The year was 1998.
The day to celebrate my mother
In retrospect turned out to be
A day unlike any other.

Not because that Mother's Day
Was from any observation
Unique in form or different from
Any previous celebration.

No, that day was different, for
No matter how much in vain I'd strive
To turn back the clock, that day was
The last I saw my mother alive.

If only I had known, I would
Have had the greatest party of all
With music blaring, food galore,
And party guests from wall to wall.

That's what my mother would have deserved.
For her, however, it would suffice
Merely to be with family.
Reflecting on this, I have some advice.

When you're with family and friends,
This rule should be hard and fast:
Act as though that day together
Very well could be your last.

Show them your appreciation,
Love, devotion, and heartfelt concern.
Demonstrate your loving-kindness,
And you'll receive it in return.

The best way now to celebrate
My mom in actuality
Would be for me to be the person
She'd have wanted me to be.

Having our moms in our memories
And hearts is fine, but one thing's clear:
As wonderful as that might be,
It's not the same as having her here.

-by Bob B (5-12-24)

Ed was my mom's first cousin by marriage.
Thus, I guess to me,
First cousin once removed
By marriage he had to be.

He lived most of his life in the Land
Of Enchantment: New Mexico,
Where mesas and rugged mountains tower
And wailing desert winds blow.

I loved the phone conversations I had
With Ed and my cousin, for they
Were charming relatives who always
Had so much to say.

Separated by 800 miles,
We had to resort to the phone
To stay in touch, and when she died
And Ed was on his own,

We continued our phone conversations.
It was a sheer delight
To hear the knowledge and wisdom expounded
By someone so wise and bright.

Ed was a man of science and reason
And could get a little bit snarky
When people expressed unfounded beliefs.
Religion to him was malarkey.

We are saved by reason and NOT
By a mythological god.
Myths are fine if understood
As myths, but they are flawed.

He felt that sadly too many people
Do not use their brains.
Instead of trusting reason, they are
Bound by religious chains.

If I brought up astrology
Or Tarot ***** nilly,
Ed would laugh and say that he
Found them just as silly.

Ed would say that reason should guide
Politics as well.
Too many people share the home
Where folly and ignorance dwell.

Whether or not you agreed with him,
You could always be sure
That when you conversed, you'd be on
A fascinating tour.

Ed wanted to donate his body
To science after his death
And made arrangements to do so once
He took his final breath.

In December 2022,
He peacefully died in his sleep.
Great times and great conversations are
The memories I'll keep.

I think about what a character
He was and have to laugh.
"A man who wouldn't put up with nonsense"
Should be his epitaph.

-by Bob B (5-11-24)

(This D.T. monologue could be sung to the melody of Billy Joel's "Honesty.")

I'm not seeking truth or love;
They won't help me climb.
I just want what lets me get ahead.
Wealth and recognition are
What matter at this time,
For I will not need either when I'm dead.

Loyalty is what I really need;
It will always make my day.
Loyalty will help me to succeed
To make sure folks do what I say.

I want folks to say to me
The things I want to hear.
Everything's transactional to me.
It's known that power and control
Are two things I revere.
I will not do anything for free.

Loyalty is what I really need;
It will always make my day.
Loyalty will help me to succeed
To make sure folks do what I say.

(bridge)
People have betrayed me;
Some have turned their backs.
They stupidly believe that I'll be numb to their attacks.
But, **** it, I'll go after them
And stop them in their tracks!
You'll see, you'll see, you'll see….

People who will work for me
Know what I expect.
I expect allegiance through and through.
But if they prove untrustworthy,
We'll have a huge disconnect.
They MUST be members of my MAGA coup!

Loyalty is what I really need;
It will always make my day.
Loyalty will help me to succeed
To make sure folks do what I say.

-by Bob B (5-8-24)

The hush money trial continues in court
While Trump's in the midst of electioneering.
Based on what witnesses there are saying,
This is a tidbit of what we've been hearing:

Allen Weisselberg° went to McConney°°
And said to send money to Michael Cohen,
Who had borrowed money to pay
Stormy Daniels. The money's now flowin'.

Stormy Daniels, of course, is the **** star
With whom Trump had an intimate fling.
The fling itself is not illegal;
However, the hush money is, ka-ching!

Trump signed the checks that went to his "Fixer,"
For Cohen expected to be reimbursed.
Deep in the pool of complicity,
Trump and Cohen both were immersed.

