It's such a disruption to my peace of mind
To witness the plunge of our great humankind.
Amazing potential is what we possess,
But **** it if we are not making a mess!

The human attention span's clearly decreasing,
And humankind's selfish demands are unceasing.
Conspiracy theories are way out of whack,
And good education is under attack.

Our probing, inquiring, sharp journalism
Is no longer trusted and faces a schism.
Reason is too often stopped in its tracks,
For too many people are falling for quacks.

And what about people who don't have a clue
Of being accountable for what they do?
They WILL not admit that they're wrong, and they claim
That other folks ought to be taking the blame.

So many people don't listen to reason--
That their form of patriotism is treason,
That storming the Capitol is a real crime
And that those who do it might have to serve time.

It also amazes me how an adult
Can fall for a weird personality cult.
Are people so desperate that they'll believe
The lies that their precious cult leader will weave?

A lot of folks don't trust the experts who say,
"Tomorrow depends on our actions today."
Such folks don't mind if we keep burning coal;
Renewable energy isn't their goal.

And then there are those who will NOT bid good-bye
To Trump's undeniably wacky Big Lie.
It really astounds me how some folks can't see
How dangerous their careless actions can be.

They'll trust information that's propagandistic,
And many of them have become nativistic.
Critical thinking has gone down the drain.
Is half of the country now going insane?

What--I'll keep asking--will be the solution
For stopping what seems like reverse evolution?
The thought has me feeling a bit ill at ease
That once again we might be swinging from trees.

-by Bob B (4-12-24)

The highest court in Arizona,
Stuck in 1864,
Just dug up an abortion ruling
Written during the Civil War.

Amazingly, the seven judges
Must have found a time machine,
And no, this is not a film
We're watching on the giant screen.

The law banning nearly all
Abortions was a barricade
To women's right to choose until
It was blocked by Roe v. Wade.

Reflecting the times, the law exposes
Feelings that were deeply rooted.
Physicians who assisted women
Could easily be prosecuted.

Hmmm. I wonder where the court's
Time machine will take them next.
Will they soon unearth another
Old, antiquated text?

Republicans who might agree
With what the court is doing, now
Are scaling back their rhetoric
In hopes that they'll squeak through somehow.

All who champion women's rights
Should honestly be mortified.
Choosing to favor the court's decision
Should be political suicide.

Fortunately, a lot of folks
Who've heard the news are having fits.
Take out your sledgehammers
And smash that time machine to bits!

-by Bob B (4-11-24)

Shame on the Republicans--
Those who want to abandon Ukraine.
Shame on those who cater to
A Russian leader who's inhumane.

Shame on them for being swayed
By Putin's propaganda, for he
Has shown contempt for anyone
Who threatens his authority.

Shame on them for holding up
The passing of bills to offer assistance
To the Ukrainian cause as the people
Fight to defend their very existence.

Instead of siding with Putin, those
Republicans should open their eyes
And see how dangerous it is
For them to fall for all of his lies.

Instead of sitting on their hands,
They should see where inaction leads.
They will help secure the West
By giving Ukraine the help it needs.

With the assistance of NATO, Ukraine
Has vowed to fight to the bitter end.
Republicans in Congress should know
That Vladimir Putin is NOT our friend.

-by Bob B (4-10-24)

Lie, deny, delay. These are
Three methods that Trump employs
To con his way through life. And, yes,
He's good at making lots of noise.

What comes easy for him, of course,
Without a doubt is all the lying.
He is also very adept
At method number two: denying.

Delaying is a bit of a challenge.
To accomplish that, his team resorts
To throwing spaghetti at the wall
To see what sticks in cases in courts.

How ironic: he claims to be
The candidate of law and order
But makes up lies about what is
Occurring on our southern border.

Law and order? What a joke!
The first thing that he'll do, says he,
If he's back in the White House to serve
One more term in office will be

To pardon the thugs who've been convicted
Of crimes involving their connection
With the January 6
Shocking Capitol insurrection.

What a cruel, insensitive,
Vicious, heartless slap in the face
To law enforcement officers
Who were attacked while guarding the place!

If Trump agrees that democracy
And Law and Order are major concerns,
Why then are the ones who protect
Democracy the ones he spurns?

Will Donald Trump once again
Lie and deny his way to the top?
Or will his cold, uncaring campaign
Turn out to be a giant flop?

-by Bob B (4-8-24)

DT sings to himself in the mirror:

I LOVE how folks bow down to me
And say my work's a job well done.
That's because so many can see
That Donald Trump is the Chosen One.

I alone can fix this land.
My work here has just barely begun.
When I have the upper hand,
I'll prove I am the Chosen One.

You'll get away with everything.
Stringing people along is fun.
And you can act as though you're king,
Or better than that: the Chosen One.

The Bible I have never read,
But bucks will flow in by the ton
When I sell it, for it's said
That I am really the Chosen One.

Christ and I are much alike--
Each a victim; each a son.
Opponents all can take a hike.
Best beware of the Chosen One.

I'm invincible 'cause I'm smart.
Are there folks who are brighter? None!
But still some want to tear me apart.
Look what they're doing to the Chosen One.

If I do not win this fall,
The election, I'll say, was badly run.
How could anyone have the gall
Not to vote for the Chosen One?

All the folks who criticize
What I do are those we'll shun.
I'll make it my enterprise
To market myself as the Chosen One.

With the Trump card, we will win.
Look at me: I made a pun!
I'm flawless, for I never sin--
Not when I'm the Chosen One.

Oh, my goodness, I'm so proud
Of all the tales that I have spun.
I know how to work a crowd,
Pretending I'm the Chosen One.

Me be scrupulous? No way!
You'll get farther if you're un-.
I don't care what critics say
Because I am the Chosen One!

-by Bob B (4-6-24)

How lucky we have been in life!
We found each other, and then voila!
We became a partnership,
Clearly defying Murphy's Law.

One thing, however, that's certain is death.
No, we don't know when or how
We'll have to bid adieu to each other
And sadly take our final bow.

If I'M to go FIRST, it breaks my heart
To think of leaving you alone,
Even though I know that you'll
Be able to manage on your own.

If, however, your death must
Precede mine, without a doubt,
It will be unbearable,
For you'll be hard to live without.

A sad inevitability--
An aspect of life we must accept--
Is that one day we'll have to part.
Death is not a promise unkept.

Courage and love are what we need.
Our love, for certain, is overflowing.
To help me deal with uncertainties,
My courage still needs room for growing.

We've had many years together.
I hope life gives us many more
Before it's time for us to cross
Over to the other shore.

-by Bob B (4-3-24)

Strongmen and their death squads.
In many countries, both exist.
The squads inflict terror while
The strongmen rule with an iron fist.

The people have to watch what they say,
Watch what they do, and live in fear.
Often they will end up in a morgue;
Sometimes they'll merely disappear.

Indirectly, Donald Trump
Appears to have his death squads, too--
Far-right extremists who
Are a rather deplorable crew.

All that Trump must do is find
Someone out there to criticize--
Opponents, prosecutors, judges,
Their families--with vicious lies,

And suddenly, they will have
Giant targets on their backs.
They live in constant fear for their lives
Merely because of Trump's attacks.

Many Republicans also fear
Opposing Trump and therefore feel
Coerced into supporting him.
The chances of being a target are real.

Whether or not Trump likes it, his thugs
Are there to terrorize us. Alas!
Imagine the nightmare if for Trump
A win in November should come to pass!

-by Bob B (3-30-24)