Tag: Lily Beth Baker

On the Death of a Nation (4 link limerick chain)

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“One thing all of this makes clear is that the sickness of American politics didn’t begin with Donald Trump, any more than the sickness of the Roman Republic began with Caesar. The erosion of democratic foundations has been underway for decades, and there’s no guarantee that we will ever be able to recover.

But if there is any hope of redemption, it will have to begin with a clear recognition of how bad things are. American democracy is very much on the edge.”

– Paul Krugman, How Republics End
The Opinion Pages, The New York Times

 

 

When a body has harbored disease
with few symptoms to trigger unease,
just before its demise,
a clue may arise
that reveals how it failed by degrees.

© Susan E. Eckenrode, 2017

Though failing for years by degrees,
the body, infested by fleas,
succumbed to infection
by way of election
and rapidly fell to its knees.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

It rapidly fell to its knees
in denial of all guarantees.
With equality’s torch
buried under the porch
it’s emitting the ultimate wheeze.

© Mary Boren, 2017

Emitting the ultimate wheeze
as it drifted aloft on the breeze,
the hint of a spark
arose in the dark
to offer a moment to seize.

© Susan E. Eckenrode, 2017

 

Micro Brainwaves

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“Even though you can see through the front door, the microwaves can’t penetrate through that,” […] “Maybe if you’re licking the door you might get a little exposure, but they’re in there to cook your food.”

NO, MICROWAVE OVENS CANNOT SPY ON YOU—FOR LOTS OF REASONS
Wired

Since Kellyanne Conjob has spoken,
I assume that my microwave’s broken.
While it’s cooking quite well,
still I never can tell
when its camera function’s awoken.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

When its camera function awakes,
I will pose for the pictures it takes
in my ratty old gown
with a petulant frown
and a long finger flicking the flakes.

© Mary Boren, 2017

 

The Ides of Trump Postcard #3

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Mail your postcards to:
The President (for now)
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500|

But before you do, take a photo of it, post it on social media, and tag us! #TheIdesofTrump #postcardprotest #resist #trump #idesoftrump #postcardstotrump #theresistance #dailyaction

Thanks @thedailyaction!
theidesoftrump.com

Now that you are our President,
how bout you set a precedent
Refrain from tweeting every thought
that flits into your overwrought
imagination. Stop and think,
‘cause consequences sure can stink.

Lily Beth, 3/15/17

 

Is their ending about to begin

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“Trump has consistently denied business or political ties with Russia but has also been conspicuously reluctant to criticise Putin and raised the prospect of reviewing sanctions against the country. Opponents argue there is circumstantial evidence that Trump colluded with Moscow to help his campaign but definitive proof has remained elusive.”

Will Russia connection become the Trump administration’s Watergate?
The Guardian

 

Is their ending about to begin
with a hugely cacophonous din?
When it’s all said and done
will they just cut and run
or will truth trump their lies for a win?

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

 

He spews accusations with force (3-link limerick chain)

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“What does this mean for the country—and for the Americans on the receiving end of Trump’s constantly twisting version of reality? It’s both a cultural question and a psychological one. For decades, researchers have been wrestling with the nature of falsehood: How does it arise? How does it affect our brains? Can we choose to combat it? The answers aren’t encouraging for those who worry about the national impact of a reign of untruth over the next four, or eight, years. Lies are exhausting to fight, pernicious in their effects and, perhaps worst of all, almost impossible to correct if their content resonates strongly enough with people’s sense of themselves, which Trump’s clearly do.”

Trumps Lies vs. Your Brain
 Politico Magazine

He spews accusations with force,
But they’re totally baseless, of course,
And it’s likewise, you see,
With his whole coterie—
Not one is a credible source.

© 2017 Colleen Anderson

Not one is a credible source
And unlike the rear end of a horse
The front’s not aligned
With its sightless behind
And each tale is detached from its arse.

© 2017 Susan E. Eckenrode

So each tale is detached from its arse,
thus making their pap hard to parse
But they’re upping their scores
as the vitriol pours
from their nightmarish, psychotic farce.

