Life as we knew it has changed for now,
With concerts, theater, and sports on hold,
For COVID-19, a nasty virus,
Is NOT your typical flu or cold.

Daily life is a challenge lately.
Former routines are now a chore--
Little things, like going shopping
And bringing groceries home from the store.

So much that we took for granted,
We now see from a different perspective.
Functioning while saving lives
Has to be our main objective.

Every day it's coronavirus!
Every day it's in the news.
Day and night it's coronavirus.
I've got the COVID-19 blues.

The Center for Disease Control
Is muzzled by the current regime.
We hear White House "happy talk,"
But things are likely worse than they seem.

Trump and his White House staff all know
That testing is crucial--at least for them.
And yet they say that WE don't need it.
Misinformation with a capital "M."

We deserve expert guidance;
We need the truth and a workable plan.
We've heard one lie after another
Since this deadly pandemic began.

Every day it's coronavirus!
Every day it's in the news.
Day and night it's coronavirus.
I've got the COVID-19 blues.

It's hard to watch the public displays
Of ignorance and the flouting of rules.
Conspiracy theories are rapidly spreading,
And truthers continue to act like fools.

Although it's easy to feel depressed
When listening to the White House clown,
It's important that we do NOT
Let adversity get us down.

As much as I'd love to hug my family,
Go to the theater, and be with friends,
I will do my best to remain
Healthy until the danger ends.

But meanwhile, it's coronavirus!
Every day it's in the news.
Day and night it's coronavirus.
I've got the COVID-19 blues.

-by Bob B (5-9-20)

“I’m not going to wear a mask,”
The man says with a look of defiance,
As he stands in the midst of a crowd,
Defying common sense and science.

"I don't like the government,"
The man without a mask proceeds.
It only comes in handy for him
When it happens to suit his needs.

"The government is not," he adds,
"Going to tell me what to do."
Only his unreliable
Sources tell him what is true.

"The CDC can't be trusted,"
He says with a look of disdain,
Letting too many conspiracy theories
Seep into his paranoid brain.

"No business or place of work
Can make me wear a mask," he declares.
When it comes to the safety of all,
His words show how little he cares.

"Freedom is what it's all about,"
He shouts, but he just doesn't see
That it has nothing to do with freedom;
It’s merely utter stupidity.

-by Bob B (5-21-20)

AGGRESSION

Nations in Europe are on alert,
And once again the U.S. hustles
To deal with Putin's aggressiveness
As he defiantly flexes his muscles.

Amassing troops on Ukraine's border,
The desperate dictator wants to prove
That he's a force to be reckoned with.
The rest of us watch his every move.

And planning military drills
Not far from the Irish coast
Shows the kind of intimidation
That Putin loves to do the most.

But Irish fishermen said no
And stopped the drills before they started.
The Russian navy decided to find
Another location, and so they departed.

PARDON DANGLING

With extremism on the rise,
Trump continues to stir up his base
With his typical Trumpian lies
And his bumbling lack of grace.

Regarding those convicted of storming
The Capitol, this Florida resident
Is currently dangling pardons while he
Isn't even the U.S. president!

He also wants his fans to protest
Vociferously if he is indicted
For having broken the law. We see
That causing chaos makes him excited.

HATRED

Florida had some **** rallies
With swastikas and racist banners.
Needless to say, the participants
Were crude, obnoxious, and lacking in manners.

Observing the Nazis hateful behavior,
Respectable people wonder why
The thugs get pleasure yelling racist
Comments to people passing by.

Regarding states that harbor groups
Of hate, Florida's second in line.
Groups like that are just like a tumor
That's rapidly growing and isn't benign.

SAD

In the state of Washington
There lived a cop named Robert Lamay.
If he had had a little more sense,
He might be alive today.

Rather than get a vaccination
For COVID, he chose to leave the force--
Probably influenced by
The many lies on Fox News, of course.

Lamay came down with COVID and sadly
Lost the battle. He died last week.
Unfortunately, situations
Just like this are not unique.

-by Bob B (2-1-22)

Unfortunately, Republican
Extremists in Congress have won.
The recent clown show isn't over;
In fact, it's barely begun.

Mike Johnson was voted in
As Speaker! Please, no cheers.
He's the least experienced Speaker
In over one hundred years.

Johnson, we know, was instrumental
In building a strong connection
With those who tried to change the results
Of the 2020 election.

To help explain societal ills,
Here's his contribution:
Mass shootings are the result
Of teaching evolution!

***! If you think things
Are bad right now, just wait.
To him there should be no separation
Between church and state.

Embracing right-wing culture wars,
Johnson's ready to fight
To push his crazy, extremist agenda
Instead of doing what's right.

MAGA extremists have taken the country
Hostage. It's sad but true.
Come on, House Republicans!
Is that the best you can do?

-by Bob B (10-26-23)

The current coronavirus crisis
Continues to spread worldwide.
Its seriousness is NOT something
People ought to be brushing aside.

And yet at a recent rally, Trump
Called the deadly crisis a HOAX,
Which makes the situation worse
From all the ignorance that he stokes.

Muffling the experts endangers us
Even more as the virus spreads.
The truth-sayers and truth-deniers
Sadly are at loggerheads.

Contradicting our health officials,
The president sees everything through
The lens of his political prospects.
And who suffers? All of us do.

Some say, "Oh, not to worry."
But there is something to bear in mind:
COVID-19 has already caused
More deaths than MERS° and SARS° combined.

We need more tests and honest guidance.
And in the meantime it would be wise
To keep your unwashed hands far
Away from your mouth and nose and eyes.

-by Bob B (2-29-20)

°Other respiratory illnesses caused by coronaviruses

A university professor
Wanted to learn more about Zen,
A subject that he had never paid
Much attention to till then.

Of course, he had read many books
Explaining the various Buddhist sects
And figured that his overall knowledge
Would help him with Zen in many respects.

Meeting with the Zen master
Of a local Buddhist temple, he
Watched without speaking as
The master poured him a cup of tea.

The knowledge-hungry professor sat
Quietly, mentally exploring
The meeting room, while the sage
Sat before him, pouring and pouring.

Soon the cup was overflowing.
"Sensei,°° when are you going to quit
Pouring tea into the cup?
It's full; no more tea will fit,"

Said the professor. The master looked
At the young professor and calmly said,
"Like this cup, you are full
Of preconceptions in your head.

"You have read and studied a lot;
On many subjects, you're well versed.
But how can I show you Zen
Unless you empty YOUR cup first?"

-by Bob B (9-11-19)

°An old Zen anecdote retold here in verse
°°teacher

What a curse: hypocrisy!
Oh, when all is said and done,
Our president doesn’t serve the people;
He looks instead after number one.

