comfortably relaxed
in front of a warming fireplace
somewhat in contemplation of the world
I recapitulate the day

but not too seriously

because the news over the internet
needs some deciphering and filtering
to figure out what’s really going on around the world
same for traditional media

reading through all the news
     the good and the bad
takes up most of my morning
      which I resent
I don't have so many mornings any more
       at my stage of advanced maturity …

I guess I am nostalgically
wishing for older days' simplicities
when one could understand
why certain people did say certain things
you knew the proper filters
to apply to sundry media and people

today it seems to me
that many politicians
say one thing now
      and just the opposite
      one minute later
or they ignore the questions
     and spout off on topics
      they prefer to sell

        and nobody complains
        about that ****** rhetoric

what kills democracy is just exactly
this erasure of trust and factuality
the relativization of all truths
reiterating lies and contradictions
until they sound like the new normal

this tends to make us think
that EVERYTHING in politics is ******
      not worth our vote

yet uncast votes are missed most bitterly

they make it possible
that radical minorities
can steal elections and then claim
they are the rightful leaders of the nation
with votes of less than 25 percent of the electorate
       and some gerrymandering

difficult times we live in