Sensational Sonnets

The Treasury's Dilemma

2013-01-12T13:14:00.001-08:00

The constitution vests in Congress power

To tax and spend as well as issue debt.
Strong limits on the Treasury are set
Which now are binding. Rapidly the hour
Approaches when all three constraints will leave
No easy way for Geithner to comply.
Will Congress let the debt ceiling defy
Its spending orders, or grant a reprieve?
If Congress does not act, will Treasury
Allow the country's bills to go unpaid?
Will fire sales raise the funds Congress enjoins
The Treasury to spend, or will we see
Appropriated monies be delayed?
Will Geithner mint some trillion dollar coins?????

Santa Barbara!

2012-11-23T13:29:00.000-08:00

On California's coast, a paradise

Unfolds before you in this calendar.

Dave Sommers brings the highest caliber

Of photographic art before your eyes.

This Santa Barbara native chose to seek
Unusual perspectives. In his quest
For these amazing shots, his very best
Make these familiar scenes appear unique.
This calendar would make the perfect gift,
But you might want your own. So if you need
To purchase one or many, order here.
And if your heart could use a constant lift
Then view Dave's pictures on his Facebook feed,
Where regularly his great shots appear.

The Maker/Taker Narrative

2012-11-13T18:48:00.000-08:00

The Republican Position

The Maker/Taker narrative combines
Two ways to classify Americans,
Which form the basis for republicans
To understand the democrats' designs.
The Makers all work hard responsibly
To keep their families sheltered clothed and fed,
While Takers ask the government instead
To make the Makers give them charity.
Thus Takers vote for those who will allot
More resources to those who don't produce.
The democrat/republican divide
Is mirrored in the Maker/Taker plot.
Republicans are Makers and refuse
These bribes, in which the democrats confide.

For democrats to win, they must persuade
The poor that they are doomed to poverty
Unless they shift responsibility
To Makers. This insures that less is made,
So less and less is shared by more and more.
These policies the democrats support
Appeal only to Takers. Thus they court
A population doomed to end up poor.
To demonize the right and justify
Continuation of these policies,
The democrats use class, race, sex, and creed
As false distinctions. Using these they pry
America towards two extremities
That foster fear and hatred without need.

The mission for republicans must be
To prove that all of us Americans
Can join the Makers. If we follow plans
To help the poor produce, their dignity
Will be restored instead of undermined
By this dependency. Let's lend a hand
To help those up who have so long been banned
To welfare roles where now they are confined.
Prosperity can come to those who try!
Do not succumb to the erroneous myth
That all can thrive by mooching off success.
The Maker ideologies defy
Such empty promises and answer with
The truths that all republicans profess.

America has reached the tipping point
Beyond which all are doomed to poverty.
Obama rode this vile complacency
To reelection. Makers will acquaint
Themselves with greater taxes, slower growth
And higher prices. Though this burden falls
On us we wish the Takers understood
It falls on them as well. There is no good
That comes from making Makers criminals.
And Takers, it is wrong to play the race
Card. Democrats are trying to enslave
Minorities by focusing on hate!
Do not allow their message to debase
The land of the free and the home of the brave.
Unite with us, before it is too late!

The Democrat Response

Minorities have voted democrat
In overwhelming numbers. Each in turn
Can be explained if you could just discern
The reasons why your message falls so flat.
First Asians, 3 to 1, reject your claim.
Per capita, they outproduce the whites
And start more businesses. By any rights,
Americans from Asia aren't to blame.
What of the Jews? They joined the Asians too,
And in the same proportions. They don't take.
So are republicans condemning Blacks?
Hispanics? Can this narrative be true?
Or is it just a way for Whites to make
Excuses for their bigoted attacks?

Blacks and Hispanics do apply for aid
Far more than whites, but that's because they're poor.
No one would choose food stamps were it not for
A lack of options. Poor folk have not played
The system more than rich folk. After all,
The rich can lobby congress and we see
That Exxon Mobile pays no FIT
In spite of earning billions. If you call
The poor folk moochers, aren't the rich folk worse?
Yet they aren't labeled irresponsible.
So we who voted for Obama say
The narrative republicans rehearse
Is bigoted as well as simply full
Of crap. That's why the people turn away.