The hypocrite says he wants a clean
Environment, and yet he'll dare
To serve the many companies that
Pollute the water and poison the air.

The current admin would rather give
More benefits to the heads
Of big pharma instead of helping
People desperate for the meds.

The right to vote is precious, but still
He helps those who have an obsession
Not with serving American voters
But serving instead voter suppression.

Catering to religious groups,
He wants to see his ratings spike,
And yet his uncouth words and lies
Are not very Christianlike.

When he doesn't get his way,
He seeks immediate retribution,
Not by obeying the law but by
Tromping on the Constitution.

When he campaigned, he complained
About Hillary's emails, and yet
The man himself remains a giant
National security threat.

Is the president motivated
Mainly by power or greed, or both?
When he was sworn into office, did
He take the Hypocritic Oath?

-by Bob B (1-10-20)

Isn't SPAM a pain in the rear?
NOT the canned Spam that you can eat;
I mean the spam in your email mailbox.
It's so annoying and so indiscreet.

"Mark as Spam" sometimes works,
But obnoxious messages still get through.
It seems as though you always have tons
Of unwanted email staring at you.

Have you seen "Six Months to Skinny"
Or the "One-Pound-a-Day Diet"?
There's always "Hi, you're going to love this"
Or "Want a good time?" That one's a riot.

What about "Help with Alcohol,"
"Penny Stock Tips," or "Erectile Dysfunction"?
Or "Toenail Fungus"? Yikes! Please spare me.
They send out this nonsense with no compunction!

Breast augmentation? That I don't want.
Baldness cures? Well, if I let it
Be a problem and needed some snake oil,
I know exactly where to get it.

I often get messages dealing with meds.
Those boring messages always fall flat.
And then there's "Male Enhancement Madness."
No thanks; I will pass on that.

Have you received the message that goes
Something like "Hi, my name is Pam"?
The one that I find really hilarious
Is the one that reads, "This is not spam!"

Despite precautions, when checking your email,
You're bound to find SPAM--lying in wait.
I have to say that I much prefer it
Not in my mailbox, but instead on my plate.

- by Bob B

When we last saw Noah,
He was about to embark
On a long, stormy journey
Aboard his mighty ark.

For forty days and nights
The heavens constantly drained
Their waters upon the earth,
For it rained and rained and rained--

Covering the towering Mt. Everest,
And the great Kilimanjaro.
Noah exclaimed, "It's raining
Like there's no tomorrow!"

Ham and Shem said, "Dad,
With our small, measly crew,
Feeding one million species
Is kind of hard to do."

Noah pointed outside
And looked at his sons and said,
"I suppose instead of in HERE,
You'd rather be out there--dead!"

That shut up the boys
Who attended to their tasks,
Saying, "We're feeding the lions
In case anyone asks."

Shem whispered to Ham,
"I like that lion, but she
Is always licking her chops
Whenever SHE sees ME!"

Ham said, "That kangaroo,
Who looks so calm and mellow,
Has a nasty kick.
He's not a very nice fellow."

After many days,
The waters receded; then Yay!
They were back on dry land;
All could go their own way.

The Bengal tigers went east;
The penguins headed south;
The skunks and beavers went west--
According to word of mouth.

Noah grabbed an animal
For a sacrifice quick and succinct,
And turned to his sons saying, "Oops!
I JUST made one species extinct."

Ham, Shem, and Japheth,
Had little time for mirth,
For now it was up to them
To repopulate the earth.

Growing grapes for wine
To Noah was time well spent,
Until he got drunk and naked--
All sprawled out in his tent.

Walking in on his father,
Ham saw a sight not so splendid
And ended up with a *** deal--
(Silly pun intended)--

For Noah cursed poor Ham
For having walked in on him.
So what if a guy saw him naked;
Hadn't he been to a gym?

Actually, the curse
Was more on Canaan, Ham's son.
How had poor Canaan managed
To be the guilty one?

I guess that's the nature of curses;
They don't always make much sense.
There also wasn't a lawyer
To come to Canaan's defense.

To live to be 950
Requires a very strong ticker.
But Noah had a weakness:
Trouble holding his liquor.

- by Bob B

*Sequel to "Noah's Dilemma"

As Putin continues his ****** quest
To ravage Ukraine, we watch in shock
As innocent Ukrainian
Civilians are dying around the clock.

We have to constantly ask ourselves,
"Is all of this dying worth it to him?"
If this is part of his ongoing push
To expand his rule, the future looks grim.

Announcing phony accusations
Before the UN is part of his plan
To craftily legitimize
His propaganda as much as he can.

Of course, conspiracy theorists here
Are siding with Putin--our adversary.
Fox News Channel's Tucker Carlson
Spouts pro-Putin commentary.

It's almost as though Carlson has
A means of direct communication
With Putin, whereby the two of them
Can further their mutual adulation.

And so they continue to throw spaghetti
Against the wall to see what sticks.
Watch the results as the two of them
Keep throwing lies into the mix.

As both Putin and Carlson peddle
Disinformation, people are dying.
How anyone can justify
Such senseless bloodshed is mystifying.

-by Bob b (3-13-22)

Lately some sources reveal
A Zuckerberg/Trump shifty deal,
Which changed the complexion
Of last year's election--
The one that Trump's trying to steal.

Donny felt that indeed
There was really no need
To fact-check his scads
Of political ads,
And sources say Markie agreed.

Afterwards what did we learn
That Facebook got in return?
No applications
Of tough regulations--
A deal that's not easy to spurn.

Zuckerberg says it's not true.
That's something he never would do.
So where does that leave us?
If people deceive us,
They'll NEVER admit it. Would you?

-by Bob B (9-23-21)

(For Shirley, 10-31-1929 to 7-13-2018)

Countless stars light up our lives
And fill our hearts with brightness and splendor.
Sometimes they flash with sparkling brilliance;
Sometimes their rays are gentle and tender.

A star to me was my cousin Shirley,
Whose comforting warmth and radiant glow
Outshone even our glorious sun.
Anybody who knew her would know.

Emitting the light of true compassion,
She never let the darkness prevail
Or woefully impose restrictions
On love impossible to curtail.

And, oh, that love shone on so many.
From a place close by or even from afar,
Shirley's loving-kindness would touch you
As though you'd been touched by the warmth of a star.

But stars do not shine forever.
One sad day their brightness will fade.
Shirley's light was extinguished this week.
Though death is something we cannot evade,

The light of love that Shirley spread
On all who knew her still glows and gleams.
It fills our hearts with goodness and kindness;
It gives us hope; it guides and redeems.

The most spectacular sunrise that ever
Spread across the New Mexican skies
Would still be no match for the beauty of Shirley,
Her smile, or the love that poured from her eyes.

Rest in peace, beautiful cousin.

