Category: Uncategorized

The news is upsetting; it’s hard to digest
Try putting your arms around thousands of deaths
More eighty three thousand no longer alive
That’s parents, that’s spouses, all loved ones who’ve died
Their family, their friends in their mourning garb dressed
It’s just the first inning; what models suggest

Too, families are hurting, no jobs and no food
The nation’s economy deep in recession
This COVID ‘s so potent it’s really gone viral
Plus Trump’s sheer incompetence caused the deep spiral
The nation is under: more deaths and depression –
Upstaging Vlad Putin who’s up tp no good

Repeating his old tricks, but this time more clever
His goal is ensuring Trump’s term won’t abort
By massively sowing election disruption
To make Trump’s loss look like it’s steeped in corruption
So Trump could then challenge his loss in the courts,
Refusing to yield, ‘twill be Trump’s main endeavor

5/12/20

That’s what the President wants us to be
Willing to die for economy’s sake
Willing to frequent revived industries
Willing as warriors such actions to take

Now, when the nation, excluding New York,
Is seeing deaths rising at increasing rates
Where thousands of workers with jobs packing pork
Have suffered infections, uncertain their fate

Now, as the nation reels under this threat
Of COVID infections, transmitted in crowds
Where states are unlocking, Trump aids and abets
The states opening firms, that more firms be allowed

Then, we public warriors, should frequent these places
Supporting their businesses, Trump’s predilections
Displaying like courage a real warrior faces
All so that Trump maybe might win his election

5/5/20

A human life, just what is it worth?
The bacon consumed with your breakfast of eggs
From hogs that were slaughtered where poor people work
In plants where the workers fear ending up dead

Because of conditions unsafe on the job
They face major danger of being infected
By COVID-19. Their lives for your hogs
But that matters not; their pleas are rejected

By President Trump who ordered meat plants
Not to close down no matter the deaths
Of workers exposed, who’re told that they can’t
Stay away and still their unemployment get

Trump’s act is indicative of something deeper
Those meat-packing workers are people of color
As are the most workers at jobs that are menial
But clearly essential for running the country

Republican leaders treat them as expendable
Their lives are the price paid to boost the economy
That they are Democrats makes it more credible
This is their trade off, the height of ignominy

5/1/20

The death toll keeps rising while Trump keeps on stumbling
His briefings to newsmen have been worse than bumbling
And meanwhile on cable his ratings are tumbling 
He spoke of ingesting pure bleach

Confronted, he claimed that his words were sarcastic
But some people heeded; their fears made them drastic
To try almost anything even fantastic
They take from the President’s speech

The Trump, though buffoonish, is now truly dangerous
For cable-news programs their task is most onerous
To screen the Trump briefings correcting untruthfulness
And deadly suggestions he’d reach

Dems warned this would happen, that Trump was a threat
Remaining in office; it was a sure bet
His actions/inactions were bound to cause deaths
And, therefore they had him impeached

Reps did not convict him; they hadn’t the gumption
They turned a blind eye to Trump’s legal infractions
His clear violations of our Constitution
Now fruits of their folly they’ve reached

4/26/20

Oil

Oil my gosh!
The price of a barrel was minus three seven
I do not josh
If you had capacity
And lots of audacity
They’d pay you per barrel and much more, soon, even

It’s not oil war
Between Russians and Saudis
That’s small stuff so far
This is the canary
It’s really quite scary
Foretelling depression, a word, now, that’s naughty

Not hard to predict
Driving is down more than thirty percent
Producing oil isn’t
Cars aren’t being sold
From lots growing old
Their prices will drop until people will spend

People are scared
No matter State rulings it’s what people do
Based how their lives fare
They’ll keep social distances
Slowing plague’s instances
Slowing the economic recovery too

4/20/20

Coin Toss

It’s “heads, I win and tails, you lose”
That’s Trump’s approach to this pandemic
Each State is on its own to choose
It’s openings, but economic

Happenings redound to Trump
If things go well, but if they don’t
He’ll blame the State out on the stump
Providing leadership he won’t