Your bigotry is not confined to race.
When you insist on having prayer in schools
Does that mean Hindus? Muslims? Jews? The rules
You want give Christianity first place.
How do you think the other faiths will feel
If you don't make them equal? By their vote
We know your narrative just doesn't float.
No matter how you try to bring appeal
To solve your "demographic" problem, you
Have limited your core constituents
To just White Christian men. Do not protest
That you are for minorities.Your true
Position shows your party's reticence
To keep their rights from being dispossessed.

For a friend going on a cruise.

2012-11-07T14:33:00.001-08:00

Each day you tell providers where to go,

And when their shifts are scheduled to begin

And end. Although your patience is worn thin,

No patients in the ERs ever know

How hard it is to make sure shifts are filled.

They only know they get the proper care,

Because you make each nurse practitioner

And doctor follow calendars you build.

Since you worked hard, it's time for your reward!

A tropical vacation is your due

And I am wishing you an awesome cruise!

From when the captain calls out, "All aboard,"

Until your voyage finishes, may you

Enjoy extravagance and scenic views!

Intro to From Now Until Muhammad Mahdi's War

2012-11-05T13:36:00.001-08:00

Within a village on Iraqi soil
United States Marines attempt to foil
Insurgencies intent on their demise.
Set in 2006 amidst the rise
Of violence and insecurity,
It might appear as if this poetry
Is all about the escalating war.
Another theme reviewers might explore,
Is the perspective seen from Musa's view.
Like all the villagers, he wishes to
Protect his family from the violence.
As he pursues this goal, he will commence
Hostilities against these foreigners.
To justify attacks, his villagers
Fall back upon the faith that gives their lives
Such meaning. Though correct, each view deprives
The reader of the purpose of these lines.
The war is just the setting, which combines
Armed men from lands where different etiquette
Clashes, and the battle lines are set.

So when marines attempt to be polite,
Their acts are seen as challenges to fight
Or insults that are chosen to demean.
Iraqi deeds, likewise, to each marine
Appear through filters that distort intent.
Thus even though both sides are innocent
Of any malice, everybody knows
They are confronted by relentless foes
Who are devoid of all morality.
Misunderstandings make the enemy
Where none existed. In this poem, all
The characters behave in ethical
And truly honest ways. They strive for peace,
And only in the worst extremities
Do they resort to violent attacks.
When witnesses report, they state the facts
As seen from such a different point of view,
That even testimony which is true
Can be condemned as obvious flagrant lies.
Retaliation quickly multiplies......

From Now Until Muhammad Mahdi's War

Darth Dexter

2012-10-31T13:07:00.000-07:00

(How we see him)
Darth Dexter is a sith lord

Who frightens all he sees.

No trick-or-treaters can afford

To be his enemies.

The force is not his ally.

It is his slave instead.

No Yoda puppy can defy

Him and not end up dead.

The lightning from his outstretched paw

Illuminates the dark!

In terror, all his foes withdraw

From his resounding bark!

(How he sees himself)
Please get this costume off of me.
I only want to play
With all the kids who eagerly
Approach, then go away.

I can't see out the visor holes,
And the sleeves are so tight
That when I run, the costume pulls
My legs from left to right.

I wish that on this Halloween
The costume catalogue
Did not persuade you to demean
Your faithful Dexter dog!

Goldman Sachs Prepares!

2012-10-29T14:43:00.000-07:00

As Sandy bears down on the eastern coast

Manhattan's finance sector fortifies

Against the storm surge. Goldman Sachs relies

On stronger dikes than other banks can boast.

Its wall of sandbags has been engineered

To stop more water than could possibly

Approach the building. Thus the risk will be

Contained and limited - not just insured.

For just as tranches rated triple-A

Were chosen to prevent catastrophe

In credit markets, these financial gods

Have calculated all the risk away!

The chances are remote, but if the sea

Roars in could the sand fail? what are the odds?

The Geography of Romney

2012-10-23T19:48:00.002-07:00

Mitt Romney knows Iran's route to the sea

Goes straight through Syria! Tehran's foul schemes

Are calculated to replace regimes

Throughout the region. Thus its policy

Is focused on the overriding goal
Of taking seaports. The Americans

Will block the Ayatollah's evil plans

With air and naval forces on patrol.
That's why the Persian Gulf is out of reach
As is the Gulf of Oman's passageway.
Attempts to reach these waters will not work.
The only weakness that Iran could breech
Is Syria. Iraq could not delay
The Quds invasion. Neither could the Turk.