Nine of the checks that Trump had signed
Came from his personal bank account.
The money that Cohen received in return
From Trump was even a larger amount.

Criminal conspiracy!
Hush money paid before an election
To wrongly influence election results!
In THIS case it has a salacious connection.

To mix a couple figures of speech,
There is a saying in Latin that goes
"***** erectus non habet conscientiam."°°°
Yep, that hits it right on the nose!

For his involvement, Cohen was found
Guilty and served his sentence. Let's see
If Trump will find a way to finagle
A not-guilty verdict and get off scot-free.

-by Bob B (5-8-24)

°Trump's former financial chief
°°Jeffrey McConney, former Trump Organization employee
°°°"An ***** ***** has no conscience."

Huey Long° was the kind of fellow
You wouldn't double cross.
He ran his state as though he was
A genuine mob boss.

Bootlickers and flatterers
On whom he could rely
Helped him gain his wealth and power.
That you can't deny.

He stacked his government with folks
Who'd answer only to him.
His dissenters found themselves
Out on a shaky limb.

Hey, Huey,
We all know
The things you did
So long ago.
Your power grabs
Were tried and true.
We know someone
Much like you.

Harnessing the discontent
Of people was his plan.
His gift of gab as a populist
Made him a popular man.

His cadre of guards sufficiently armed
Made him feel quite smug.
Although he got things done, he was
Essentially a ****.

Taking control of elections, he
Sidestepped prosecution.
With power on display, he'd declare,
"I am the Constitution."

Hey, Huey,
We all know
The things you did
So long ago.
In a way
You primed the pump
And set the stage
For Donald Trump.

Calling himself "the Kingfish," Huey
Found corruption handy.
Power, control, and kickbacks were
His modus operandi.

Reporters whom he didn't like
Were ones he would abuse.
They'd be beaten, and he'd call
Their papers "lyinnews."

A glimpse of how a strongman would
Appear in the U.S.A.
Was Huey Long's rehearsal for
A dictatorship today.

Hey, Donald
We see through
All the things
You've tried to do.
Although this
Is NOT your song,
You're a lot
Like Huey Long.

-by Bob B (5-6-24)

°40th governor of Louisiana and U.S. senator from 1932 until his assassination in 1935.

Ongoing instability
Continues in the Middle East.
All who long for peace can't wait
Until this brutal conflict has ceased.

We know it started long ago--
Disputes over territory.
We can also see that there
Are TWO sides to this sad story.

Israelis versus Palestinians:
We've watched back-and-forth retribution.
Why must it be so difficult
For there to be a two-state solution?

Why does it have to be so hard
For the world to pressure both sides to meet
To iron out a workable plan
So neither side must admit defeat?

We're saddened by the loss of lives
And feel a sense of deep frustration.
But there is a feeling of optimism
Expressed in the following quotation:

"From the seeds of hope, the tree
Of peace will grow…."° If THAT'S fulfilled,
The tree will shelter both sides AND
No more blood will have to be spilled.

I treasure such optimistic words
But feel as though I want to shout,
"Israelis and Palestinians,
Together work this **** thing out!"

-by Bob B (5-4-24)

°Quote by Nadeem Ahmed

During a recent interview,
Donald Trump presented a slice
Of what he would do in a second term.
Before, he said, he was far too nice.

Nice? My goodness! If that's what he calls
Being nice, then when he's mean
He will be a thousand times
More obnoxious and more obscene!

He says he'll use the military
To round up millions for deportation,
As though hard-working immigrants
Are a serious threat to our nation!

Funds appropriated by Congress--
He says---he will refuse to release.
The functions of the office that studies
Possible future pandemics will cease.

Our independent judiciary
Soon will be a thing of the past,
For Trump will control the DOJ.
Its role under him will be recast.

States will be able to monitor
Pregnancies, he says; what's more,
The number of prosecutions of those
Defying abortion bans will soar.

He will deploy the national guard
To any place that he sees fit.
His staff will have to back the Big Lie;
Good riddance to those who challenge it.

He plans to gut the civil service.
Loyalty and THAT alone
Will be what he demands of all--
The image for all to bow down to: his own.

On hearing Trump's alarming words,
It's really hard to comprehend
That if you love democracy,
How your hair would NOT stand on end.

-by Bob B (5-2-24)