by Robert Copeland
The polar bears have no money,
And very little political influence,
Yet I watch them in the background
Of the talk show, while the economist
Explains his theory that the poor,
In third-world lowlands, will rise
With the tide of prosperity
And therefore have the capital
Necessary to move inland.
Poets have very little money,
And no political influence,
Yet I hear their voices by the graveyard
Of reason, where the governor
Exposes his program for the disadvantaged,
On strip-mined mountains, to learn,
With the help of scholarships,
The skills they will need to use
To sell ice to the bears.
Robert Copeland studied poetry with Hayden Carruth in the graduate program at Syracuse University. He is the recipient of a Danforth Fellowship. He owns a record store in Kentucky.