-by Bob B (7-13-18)

Bowie State University
Student, Richard Collins III,
Commissioned as a second lieutenant,
Will not graduate. Have you heard?

On the path to serving his nation
In many more ways than one,
Collins' life was quickly ended.
Another mother lost her son.

Standing with friends, minding his business,
Collins--as witnesses will attest--
Was stabbed by a homegrown, racist terrorist--
Stabbed directly in the chest.

Who was the killer? Sean Urbanski,
A current student at UMD,
Also a member of Alt-*****: Nation,
A truth of a painful reality.

Emboldened by white supremacists
Working in the White House, no less,
Racist groups are on the rise,
Spreading their loathsome hatefulness.

They say that Collins was brutally murdered
Because of the color of his skin.
He was murdered because of hatred,
For hatred is racism's twin.

Resist the scourge of discrimination.
Mobilize--it's never too late--
To extirpate ALL forms
Of ugly, white-supremacist hate.

-by Bob B (5-23-17)

Our terms often overlap
And merge in different ways.
Attempts to see connections have us
Wandering through a maze.

Often we walk the path together;
At times we walk apart.
Does the heart shape truth, or does
Truth direct the heart?

Names are arbitrary, and our
Interpretations vary.
It's when they clash that circumstances
Move from sound to scary.

Sometimes we will go off course
Or stumble as we go.
As long as we can learn from our
Mistakes then we can grow.

Our path through life should constantly
Encourage us to seek
Answers that will penetrate
The depth of life's mystique.

Once the answer's clear to us,
We've reached a higher level.
Enlightenment then equates to God
And ignorance to the Devil.

-by Bob B (7-25-22)

Senator Chuck Grassley from Iowa
Says that only the wealthy deserve
Major cuts in taxes. Don't
His callous comments hit a nerve?

Hard-working Americans
Deserve no breaks, for they choose
To spend their money foolishly
On--get this!--women, movies, and *****.

But rich Americans, he maintains,
Are the ones always investing
And not spending every penny.
He's dead serious and NOT jesting.

People like him are running this country
With vile contempt and tunnel vision,
Their idiocy and audacity
Affecting our lives with each decision.

-by Bob B (12-5-17)

Watch out, childless cat ladies!
This is as crazy as it gets:
JD Vance says migrants who
Shouldn't be here are eating our pets.

Republicans continue to push
A giant disinformation campaign--
One that makes conscientious
People ask: "ARE THEY INSANE?"

Throwing spaghetti at the wall,
They say, "Whatever sticks will do"
And hope that with their tactics they
Can stir up fear in me and you.

If there's a way that they can create
A fear of immigrants, they will try it.
It's the old scapegoat idea
That they are pushing. They hope you'll buy it.

And many of these Republicans
Have taken their giant erasers out
In order to erase our past,
Cause confusion, and bring up doubt.

To rewrite history is their goal.
They want to ignore our racist past.
Historians are wrong, they say.
The truth is out, at long last.

Russian asset Tucker Carlson,
Embracing Holocaust deniers,
Is touring the country with JD Vance,
Spreading poison and looking for buyers.

They insists that the Holocaust
Was principally a Jewish hoax,
Created with the intention to
Defame white Christian folks!

Voters have to realize
How dangerous these nuts can be
And how with power in their hands
They're a threat to democracy.

-by Bob B (9-10-24)

Trump said there would be no
Conflicts of interest. No siree!
That conflicts of interest have continued
Nonstop is plain to see.

Millions of dollars keep flowing in.
The company's bank accounts keep growing.
His snow job is SO convincing that many
Don't even see how hard it's "snowing."

Since January 2017
The RNC has spent more
Than 700,000 dollars
At properties owned by Trump; therefore,

It doesn't matter how much he says
That he has cut major ties
With businesses. He really hasn't;
It's all just a pack of lies.

Since he took office, political groups
And agencies have in fact
Spent 15.1 million dollars
At TRUMP properties! Caught in the act!

No matter what you want to call it--
No matter how you want to construe it--
You can make money from politics;
There are numerous ways to do it.

It shows what can happen when
The spirit is weak but the flesh is willing.
The office of the presidency
Can help a businessman make a killing.

-by Bob B (5-5-18)

Start a humanitarian crisis.
Separate families at the border.
Remind people that immigrants
Are very low in the pecking order.

Continue with a counter program.
Keep repeating hundreds of times
How immigrants are dangerous
And also the cause of so many crimes.

Then reverse the order that
Separates the families so
You can pretend you care immensely
(Even though it's just a show).

Blame the Democrats all along
For causing all the injustice and pain.
Say they all want open borders--
That they are the ones who are inhumane.

After bombarding the people with
False "facts" on immigration,
Their tolerance for cruelty
Will grow. The power of demonization!

The frequent use of negative words
Will help to galvanize your base.
Make them insensitive
To basic rights; then play your ace.

Send to the border the First Lady.
Give her a tasteless jacket to wear
So she can add more controversy
And callousness to the whole affair.

Have your conspiracy theory friends
And harpy friend appear on the news
To brainwash viewers so more and more
People will start to share your views.

Encourage your sycophants in Congress
To parrot your buzzwords hour after hour,
And you'll be well along the way
To having what you want: POWER.

-by Bob B (6-24-18)

Manipulating information
To craftily plot your lore
Is necessary if you want
To continue an information war.

Specific example: Deny Russian
Collusion and interference in
U.S. elections, and do not stop
Seeking info that you can spin.

After months of denying Russian
Cyber attacks and election meddling,
Then admit the possibility
Through a little backpedaling.

Say that well…maybe they meddled,
But hastily add: so did others.
Say you'd still end all queries
And probes if you had your druthers.

It's vital, of course, that you keep
Bashing the press. Be sure to accuse
Investigative journalists
Of making up tons of fake news.

Finally, say the Russians will
Interfere in the U.S., and that's
How in elections this November
They plan to help the DEMOCRATS!

Why? Because you're so hard
(Wink!) on Russia. You'll be winning.
Your fawning fans will eat it up,
And you will have all heads spinning.

Your friends on your favorite TV station
Will help you criticize and demean
Those who don't agree with you.
Praise to your propaganda machine!

Who cares what the world thinks?
You've got your fans; you've got your base.
There's no match for a stable genius
Who says to the world, "In your face!"

-by Bob B (7-25-18)

D.T.

If you have some classified docs,
Whatever you do, don't ignore them.
Put them in your bathroom, for it's
The perfect place for you to store them.

Therefore, when your guests come to visit,
They'll be fully guaranteed
To have--while they are on the ***--
Something interesting to read.

And if the toilet paper dispenser
Is empty, and they are in a rut,
They can always use the docs
To…well, you know…to wipe their ****.

It gives me such a feeling of power
Just to know the docs are there.
If you fear that you'll run out
Of reading material, don't despair.