The Court Reporter

2012-10-22T03:00:00.000-07:00

The court reporter takes down every word

Of testimony given in the court.
The shortest statement is of such import
That stenographic license is conferred
Only on those whose skill is absolute.
No digital or analog device
Is so reliable it would suffice
For generating transcripts of repute.
Since accuracy is the paramount
Concern, we gladly pay their salaries
Instead of harnessing technology.
Though officers can bias the account
By cherry picking what the jury sees,
No judge would stoop to change this policy.

With Liberty and Justice for All!

2012-10-19T03:52:00.002-07:00

Obama claimed, "Mitt Romney's one point plan
Is to make sure that wealthy people play
By different rules than does the common man.
We have fought back against this every day!"
Indeed, the DOJ this last four years
Has set new standards to protect the weak,
While making sure no rich man engineers
Acquittal for his crimes through some technique
The lowly cannot use. Thus it defends
Poor Rumsfeld since he has immunity,
While Robo-signers fill as many cells
As Corzine's officers. Blind justice lends
Identical impartiality
To rich and poor, whenever she compels.

Women for Romney

2012-10-17T15:03:00.001-07:00

When Romney won the race for governor,
He called his senior staff together for
A consultation on his cabinet
Appointments. "Gentlemen, let's not forget
That we need women who can represent
The fairer gender in our government."
In answer, all his entourage replied,
"The women applicants weren't qualified
For the positions." Romney then declared,
"If only we knew women who weren't dull
Incompetents! Where could strong females be?...
...Since none of you can help, I am prepared
To ask some women's groups for binders full
Of women. That will fix our bigotry!"

Muddle East Policy

2012-10-10T14:02:00.000-07:00

Across the Middle East, America
Opposes the regimes where tyranny
Holds sway. Against Iran and Syria,
A combination of diplomacy
And sanctions are constraints that underscore
Desire for both democracy and peace,
But willingness to escalate to war
If regional imbalances increase.
Bahrain is therefore armed, so when its king
Has cowed Manama's peaceful protesters,
He will strike fear in Ahmadinejad!
Likewise, the Hashemites are shuttering
Their parliament, and by this show of force,
Our ally chills the hopes of al-Assad!

From Now Until Muhammad Mahdi's War

2012-10-03T13:11:00.000-07:00

From Now Until Muhammad Mahdi's War

is now available for free at

http://muhammadmahdiwar.blogspot.com/2012/10/stanza-1.html

What Might Have Been

2012-09-26T20:28:00.000-07:00

Upon July the fourth I watched with pride

As floats and bands and banners came and went
To celebrate the patriots who died
So each of us could live in such content.
Down Peachtree street I watched the veterans
Of foreign wars, who held their heads up high,
And marched as unified Americans
Approach my own position and pass by.
I marked that some of those in uniform
Were wheelchair bound from age or injury,
So I saluted them with all my heart
And felt upon my cheeks the teardrops warm
That on them fell involuntarily,
And no attempts could make the tears depart.

That night the fireworks made a fine display

To light the sky above Atlanta's parks,
And used each burst of powder to convey
Triumphant images within the sparks
That heralded our independence dear.
The grand finale was extravagant.
I marveled at the means to engineer
An exhibition this significant.
But I could not delay departure more
To celebrate my nation's heritage.
I had to travel home to Tennessee
And be in Chattanooga long before
The dawn imposed itself upon the stage.
I knew that I could make it easily.

Yet as I fought to clear the traffic jam
And took the entrance to the interstate,
I thought of those who, in memoriam,
Had given all so we could contemplate
Our freedoms bought with selfless sacrifice.
I wondered, "God, what evil might now be
If not for those who paid this awful price?
Would we be slaves to Nazi Germany
Or labor under communism's yoke?"
I pondered for an hour, but yawned so much
I slapped my face to try to stay awake,
Then stopped the car to use my lids to cloak
My sleepy eyes and rest them until such
Exhaustion had been conquered by this break.

Then while I slept, the ghosts of New Echota came to me,
And in a long procession this impressive panoply
Paraded through my mind and left its imprint on my brain
That in my recollection I now struggle to retain.
Each one of them imparted how the Spirit had decreed
That they had been selected to address my pressing need.
I told the solemn phantoms that I did not understand.
What was the grave necessity that prompted this command?
In unison they answered, "You requested to be taught
The things that might be otherwise had evil not been fought."

