies, and lies,
We’re the ones who pay, that’s no surprise.
Big Jim covered all of the legal bills,
Friendship can’t cover all of the political ills;
Mr. Warner, Mr. Ryan, and pockets of cash,
Vacations, gambling, do I need to rehash?
“I didn’t do it. I’m innocent,” he said,
Licenses for bribes and six children dead;
Cover-ups, scandals, silence the news,
If we knew the secrets, an election he’d lose.
All the good things like buildings and roads,
But how about the employees on whose backs he rode?
To an election victory with ill-gotten campaign funds,
Christmas gifts to the boss, so for governor he could run.
All of them are crooked, the public says,
Just some of them are caught on given days,
We can’t do better, there isn’t much choice,
We’re only citizens, we don’t have a voice.
But, that is where we so often go wrong,
We have the chance to stand and be strong;
We can say, “Enough is enough!”
We’re tired of putting up with your stuff.
There are good politicians, who go to serve,
There are others, who get what they deserve;
We can’t expect miracles from all of them,
We do seek those we can praise instead of condemn.
Another election will be upon us soon,
Are the choices ones to make us worry or swoon?
The campaign rhetoric will go to depths unknown,
The ads will make sure large sums of money are blown.
No real reform will occur, because people love power,
Once in office, many seek to remain in their ivory tower;
So often, the people who benefit, are the major donors,
And those trying to get by, are treated like wayward loners.
Three of the last six governors have been indicted,
Money, or love of money, has been the reason cited;
Money and power, in our land, go hand in hand,
For the top offices in the state and country are out of hand.
The playing field will never be leveled at our current rate,
Those without money are left at the starting gate;
Look at the campaign “war chest” of Governor Rod,
We know that candidate, Treasurer Judy, will be treated roughshod.
In Illinois, it is called politics as usual for our state,
We tend to accept that as our destiny, our fate;
While more jobs are lost in part for our failure to change,
I think that we let ourselves be shortchanged.
There are no easy answers to our political woes,
We’ll continue in this quandary, if we think that anything goes;
Of course, Mr. Ryan practiced those ideas for years,
Now, he continues to show no remorse, no tears.
A nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize for emptying death row,
He thought his legacy would be secured when it was time to go;
And now a jury of his peers found him guilty for all he’d done,
What does it all get for us in the long run?
A sad, old man who thought he was above the laws,
Whose fancy lawyers will fault the jurors instead of seeing the real cause;
The appeals will last for years, and he’ll appear weak and frail,
Most likely, he’ll never spend a day in jail.
I feel no pity for Mr. Ryan when I think of the Willis children who died,
All because of the cover-ups and the people who lied;
To save a man’s political career who appeared so proper and prim,
And I get disgusted every time I realize that... I voted for him.
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character,
give him power. –Abraham Lincoln
They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety
deserve neither liberty nor safety. –Benjamin Franklin
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