I have box after box after box.
That should keep you occupied
For many hours. Top secret?
Bah! I've got nothing to hide.

There's one that I've been looking for--
The one that has the nuclear codes.
If you find it, let me have it,
Or I'll have one of my episodes.

I maintain that presidents--
Current or former--can do what they want.
Thumbing my nose at everyone else:
That is something I like to flaunt.

Now that I have been indicted,
Up my sleeve I have an ace.
I'm sure that a judge that I appointed
Is going to help me win my case.

-by Bob B (6-24-23)

D.T.

THIS playbook chapter is
Extremely vital for maintaining
Competitive advantages
When you happen to be campaigning.

Create chaos--the more, the better.
That is one of my winning solutions.
Sow discord and make supporters
Distrust the country's institutions.

Get supporters riled up.
That's NOT a difficult thing to do.
Violence is fine--just be
Certain it's not directed at you.

To rile up people, you have to lie.
Lying is the name of the game.
You can make a lasting impression
If you're crafty and have no shame.

Avoid the discussion of policies
Or real solutions, as much as you can.
Merely say that you will fix
The country because you have a plan.

Develop the art of name calling
And bad-mouthing; THOSE are the kinds
Of things you can do to make distaste
Stick in your supporters' minds.

Make the people fearful of others;
Then your fans will stand by your side.
They won't even know that they're
Being taken for a ride.

Draw support from every extremist
Group that's out there if you can--
Militant groups, nativists,
Christian nationalists, the ****.

Try to get support from "friends"
In other countries. You can get
Tons of help as they spread lies
All across the Internet.

Don't let accurate information
Regarding your health and mental state
Get into the hands of the public.
My favorite word is obfuscate!

Being "nice" just doesn't cut it;
Be as obnoxious as you can be.
You DON"T want folks to think you're weak.
Rudeness is great; take it from me.

So if you want to win an election,
You merely have to follow my lead.
Remember: if you lose the race,
Never, never, never concede.

-by Bob B (10-15-24)

The D.T. Playbook: Chapter 2:
Alienate your allies and friends.
Then sidle up to strongmen
Leaders, pretending to make amends.

Impose tariffs on your close allies.
Oh, yes, and don't forget
To stupidly suggest that they
Could possibly be a national threat.

Countries that were threats in the past
Might be scrambling head over heels
To make what in the future for you
Will be lucrative business deals.

Overlook the fact that your
Dictator friends have a score
Of D minus or F on human
Rights violations heretofore.

Although you and your allies have
Supported one another for years,
Let them know that you support
Countries that will give you cheers.

Keep ignoring foreign involvement
In past elections. Instead attack
People in your own system.
Tell them faith is what they lack.

Don't forget: distractions, distractions.
Always keep confusion brewing
So people have a tough time seeing
What kind of damage you are doing.

Finally, keep repeating words
And phrases over and over. Create
The illusion that your strategies
Are going to make the country great.

-by Bob B (6-8-18)

Promise to nominate a judge
Who will reverse previous decisions.
Relish the opportunity
To fan the flames of people's divisions.

Refuse to provide the senators
With all of the documents that they need
To allow for careful, researched judgment.
Your nominee will be guaranteed.

Be sure the person you nominate
Will have your back if things get hairy.
Agreeing that you're above the law
Is absolutely necessary.

Let ideology be
The key factor for stacking the Court.
Your starry-eyed supporters will
Give you their undying support.

Train your nominee to behave
Just like you when at a hearing.
Your base will consequently find
The person even more endearing.

If any dirt might come up,
Limit the background investigation
To make it essentially a sham.
And lie without reservation.

Persuade Republicans in Congress
To sycophantly do your bidding.
You scratch their backs; they'll scratch yours.
Works like a charm. I'm not kidding!

Belittle dissenters. People who don't
Support you, you humiliate.
Stick to this plan, for that's how you
Are going to make this country great.

-by Bob B (10-5-18)

Defrauding the public isn't hard
When you're one of the Trumps.
The president is especially good
At duping his loyal chumps.

So, after Trump fired James Comey,
He fired AG Sessions.
Those two firings were just a part
Of the president's indiscretions.

Next came Matthew Whitaker--
A Donald Trump lackey--
As acting AG, and whose background
Was--let's say--a bit tacky.

Now AG Barr is there
To willingly play his part
And show how he and Trump are both
Connected heart to heart.

Barr's recent appointment has
Very clearly shown
That the president has managed
To get his Roy Cohn.

Keeping Congress from seeing the full
Mueller report, Barr
Acts LESS like a fair AG
And MORE like a czar.

Flouting the rule of law, Trump
And Barr, political hacks,
Can end up doing a lot of damage
Behind Americans' backs.

Now Barr has mentioned the word
"Spying." It never fails
That Trump's appointees tend to go
Completely off the rails.

Making Trump a victim only
Satisfies his base.
Trump and Barr don't care whether
Their actions are a disgrace.

Now the tinfoil-hat group can say
"All the acrimony
Toward Trump is a nasty plot."
What a bunch of baloney!

Our leadership has never been
So chaotic. Never!
Elections, they say, have consequences.
Boy do they ever!

-by Bob B (4-11-19)

Chapter Seven of the D.T. Playbook:
Do not worry if you besmirch
Your country's honor by suddenly leaving
Trusted allies--the Kurds--in the lurch.

Although they worked together with you
To fight a common enemy, ISIS,
Their abandonment will force them
To face an even greater crisis.

Provide them with weapons while they assist you.
Then merely say, "Thank you. Good-bye!"
Leaving them to fend for themselves,
To flee their homeland, to suffer, to die.

Do not worry if thousands of Kurds
Had lost their lives to help fight your foe.
Turn your head, pretending you can't
Hear the people's cries of woe.

Placate a Turkish autocrat
With ethnic cleansing as one of his goals.
Do not fret if experts tell you
That your thoughtless plan has holes.

Do not let your people know
Your REAL motives, for you have the knack
Of taking full advantage of others
Before stabbing them in the back.

Do not fear if enemy captives
Escape from their prison cells and flee,
Putting more people there and here
In danger as ISIS soldiers run free.

Tell everyone how smart you are;
Pat yourself on the back, and then
Do not care that the rest of your allies
Will never be able to trust you again.

-by Bob B (10-21-19)

Expanding your power is essential
For you to rule with an iron fist.
Remember that you and truth and honor
Simply cannot coexist.

Surround yourself with the most unethical
People you know. One result
Is you will find that that is a much
Simpler way to build your cult.

Appoint an attorney general who
Will back you up no matter what.
He'll investigate your critics;
In short, he'll help you kick their ****.

You can then intimidate
Members of Congress, for you'll find
That with the AG's help they'll be
More malleable. Bear that in mind.

