by Alan Catlin
given the choice
of voting for
George Bush II
and
Satan
I'd have to
chose
Satan
At least
you'd be able
to swing a deal
for something
in this lifetime
from Satan
while with Bush
it would all be empty promises
and lies, lies and more damned lies
sort of like
selling your soul
to a gated community
of WALMARTs
on a time share
plan with no
warranties
no money back
guarantees
and a variable
rate mortgage
all the while knowing
no matter who you
had voted for you
were screwed for all time
Alan Catlin's latest chapbook is a long poem, "Thou Shalt Not Kill", an updating of Rexroth's seminal poem of the same name. Whereas Rexroth riffs on the abuses of the Eisenhower adminstration, the update observes abuses of power in the current administration with particular attention to the cynical, criminal behavior towards the Katrina hurricane victims. One year later, the victims are not forgotten. No matter how many candles the Bushes light, the appalling lack of humanity and the blatant hypocrisy of the folks in charge is as apparent as the disenfranchised, the homeless, and the poverty stricken people of the Gulf states.