Trump joined with tweets the right-wing mob
With calls to “liberate” the State
From laws too harsh, to hard the job
Of staying home ‘till later dates

It’s incongruent and ironic
That these Trumpean fanatics
Act in ways I’d label tragic
In the face of this pandemic

Where more of them will end up dead
Prolonging what they now protest
With Trump supporting them instead
Of telling them what’s for them best

To follow laws the Governor
Has ruled on social distancing
Trump’s tails or heads on every score
His chance of losing he’s enhancing

4/17/288

A worse than deeply mixed up mess
In Hebrew is a balaganz
It is the best word to express
Trump’s singularly poor response

To this pandemic: faking deeds
While stealing from the harried States
The purchased med supplies they need
Trump’s lectures laced with lies and hate

Although Trump claims authority
To open commerce on May Day
To kick start the economy
The governors can still say nay

But mostly it’s the people’s choice
They’ve suffered loss and loneliness
The plague, if over, they’d rejoice
But lacking proof and truthfulness

They’ll maintain social distancing
Impacting the economy
Recession thus continuing
Trump’s balaganz, his enemy

4/13/20.

In times of stress and much duress we look for inspiration
From our leaders, from our clergy, from the ones in charge
Except for our bleep Prexy who just lives self adulation
To most governors and mayors I’d award them many stars

However, most of all I am inspired by those who work
At hospitals, and food banks, the police, the firemen sure
The grocers and the druggists, those who labor at our ports
By all who put their lives on line that we be safe, secure

To all these heroes we give thanks, the soldiers of this war
Those overworked, those under stress, those lacking what they need
Who work and work despite their state not knowing what’s in store
Despite the lack of leadership from Trump, they do their deeds

The Jewish holiday, Passover, starts tomorrow eve
It celebrates the transiting from slaves to being free
The COVID-19 virus it appears has us enslaved
Constrained, confined to stay at home we’re not at liberty

Because of all these heroes working day and working night
The epidemic will subside like waters of Reed Sea
And in those days we’ll start to see an ending to our plight
And like the Jews in days of yore we, too, will then be free

4/7/20

You may not watch the Maddow show the way I do
You may not pay from day to day attention to the news
I know the news of late’s been hard and hard to listen to
As good reporters such as Rachel draw their guest’s grim views

That is the job reporters do while keeping their opinions
To themselves except what’s gleaned by inference from what’s asked
It’s not for them to criticize the Leader or his minions
Or telegraph emotions, but remain cool to their task

However, Rachel radiates her feelings broad and wide
It’s that plus her sheer brilliance that makes people love her so
Her insights on what’s happening, the context she provides
But telling or instructing Power that is a no! no! no!

Last Friday she had had it; Trump’s dumb actions, such a farce
The National Emergency declared by Trump in March
Meant he then had the helm, she said, that he was then in charge
‘Twas written clearly in the act but Trump ignored that part

Then Rachel outlined what to do as though it was her place
A central rational approach accounting for each task
Of course the Power would buy it not; ‘‘twas much too much to face
He’d settle for a back-seat role; what more could people ask?

He called himself a wartime prexy, strutting ‘round the stage
The leadership the nation looked for, nowhere was it found
Instead each state was on its own, each on a different page
Too bad that Rachel’s not in charge; her handling would be sound

4/4/20

 

I’m of two minds tonight, my COVID-19 thoughts
My thoughts on stocks and bonds in normal daily trades
Where, as share prices tanked, the trading volume dropped
To roughly just one third of average daily rates

This means that most investors were biding much their time
Like bucking bronco horsemen riding this one out
But Friday and today the trading volume climbed
The net price gain was naught. What was that all about?

Perhaps the traders felt more confident, secure
The plague is under gov. control. Trump’s doing what he should
But I don’t see that happening, ‘though Trump keeps boasting sure
Which calls to mind my second thoughts: Trump’s lack of doing good

Trump’s handling of this epidemic’s been so bad as yet
That there’s no way that one could say with confidence just how
And when this plague will run its course, the tally of the deaths
How could the traders be so sure with what we witness now?

3/30/20