Once you've got your toadies in Congress,
Gone is the separation of powers.
You'll get away with anything.
Their blind devotion will water your flowers.

As your power increases and people
Fear you more, you'll know fully
All the advantages of being
A crass, crude, obnoxious bully.

The groveling sycophants around you--
Though they appear weak and feckless--
Will always be willing to give you a pass,
Even if your behavior is reckless.

You can follow the lead of friend
Vladimir Putin, for he understands
What it's like for a leader to have
So much power in his hands.

Oh, I love democracy--
Something that I can exploit and abuse
And manipulate to give myself
Even more power if I so choose.

-by Bob B (1-18-20)

When things are looking bleak and your
Polling numbers are way too low,
Apply underhanded tactics
To vanquish your political foe.

Slowly dismantle the postal system.
Make the problem acutely systemic
By making it harder for people to vote,
Especially during a deadly pandemic.

Attack the system of voting by mail
By making it seem as though it's flawed.
Make your fans believe that it opens
The door to rampant voter fraud.

If TV stations run political
Ads that you don't like, subdue them.
Go after the smaller stations
In certain states. Simply sue them.

Force intelligence agencies
To bend the truth whenever you can.
Get the DOJ to help you
Muddy the waters: a perfect plan.

Continue to seek foreign help
To harm your opponent. Feel no chagrin.
And then stifle investigations--
Anything to help you win.

Say that the system is rigged against you
So that your fans will feel disgusted,
And then if you lose the November election,
Election results will NOT be trusted.

To hide your gross incompetence,
Sow the seeds of doubt and blame.
Get support from sycophants
In Congress--from those who have no shame.

Flout the rules and do whatever
You can to make your critics squirm.
Following all these beautiful tactics
Will help you secure a second term.

-by Bob B (8-12-20)

Surrounded by hype, Devin Nunes
Scripted his daily reality show,
While flurries of words on right-wing TV
Gave the viewers vertigo.

The "memo" was the talk of the land.
"Release the memo!" was the rage.
Conspirators wanted to prove wrong-doing--
Biased treatment of Carter Page

And bias toward the president.
Creating a specious storyline
From FBI reports, Trump's
Lackeys attempted to undermine

An ongoing investigation.
All it did was fall with a thud.
Despite Sean Hannity's ranting and raving,
The memo proved to be a dud.

Combine conspiracy theory news,
A cherry-picked narrative filled with holes,
Eagerly manipulated
Believers and Russian bots and trolls,

And you have a farce of epic proportions--
A bucket of chaos, filled to the brim.
As John McCain so wisely put it:
"We're doing Putin's work for him."

-by Bob B (2-3-18)

While on my walk I spied a flower
With huge petals, ruffled, yet tender:
A dazzling yellow-gold hibiscus,
Glowing with majestic splendor.

I couldn't help but stop and stare
At its striking beauty and gentle grace.
Not to acknowledge such elegance
Would definitely be a disgrace.

As I gazed upon the bloom,
I heard a quiet voice that said,
"They say it isn't nice to stare,
But go ahead…go ahead.

"Most people walk right by.
They see the flowers on the plant,
But their true ability
To grasp what they see is scant.

"Can you see me for who I am--
My individuality?
Or do all blooms appear as an
Anonymous totality?

"Yes, it's true that all of the flowers
Create a lovely impression together.
Think of gardens teeming with roses,
Fields of daisies, or hills of heather.

"But can you see my unique nature--
The deep essence of my being?
Am I more than merely one
Of many? Tell me what you're seeing."

Speechless, as though in a trance,
I stared awhile, then walked away,
Pondering every meaningful word
The beautiful flower had to say.

-by Bob B (9-1-17)

Our enemy's sly and insidious.
To recognize it is hard.
It's always lying in wait
To catch us off our guard.

It doesn't announce its presence.
With fanfare and bold display.
Its surreptitious maneuvers
Easily lead astray.

What or who it is
Usually eludes us.
Its ensnaring grasp
Usually includes us.

How to rout it out?
We haven't as of yet.
IGNORANCE is our enemy
And also our greatest threat.

A snake was terrorizing a village.
When villagers walked to and fro,
The snake would lie in wait in hopes
Of biting someone and causing great woe.

One day the village sage approached
The snake to give it a talking-to.
"No more biting people!" he said.
"Don't you have better things to do?

"Biting people is wrong, and the practice
Must be halted immediately."
The snake agreed to stop and slithered
Off to the shade of a banyan tree.

Now when people strolled by, it lay
In the shade without even lifting its head.
Villagers who had feared the snake
Now were feeling bold instead.

In fact, the kids in the village would even
Approach the snake and hit it with sticks.
They also gathered heavy objects
To throw, such as rocks and bricks.

One day the sage walked by
And saw that the snake was barely alive.
"I did what you said," it said to the sage.
"But now how will I ever survive?"

The old man dressed the poor snake's wounds,
Sad to see the creature like this.
"I told you not to bite," he said,
"But I DIDN'T tell you NOT to hiss."

-by Bob B (2-17-22)

°An old tale retold here in verse

The vigor is gone from the Stars and Stripes.
What's happening is truly degrading.
The purity of the WHITE is sullied;
The RED and BLUE are slowly fading.

The sullying of the color WHITE,
Which stands for innocence, reveals
That we are slipping--that we are not
Holding true to our ideals.

Are we innocent if we
Ignore the years of hard-fought fights
For justice and equality
As we dismantle voting rights?

If RED means hardiness and courage
And the readiness to sacrifice,
What we're seeing happening now
Makes that meaning imprecise.

Too many people refuse to make
A sacrifice and throw a fit
When asked to do so to help protect
The lives of others, if even a bit.

If BLUE stands for vigilance,
Perseverance, and justice for all,
Then our approach to those areas
Needs a major overhaul.

Perseverance for many means
Believing conspiracy theories that make
Others wonder how truth can be
Such an easy thing to forsake.

Vigilance is also lacking
In many people who fail to see
That huge threats of attacks from our own
People are not hyperbole.

And BLUE for justice for all? Sadly,
That is something we can't declare yet.
Discrimination, selfishness,
And bigotry prove that we're not there yet.

By doing what's right, we must inject
More color into the current Old Glory.
If not, what we'll see will be
A sad end to America's story.

-by Bob B (8-5-21)

Some folks are descendants
Of Hamilton or Grant.
They can proudly boast,
While there are some who can't.
Well, I have the honor--
You will plainly see
That "honor" here is used
Quite sarcastically--

Of being a descendant
Of one with dubious fame.
In case you wonder, John
Billington was his name.
Ten years after his
Arrival in the year
1620, he
Was executed here.