© 2017 Lily Beth Baker

 

 

The Madness and the Method (3-link limerick chain)

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One could infer a lot about Trump’s goals for the next four years from what Bannon said. Here are some of the most interesting passages and some of his more interesting word choices:

Steve Bannon outlines his plan to ‘deconstruct’ Washington
CNN

Bannon proffered his plan from the start;
deconstruct and replace is its heart.
With the crew all on board,
now they’re swinging the sword,
while Distractor-in-Chief does his part.

© 2017 Lily Beth Baker
The Distractor-in-Chief does his part,
By choosing his tweets à la carte
From a mish-mash of news
That is ripe with pee-yews
And usually comes out as a fart.

© 2017 Susan E. Eckenrode

Each tweet that comes out as a fart
is more foolish and putrid and tart.
With his juvenile sprees
he has launched a disease
that is ripping the country apart.

© 2017 Mary Boren

 

Snowballs

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Republican representative Jason Chaffetz and Democrat representative Elijah Cummings wrote a letter in which they express concerns about President Donald Trump’s habit of deleting tweets.

Congress warns President Trump to stop deleting his tweets
AOL News

 

His tweets are like snowballs he pelts,
But they’re lies, and so each one soon melts.
It’s a bully-child’s game,
Flinging hatred and blame,
But he’s no good at anything else.

© Colleen Anderson, 2017

Though he’s no good at anything else,
and his tantrums are raising some welts
on all in his path
that trigger his wrath,
we can counter the blither he belts.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

 

Anchoring the Rancor (4-link limerick chain)

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“Maybe the rest of us need to get with the program. Maybe we all need to stop complaining. Maybe we all need to shut up and embrace America’s present, glorious greatness.

 

All we need to do now, is to all become wealthy, white, straight, Christian Republican Congressmen—and we’ll be set.”

 

– John Pavlovitz, Hey America, are We “Great” yet?

 

Voters ushered him in on a bet
he would anchor a nation beset
by a turbulent squall
that would stop at the wall.
Is America great again yet?

© 2017 Mary Boren

Is America great again yet?”
she inquires of a Dreamer she met.
“No, not when it’s hate
that’s driving our fate
to erecting a wall of regret.”

© 2017 Susan E. Eckenrode

“We’re erecting a wall of regret.”
sighed a wounded American vet
who had barely come back
from a tour in Iraq
where he’d witnessed what hate can beget.

© 2017 Lily Beth Baker

Here we witness what hate can beget
and we vow we will never forget!
As we each raise a fist,
we proclaim we’ll resist
’til we right this egregious upset!

© 2017 Susan E. Eckenrode

 

Making America Sick (4-link limerick chain)

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We don’t know yet what the CBO will say, but it seems fairly clear that their forecast will show a significant drop in the number of people with insurance coverage if Obamacare is repealed and/or the Republican American Health Care Act were to become law.

How many people would lose health-care coverage under the new House bill? Depends who you ask.
The Washington Post

 

 

Obamacare wasn’t his pick,
So he’s slapped something up, on the quick,
That gives the rich more
By neglecting the poor.
He is Making America Sick.

© Colleen Anderson, 2017

Yes, he’s making America sick.
How much does he care? Not a lick!
He just follows the lead
of Republicans’ need
to crush ACA like a tick.

© Susan E. Eckenrode, 2017

To crush ACA like a tick–
a nearly impossible trick.
Why not make a cause
of fixing the flaws
and give it a boost not a kick.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

Give it a boost, not a kick:
In the challenging, vast bailiwick
of the legal affair
for our medical care,
find compassion, and spread it on thick.

© Mary Boren, 2017

 

The Age of Kakistocracy

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[…] he’s surrounding himself with people who share his contempt for everything that is best in America. What we’re looking at, all too obviously, is an American kakistocracy — rule by the worst.

With All Due Disrespect
Paul Krugman, The Opinion Pages, The New York Times

 

Our republic was shrewdly hijacked,
Deliberately racked and ransacked
By a scurrilous lot
And a would be despot
In a true kakistocracy pact.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

In a true kakistocracy pact
That scurrilous lot can enact
Legislation that robs
Working people of jobs
While health care insurance is whacked.

© Susan E. Eckenrode, 2017