by William P. Benz
This poem is dedicated to those who lost their lives In both terrorist attacks on 9/11. The one in New York, 2001, And the other one in Chile, 1973. Connect the dots.
“The least fracture now will be like a name engraved with the point of a pin on the tender rind of a young oak; the wound would enlarge with the tree, and posterity read in it full grown characters.” –Common Sense, Thomas Paine, 1776
Well, it’s been a while, or has it? That’s what I always wonder when time has passed. We’ve come to live in an age where it’s difficult to even try and say what is happening now, let alone, what has occurred. It’s a shame so few fathom the reasons why. Of course, it’s hard to really cast any blame as we all have so little time, by design. Remember when Geeks were ridiculed for being glued to their computer screens? Apparently, they got the last laugh, as we all now wander around with cell phones glued to our irradiated ears. To add insult to injury, these little geeky screens are now demanding every waking moment left. In beaming non-stop, the banal, the trivial, the bizarre. As I don’t have one, I often get suspicious looks from those who do. They seem annoyed, as if I’m intruding with my unoccupied gaze– A voyeur, no doubt! “Don’t you have calls to make? Pictures to take? Videos to watch?” Music to pipe into your ears?” “Pervert! Why don’t you attend to your own podcasts and stop leering into ours.” I try not to stare back with looks of disappointment– It’s not like I’m feeling rejected, I merely wonder who’s left minding the store? Who’s left to notice the avalanche of lies that’s befallen this great continent, called America? I hope we’re not all just waiting for the next election to make it all better. As a Nation, we didn’t seem to mind forgoing the last two, so why would those in power go out of their way to give us another? “One, if by Land, Two, if by Sea! Three, if I wait–what will become of me?” What are you waiting for?
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“It is the good fortune of many to live distant from the scene of present sorrow; the evil is not sufficiently brought to their doors to make them feel the precariousness with which all American property is possessed.” –Common Sense, Thomas Paine, 1776
William Benz can be found selling mushrooms and speaking extemporaneously on world affairs at the Farmers Market at PSU in Portland. ©2005. William Benz / All Rights Reserved
