Paved-over swamp sprawl
squalor of strip mall and
college-trough parking lots

No lap dances allowed,
though. this
is a decent place

with stand-your-ground laws
and sulphur in the water

Where groups of white
men chase men that look
different and white-haired veterans
yell "nip" from burgundy Buicks
with long pull at glinting flask

a decent
place for squirrels chattering
"*******!" between acorn-throws
and dinosaur cockroaches

And then the rain starts
and then everybody drives worse
and the guard-rails cringe

A decent place
where every road
charges a toll.