Then all of them fell silent as the images appeared
That showed how New Echota's people fell to what they feared.
The clarity enabled me to see in great detail,
And many accurate accounts now threatened to assail
The patriotic feelings I held dear within my heart.
However, I now witnessed things that tore it all apart,
And never will I know again the peace of ignorance
Or proudly lift the banner of such grave indifference.
The story that I now relate to all the world is true,
And lends a frightening perspective that I never knew.

In eighteen hundred thirty-eight the general Winfield Scott
Commanding seven thousand troops and officers had sought
The relocation of the nation known as Cherokee.
They rounded up the citizens who loved their liberty
As much as any others into concentration camps,
Where dysentery tied the peoples' abdomens in cramps
And food was scarce enough that many starving people died
Before they were compelled to take the trail where they cried.
In Oklahoma, New Echota's people were interned
If they survived the journey that not one of them had earned.

For no one came to fight to save the Cherokee from fate,
And so the Georgians were at liberty to confiscate
The democratic lands that they desired in greediness.
While better men like Daniel Webster hastened to express
Dissatisfaction with the actions of their government,
No heroes armed themselves for war to save the innocent.
It was not long before the doctrine that could justify
American expansion came to be the battle cry
Of every politician who was eager to command,
And "Manifest Destiny" was heard throughout the land!

From fifty-four forty to southern Mexico,
From sea to shining sea the land of liberty would grow.
For God Himself had ordered that America should lead,
And those inferior races who attempted to impede
The progress that was needed to secure the living space,
Would be destroyed for daring to consider such disgrace.
The racist spirit, unopposed, was quickly dominant,
And devastated tribal groups were more than prevalent.

As to the general Sheridan these words are credited,
"I saw some Indians who were good. Those Indians were dead!"

The images departed, and the specters stared at me
And asked me to consider how my valued liberty
Had been acquired by avarice and motives less than pure,
Much more than by my noble heroes willing to endure
The agony of battle where the tyrant's forces stood
Preventing evil's triumph over champions of the good.
And as their piercing questions shook my being to its core
I was overwhelmed with reasons not to honor but deplore
The blood stained banner waiving as the symbol of the pride
That prompted so much slaughter of the innocents who died.

The phantoms were not finished and they asked, "If history
Had left all Europe underneath the Deutsch hegemony,
The proud swastika flying free from Norway to Ukraine
And from the steppes of Russia to the sunny land of Spain,
Would freedom and prosperity suffice now to excuse
Atrocities committed to destroy the Slavs and Jews?
Could later generations simply wipe the record clean
By building pretty monuments and parks at every scene
Where brutal acts had happened and where now a statue sits?
Would this absolve the Germans of Treblinka and Auschwitz?"

A Parody of Milton

2012-09-23T16:26:00.000-07:00

When I considered what the surfer meant
For half a day I just could not decide
What hidden talent, which so mystified
Allowed my fellow man to represent
Abilities that he could not invent.
A true account, which logic so defied,
Was yet a matter not to be denied.
I asked a question which was pertinent
To my confusion. His reply: "I need
No mouse or keyboard to perform my best
And give my soul the freedom that it craves."
Then with a flash of insight I succeed
And state these words, which put my mind at rest,
"They also surf who only stand on waves!"

The Choice of Royalty

2011-05-01T11:05:00.000-07:00

On April 29th Prince William's bride
Appeared resplendent on her father's arm.
No art had failed to amplify the charm
And beauty that so naturally reside
In her. Westminster Abbey underscored
With lofty grandeur Kate's serenity,
And dual choirs enhanced the pageantry
With glorious strains as she made progress toward
The altar. Her exquisite dress and train
Caused every eye to mentally applaud
The heightening of her magnificence.
Then solemn oaths forever to remain
Within the bonds of marriage under God,
Were sealed with all the world as audience.

The grand procession eagerly was viewed

By all the nation, and so regally

The wedding party on the balcony

Appeared before the happy multitude.

From double kiss to RAF salutes

That had a flower girl covering her ears,

Each moment formed a picture that endears

Us to the royal couple's attributes.

The eight-tiered wedding cake -- a masterpiece

Was decorated with nine hundred flowers.