Hey, Johnny!
Whaddya say?
Why’d you have to
Die that way?
You had to push
The envelope
To end up hanging
From a rope.

The Mayflower was
His means of transportation.
Fleeing debt, he hoped
To rise above his station.
His wife and two young sons
Joined him on the trip.
One mischievous son
Almost blew up the ship.

His son was thinking, "Hey,
This is loads of fun!"
While he played around
With his father's gun.
Stupidly, he put
The whole ship in peril
When he fired a shot
Near a gunpowder barrel.

John Billington was
Always in a jam.
About propriety
He didn't give a ****.
I guess he thought he was
A wise and clever chap.
But he should have known
When to shut his trap.

Hey, Johnny!
Whaddya say?
Why’d you have to
Die that way?
You had to push
The envelope
To end up hanging
From a rope.

A quarrel with a neighbor,
John Newcomen, led
John Billington to
Completely lose his head.
Billington shot Newcomen,
Who shortly thereafter died.
Two juries called it
An act of homicide.

There was no escaping
Punishment this time.
Billington was forced
To pay for his crime.
Fortunately, even
Though this story's grim,
I can proudly say
I don't take after him!

Hey, Johnny!
Whaddya say?
Why’d you have to
Die that way?
You had to push
The envelope
To end up hanging
From a rope.
Hanging from a rope!

-by Bob B (6-29-29)

In a small village lived a man
Who no longer had a wife.
The only son that he had was now
The pride and joy of his life.'

While the man was away one day,
Some plunderers came into town.
They ransacked the homes, kidnapped the boy,
And burned the houses down.

When the man arrived back home,
He found among the rubble
A charred body. Assuming it was
His son's, he took the trouble

To have the body cremated, and then
He put the remains of the lad
Into a bag that he carried with him
Wherever he went. Poor dad!

After the man had rebuilt his house
With a memorial dome,
The son escaped from the plunderers
And found his way back home.

Hearing a knock on the door, the father
Wondered, "Who could it be?"
The son continued knocking and said,
"Father, it is me!"

"Go away!" the father said.
"Leave me in peace!" he cried.
"I won't open the door to an
Imposter. My son died!"

Frantically, the son continued
To pound upon the door.
He finally walked away in sadness.
Ah, the grief they bore!

The years passed by. The son would wonder
Every now and then,
"Should I return?" but sadly he
Never went back again.

When people are so attached to false
Ideas that they embrace,
They hide from the truth, even if
It stares them in the face.

-by Bob B (7-14-23)

°An old Buddhist parable

A day after the midterms, Trump
Showed that he was true to form,
Once again reminding us that
Effrontery is becoming the norm.

In a brazen act of utter defiance,
Trump fired Jeff Sessions,
The attorney general, which adds one more
Deed to the list of Trump's transgressions.

Ignoring the normal line of succession,
Trump installed as acting chief
A loyalist, since loyalty is
The current admin's leitmotif.

Matt Whitiker is the man--
Known as the West Wing's "eyes and ears."
Another case of obstruction of justice?
At least that's how the move appears.

Whitiker has a paper trail
A mile long, criticizing
The Mueller probe, so Trump wants him
In charge of the case. How NOT surprising!

The DOJ is supposed to be
Fair and impartial. Not anymore.
If Whitiker doesn't recuse himself,
We all know what's in store.

It's frightening how the DOJ
Is tied to the president's apron strings.
Innocent people have nothing to fear;
Desperate people do desperate things.

-by Bob B (11-8-18)

All day long a fisherman stood,
fishing in a river.
Although he was ambitious, he
Was failing to deliver.

He pulled in his net a final time,
Intending to walk away,
For he was rightfully weary, and it
Was time to call it a day.

"It's too bad," he sighed, trying
Not to be upset,
When all of a sudden he noticed a fish
Squirming about in his net.

The tiny fish pleaded and pleaded
With him to set it free.
"I am HARDLY worth the effort.
Wouldn't you agree?

"Throw me back into the river,
So I can grow for a spell.
When I've become a larger fish,
I could serve you well.

"Right now I am just a tiny,
Insignificant thing.
But later you could put me on
A platter fit for a king."

"What do you take me for--a fool?"
The fisherman replied.
"That you do not amount to much
Cannot be denied.

"How in the world could you expect
That I should release you when
Both YOU and I know that I would never,
Ever see you again?

"Why let go of a certainty,
For something uncertain? And so
You're going home with me, and into
The frying pan you'll go."

The moral? Once in a while because of
The situation you're in,
You must be creative if you
Want to save your skin.

Another moral isn't about
Trying to  save your ****.
It goes as follows: a bird in the hand
Is worth TWO in the bush.

-by Bob B (9-13-21)

°An Aesop fable retold here in verse

Many speakers of English avoid
Using the F-word. That's okay.
But I am concerned; therefore, it's
A word I'm not afraid to say.

FASCISM. There! I said it.
We've seen it rise; we've seen it fall.
Now it's as though fascism is
Getting a brand new overhaul.

Viktor Orbán of Hungary
Speaks of the impropriety
Of what to him is anathema:
A mixed-race society.

Keeping our countries "pure" is what
Orbán touts as a major goal.
Non-white immigrants only dilute
The race. Sound familiar? Jawohl!

Orbán's rhetoric jumps right out of
The **** playbook--right on track.
The press and academic freedom
Are also what he loves to attack.

And yet he's invited to Texas to speak
At CPAC,° where crowds on the Right
Give the man a standing ovation
And raise their voices in cheers of delight!

He talks about the replacement theory
And takes advantage of each opportunity
To viciously attack and malign
The LGBTQ community.

We also know that Donald Trump
Gladly put out the welcome mat
For Orbán to come and speak with him.
Of course, who is surprised about that?

In World War II we fought to stop
The rise of fascist dictatorships.
The movement again is a growing problem
With which we have to come to grips.

Stakeholders in democracy,
Be on guard or we will lose
The freedoms for which we fought for years
If we close our eyes and snooze.

-by Bob B (8-5-22)

°Conservative Political Action Conference

We're ****** into the Game of Life
Crying, "Here I am! Make way!"
And then we have to play along,
Whether or not we want to play.

Confused and bewildered at first, we strive
To gather together strategic tools
To help us maneuver through twists and turns,
And as we play we learn the rules.

The game's not always easy, for our
Priorities often need rearranging.
What makes life even trickier yet
Is that the blasted rules keep changing!

Once in a while we win a round;
And then once in a while we lose.
We learn to celebrate our gains,
To ride out storms, to pay our dues.

We also learn that fellow players
Are NOT always on our side.
Thus, it's necessary for us
To be prepared for a bumpy ride.

Along the way, we will encounter
Liars who try to sabotage
Our efforts to thrive. We also have to
Learn what's true and what's a mirage.