The rose, thistle, shamrock, daffodil,

And many blossoms filled up every crease.

Assembly of the pastry took two hours

Of splendid artistry and flawless skill.

For honeymoon the prince used all his leave.

Meanwhile, Westminster recommenced debate

About the proper way to castigate

The homeless people who can not conceive

Of any better place to sleep at night

Than on the streets. The problem must exceed

The norm to make the council take such heed.

How else would this proposal see the light?

With this in mind, how can we justify

The massive cost the House of Windsor spent

Upon this wedding? If these funds were used

For charity, could not the crown supply

A better option than this punishment

That makes rough sleepers even more abused?

The Ballad of the Forty-seven Ronin

2010-03-23T07:34:00.000-07:00

No heros could exemplify

This role's epitome,

Like forty-seven samurai

Who turned to banditry.

Eschewing ritual suicide

To expiate their shame,

They never took their daimyo's side

And thus renounced his claim.

The honor due their feudal lord

They kept and so lost face,

As in disgust Japan deplored

How they preferred disgrace.

The samurai had heard the tale

Of how it came to be,

Their lord was tempted to assail

His bitter enemy.

The insults given at the court

Were more than he could bear,

And rather than allow such sport

His sword flashed through the air.

The sharp katana cut its prey

Before they could arrest

And take the criminal away

To where the man confessed.

"I bear the shogun no ill will

And I apologize,

Because I failed and did not kill

The man whom I despise."

The victim had been slightly hurt

As had been his intent,

And he could easily assert

That he was innocent.

Yet all the people in the know

Could swear with certainty,

No samurai would undergo

Such gross indignity.

The daimyo offered no defense

And so the shogunate

Decreed the vassal should commence

To self-eviscerate.

The sentence soon was carried out

And when the death occurred,

The feudal nobles had no doubt

Revenge would be assured.

The evil coward could expect

The daimyo's samurai

Immediately to effect

A violent reply.

Their master's enemy at first

Prepared a strong defense,

But marveled as the men dispersed

Without belligerence.

Each man proceeded to betray

His daimyo's memory,

Engaging in an exposé

Of shameless frippery.

A few of them in sorrow drank

Their troubles to avoid,

While some took jobs below their rank

So as to stay employed.

Still others turned to prostitutes

And left their families

To suffer through the attributes

Of frightful miseries.

And as the months and seasons passed,

The vagrant samurai

Invented follies to aghast

The lowly and the high.

The haughty courtier often smiled

When hearing of the news,

And over time he was beguiled

Not knowing of the ruse.

Oh yes! The daimyo's entourage

Was loyal to a man,

And used disgrace as camouflage

To hide the secret plan.

The men assembled for the clash

Appointed long before,

Selecting weapons from the cache

That held a hidden store.

In dead of night they all attacked

The house in Tokyo,

Where slept the enemy who lacked

The means to stop their blow.

The forty-seven ronin killed

The foe and took his head,

To demonstrate they had fulfilled

Their duty to the dead.

The forty-six survivors set

The trophy where their lord

Would recognize revenge, and let

His spirit be restored.

And though the shogun sentenced them

For what they did to die,

The men who used this stratagem

Eclipsed the sun on high.

By wrapping honor in disgrace

They made the contrast clear.

The forty-seven ronins' place

Will never disappear.

Ode to a Crazy Dog!

2009-10-06T07:25:00.000-07:00

Because the temperature is dropping here
In Arlington and we see lots of rain,
We thought a comforter might bring some cheer
To Dexter's dog house. He did not complain.

In fact he jumped for joy and happily
Lay down upon the blanket in his lair.
Our puppy was content and so were we,
But now we're more inclined to feel despair.

For when the sun came out our crazy pet
Pulled all the fluffy stuffing from the quilt.
Our yard is littered with small bits of wet
Debris -- and Dexter's proud of what he built.

Paradise without Jennifer

2009-07-25T17:44:00.000-07:00

As I observe the beauty of
The waves upon the beach,
I wish that Jenn, my only love,
Were here within my reach.

I dream of showing paradise
My gorgeous Jennifer.
For never have Hawaii's eyes.
Seen beauty quite like her.

But while I'm here at Waikiki
My loneliness has grown.
Three weeks seems like eternity
When I am on my own.

Still I look forward to the day
When I can feel your lips
Carress my own, and I can say
"I'm done with all my trips!"