Ah! Those moments of happiness--
We want to grasp them to make them last.
But sad times make their unwelcome entrance
And must be dealt with until they've passed.

Close calls often occur, and at times
We don't even know that they are there.
Don't be neurotic and paranoid,
But here's some advice: always beware.

Play with gusto, and always maintain
The enthusiasm of a beginner,
For in this game, each of us
Can ultimately be a winner.

Once we make our final move,
Forget grasping, fortune, and fame.
The rules will have changed again;
We'll be playing a different game.

-by Bob B (3-22-20)

For over a year it's been said
That our Commander in Chief
Wants to pull the U.S.
Out of NATO! Good grief!

His grasp of history is so
Absent that it's no wonder
Why he keeps committing
Blunder after blunder.

The greatest alliance for peace
The world has ever known--
One that's prevented Europe
From being a combat zone--

Has been a solid presence
Since after World War II.
Our pulling out
Would be a big to-do.

One thing we know:
Putin would be delighted.
Such a foolish action
Would be extremely shortsighted.

In fact, it would cause
A huge power shift
And for Vladimir Putin
Would be the greatest gift.

For reasons yet to be
Discovered, Donald Trump
Does Putin's bidding
And kisses Putin's ****.

We wonder what the president
Owes his Russian friend.
Will his actions come back
To bite him in the end?

Being a target for blackmail
Can't be very fun.
It puts us all in danger
When all is said and done.

If Trump keeps insisting
On pulling out of NATO,
Someone needs to throw
The proverbial tomato.

-by Bob B (1-16-19)

For years Trump has wanted us
All to believe that he is the great
Businessman par excellence,
When actually, he's second-rate.

By lying and cheating his way to the top,
He fooled many. But let's not forget
That Trump's successful empire was
A fiction created by Mark Burnett.°

Trump's REAL empire is
A castle built on shifting sand.
For many years he has relied
On fraud to help promote his brand.

"Fraud" is such an ugly word,
But maybe for Trump it's really not.
To him it seems that all is fair--
Just as long as you don't get caught.

As he gaslights Americans,
It's hard to know what he really believes.
The hypocrite cannot escape
The fantasies to which he cleaves.

How sad it is that he has led
Americans down the rabbit hole!
How can they trust someone who couldn't
Tell the truth to save his soul?

-by Bob B (9-27-23)

°Producer of the TV series "The Apprentice"

Much can be learned from reading the scriptures
From many religions--not just one.
Searching for deeper truths and insights
Into human nature is fun.

Learning the path to knowing the self
And meditating on what you read
Give you an opportunity
To better yourself--whatever your creed.

Striving to be more understanding
Serves as a task that's far from small.
It helps us appreciate other religions
And people with no religion at all.

The symbolism that fills the stories,
The parables and figures of speech,
And words of wisdom help you to gain
Greater awareness--so within reach.

Seeking whatever helps us to be
Loving, compassionate, and kind
Is powerful and transformative;
However, do keep one thing in mind:

If using the scriptures to further hatred,
Intolerance, or bigotry, you
Have to remember that "the devil
Can cite scripture for HIS purpose,"° too.

-by Bob B (8-22-21)

°from William Shakespeare

The Great Cover-up. That's what it was.
The trial in the Senate--a sham.
The Trumplicans want the process behind them.
Water over the dam.

Witnesses were not allowed
To testify, which meant
That many of us were disappointed
With how the process went.

Whatever the outcome would have been,
The truth was highly suppressed.
That's what happens when evidence
And facts are not addressed.

Praise to Romney, the only Republican
Senator who admitted
That Trump at least on one of the charges
Should NOT have been acquitted.

The other Republican Senators
Chose absolution.
They backed their cultish leader instead of
Defending the Constitution.

Good-bye, rule of law. Good-bye,
Democratic protections,
For Trump's been given carte blanche to
Corrupt future elections.

-by Bob B (2-6-20)

This is the tale of the gumyocho bird.
It had two heads, which would suggest
That IF two heads are better than one,
The gumyocho bird should have been blessed.

But it had two personalities.
Each head thought it was always right,
And so, as you can surely surmise,
The bird's two heads would constantly fight.

One day while one head was asleep,
The other head, an herbivore,
Feasted on luscious fruits and flowers
Until its stomach could take no more.

When the other head woke up,
Its body was feeling indigestion.
Food sounded good, but it was so full
That eating was certainly out of the question.

The head--so angry, resentful, and bitter--
Planned to get even, but not being shrewd,
When hungry again, it slyly led
The other head to some poisonous food.

The head then ate its fill with gusto.
You can imagine what happened next.
Since the two heads shared one body,
No one should be surprised or perplexed.

Before dying, the vengeful head
Realized the mistake it had made
And hoped a compassionate buddha would feel
Pity for it and come to its aid.

Transported to an awakened realm,
The bird tells its story for our sake,
To help us see the repercussions
That come from decisions that all of us make.

Listen to the gumyocho bird.
It has a relevant story to tell:
When we’re hurtful to other people,
We're hurtful to ourselves as well.

-by Bob B (11-24-24)

Stop the lies, conspiracy theories,
And gaslighting. Let truth prevail.
Every day we hear another
Radical far-right fairytale.

This year's January 6
Insurrectionists were NOT
Patriots. No, they were thugs,
Carrying out a violent plot.

Police officers testified
At a hearing on Capitol Hill.
Sadly, the four men have been
Forced to swallow a bitter pill.

Officers defended Congress
Against a wild and violent mob.
Understaffed and overwhelmed,
They were merely doing their job.

But many Republicans in Congress
Want you to doubt what you have seen--
To erase the violent images
That flashed across your TV screen.

Officers dealt with severe beatings,
Bear pepper spray, bone-chilling threats,
The fear of being crushed by the crowd,
And horrible racial epithets.

They were threatened before the hearings
And then after the hearings as well--
Vicious, violent threats, as though
They hadn't already been through hell.

And while the hearing was going on,
Republicans--on that very same day--
Met outside to offer support
To the thugs, until they were chased away.

How terribly sick and ironic it is
That some Republicans condemn
The officers who in January
Risked their lives protecting them!

Hopefully, during these hearings,
More information will come to light.
Congress MUST ignore what's politically
Advantageous and do what's right.

-by Bob B (7-28-21)

In our world of computers along with
Hackers and scammers, be prepared
To discover that e-mail messages you wrote
And thought were private have been "shared."

You have a right to your own opinions,
But don't think that your code can't be cracked.
You'll be doing lots of damage control
Once your e-mail account has been hacked.

- by Bob B

We saw from many Republicans
Their true colors yesterday
With their blind allegiance to
Donald Trump on full display.

While we paused to remember the horrors
Of January 6 last year,
We saw Republican lawmakers
Kowtowing to their puppeteer.

Aligned with white nationalists
And thugs, the Party's come to be
Unrecognizable
From the former GOP.

While members of Congress met to reflect
On what had happened a year ago,
Republicans--except for Liz Cheney--
Unsurprisingly failed to show.

Republicans in Missouri had
A fundraiser--one whereby
They celebrated the insurrection
And pushed Trump's election lie.

In interviews, two notorious
Trump sycophants mentioned their pride
In what the violent mobs had done.
Violence being sanctified?

Amplified by hostile foreign
Powers, many lies keep spreading.
With truth constantly under attack,
It's scary to think where the nation is heading.

How can lawmakers cater to Trump
And still maintain any self-respect?
Furthermore, without a backbone,
How can they even stand *****?

-by Bob B (1-7-22)

Oh, my goodness! Once again
The quacks out there are on a roll,
And they have found their gullible fans
To follow them down the rabbit hole.

Now they're pushing ivermectin--
Which is a horse deworming med.
They'll come up with any nonsense
And then sit back and watch it spread.

Instead of getting vaccinated,
Some people would rather take
A drug that could be dangerous
And possibly put their lives at stake.

There's no proof whatsoever
The ivermectin works to fight
COVID-19 in human beings.
To push the drug is just not right!

In fact, there should be consequences
For doctors who push snake oil solutions
For COVID treatments. How many lives
Will suffer from their contributions?

People need to obtain the facts
In order to gain true self-reliance.
But some insist on saying, "Give me
Ivermectin! To hell with science!"

-by Bob B (9-1-21)

The Minnesota night was cold;
Ask the man on the street:
It was so cold your words would freeze,
Drop, and break at your feet.
That didn't stop the Jensens at all--
Is that so hard to believe?--
From hosting their annual family feast
That frigid Christmas Eve.

One by one the families poured in
Bearing gifts and food.
Onkel Karl and Tante Inge
Arrived with their brood.
Onkel Jakob and Tante Hilde
And their three kids…Oh, dear!
If I listed all of the relatives,
It would take a year.

Of beer and wine and all kinds of spirits,
Of course, there were a LOT there.
Cousins Arne and Jan were already
Snockered when they got there.
Maybe that explains in part
The reason for the fight
That put a damper on the mood
On such a festive night.

The families had all sat down to dinner
And gazed upon the spread:
Potato dumplings, salads, sausage,
And cabbage, white and red.
Arne, staring at the roasted pig
With a look distant and glazy,
Made a funny joke about
Republicans being crazy.

All at once, the room grew quiet;
Nobody made a sound.
Everybody looked at Jan,
Who glared at Arne and frowned.
To change the mood, Pastor Olsen
Said, "Let's all say grace.
"?Just as he started, Arne got
A lutefisk in the face.

The roasted pig, the salads and lefse
Landed on the floor
As Arne and Jan pounded each other,
And wrestled, kicked, and swore.
The two were covered from head to foot
With gravy, potatoes, and fish.
The last straw was when they broke Grandma’s
Favorite rosemaled dish.

Suddenly, everybody heard
The sharpest, loudest BANG!
Followed by an echo.
Au! How their ears rang!
Grandma Liv was standing there
With a rifle in her hand.
No one was going to argue with her;
She was in command.

Above her was a hole in the ceiling;
Plaster speckled her hair.
The huge room was a total mess--
Food was everywhere.
"Scrape up what you can," she ordered.
"We're going to try this again.
Arne and Jan, just one word
And you two are dead men."

(Luckily there was no one upstairs
Above the dining room,
Though Onkel Odd was across the hall
When he heard the boom.
He was--and who wouldn't be--
So startled by the shot,
That the poor man jumped two feet in the air
And fell right off the ***.)

With dinner salvaged and the table reset,
Again they sat down to dine.
Grandma Liv sternly said,
"Now, family of mine:
Let's enjoy this Christmas feast.
Show me you are able
To have a pleasant evening and keep
Politics away from the table."

Having said that, she smiled and placed
Her rifle in her lap.
Not a soul dared to test her
For fear that she would snap.
Arne and Jan, battered and bruised,
Silently sipped their soup,
To Jan, Grandma said, "Din idiot!"
To Arne, "Nincompoop!"

The hole in the ceiling will remain
As a warning--or constant threat--
Of possible consequences lest
Anybody forget
That political talk at the dinner table
Was something they must nix,
For sausages, pig, lefse, *****,
And politics do not mix.

- by Bob B

Poor Trump is trying hard
To cover up his deep dejection.
He's attempting to overturn
The results of the presidential election.

Strange, bizarre conspiracy theories
Perpetuated by the Trumps
Are being spread like wildfire
And talk of massive ballot dumps.

Trump sounds like a mad King George
Or a crazed King Lear, losing his mind.
Any semblance of rational thought
In him is getting harder to find.

Frivolous lawsuits of voter fraud
From Giuliani's bag of tricks
Show that they're throwing whatever they can
At the wall in hopes that something sticks.

Sadly, they are undermining
Democracy with such crazy schemes.
They look even more pathetic
By going to such outrageous extremes.

Americans have voted and now
Await with hope a bright new dawn.
The jig is up. The game is over.
Mr. Trump, it's time to move on.

-by Bob B (12-1-20)

A group of people heard there was
A city with treasure beyond compare.
They met a wise, compassionate leader
Who said, "I will guide you there."

The road was a long path that led
Through wild and treacherous terrain.
After many exhausting hours,
The weary group began to complain:

"We are tired and still very far
From our destination, and so
We’d like to turn around and go home.
Our previous plans we'll gladly forgo."

The leader thought, "How sad it is
That they'll so quickly abandon the treasure!
Surely, they will regret their wish,
And that will cause them great displeasure."

And so he magically created
A stunning city. All were impressed.
The city was full of cozy places
Where all the travelers could rest.

Parks with beautiful, soothing fountains
Were in abundance, and rows of trees
Crisscrossed the lovely flower-filled gardens,
And blossoms sailed by in the gentle breeze.

The leader observed that the group was growing
Complacent, and after they'd rested a spell,
He made the city disappear--
The safe and lovely gardens as well.

"This city was only a place where you
Could rest before you reached your goal,"
He said. "I hope that now you can
Continue your journey with heart and soul.

"By sticking together, we will reach
The city of treasures. You won't regret it.
Weariness will stop you from
Succeeding only if you let it."

Provisional experiences
Can guide us and give us inspiration,
But seeking and finding deeper truths
Can ultimately be our salvation.

Never give up on the lifelong journey
To knowledge and wisdom, for sooner or later
The light of simple pleasures will be
Outshone by a treasure that's even greater.

-by Bob B (9-11-23)

°Based on the parable in Chapter 7 of the LOTUS SUTRA