your face looks somehow
slack
not with age but some
strange disease
your tongue slithers in and out
slicking greasy lies
like rancid butter
across rows of microphones
your cheeks spill out
over insect jaws that work
mindless as mandibles
on flickering teleprompts
your eyes are toxic
squalid little pools of terror leaking
shivers from soft busy glows
sea to noxious sea
your ears have rotted gray
deaf as battleship decks
slack as the torn and tattered flag
silenced behind you
your voice is the sound of gravel
shoveled from the backs of trucks
with dirt and lime into
long shallow graves
your hands grope out trembling
as if overcome by pressure
tapped from ancient soils long ago decayed
to putrid pools of loss
and your head swells grotesque
to bursting from your dark black suit
pumped with agendas too fetid
for the heart to endure
In a list
Thoughts, Feelings, Interpretations, Experience:
Comments
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wow. the most original angle on the topic i've ever come across, at once creative and starkly clear and thought provoking. and cutting. whoa. wouldn't want to get on your bad side. you can spew venom almost as eloquently as shakespeare himself.
the "rancid butter" and "insect jaw... mindless as mandibles" parts especially got me... ugh!
all the metaphors and modifiers did get a bit much for me at points. even when they are this vivid and creative, sometimes less is still more. the "your eyes are toxic" stanza was where it seems a little too stuffed.
but wow, very clever and creative. clearly you put a lot of care into this and have a way )and a lot of fun) with words. this was lots of fun to return to a few times before finally getting around to commenting on it. -
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Wonderful. Glad you enjoyed this write.
Yes there are times when I'm disgusted enough to fire off a few thunder-cracks. Not very often, but when I'm there, I'm there.
Now I think this poem could apply to California's infamous governor.
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Wowzers!
your voice is the sound of gravel
shoveled from the backs of trucks
with dirt and lime into
long shallow graves
Holy moly! That is so powerfully penned! Love the raw emotion that flows throughout this poem. Fabulous work!
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This was an important write for me. I found myself taking an entirely new direction here. And when that happens, I have access from then on to the concepts utilized and the results of the practice.
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Brilliantly penetrating to the core
Sounds like someone had one too many glasses of the Depleted Uranium Kool Aid!
The sad fact is that the creeps running this nightmare show have accomplished far too many real world senarios that match the darkenss of your well woven image.
Would the NeoFiltered NeoMedia ever let us see the evil deeds we've done in Iraq, Afghanistan, and soon IRAN - up close and personal - then terror would finally strike where it has remaned too long absent. It would strike us in our hearts, to know that we the people of a once great nation have allowed this to happen. Silence is Complicity! -Armadillo -
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I keep wondering just how the current administration is going to go about stealing the next presidency. Make no mistake, they will. I have a feeling that an invasion of Iran would play an important part in this theft.
Well, I suppose if they have their way I'll end up writing similar poems down the road. Though I'd love to focus my writing elsewhere, it's difficult to stay off this sort of subject when I see and live directly the damage that's been and continues to be done by the oligarchy and its Empire.
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Ilike the description it's very vivd and most creep too
.I don't know if u actually meant that but I could so relate it to politicians who are:
"deaf as battleship decks
slack as the torn and tattered flag
silenced behind you"
Good job!
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I indeed did mean it! Glad you enjoyed Angel. And thank you for your compliments.
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Wow, this was very creepy! The title caught me, and this definitely deserved the spotlight. Nice job, very well done
~Molly
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Thanks Molly. Yea this poem has gotten a lot of attention. I like to think this is because it somehow rings true in the mind of the readers, or perhaps even is wholly true in itself.
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Gorgeous.
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reminds me of certain
slimy politicians or even former white house mouthpieces. Very well done. Illustrates the fetid rotting morality in politics today?? Lies rule over all. Well done, bravo!
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Well, perhaps it's been going on a bit longer than today. Seems like things have been heading this direction at least since the development of America's military complex.
Thank you for the kudos and the clappyballs.
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Wow...this was gross...it made my skin crawl. I feel the sudden urge to shower now. Ewwwwwwww.
Very well written, it was enjoyably discomforting to read! Keep up the good work. Definately earned that spotlight!
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Ah good good good! If I've inspired a desire to shower, then the poem has done its job. Maybe now that feeling will come back whenever you see one of these monsters oozing lies through your television.
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oh my! this just reeks of ....well,...to put it lightly...distaste for some political person lol. for some reason the president comes to mind...I love how you describe the press conference "rancid butter">>>Nice, so very great! And most deserving to be spotlighted!!
~Sailor Ptolema 
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Thank you Ptolema. Glad you enjoyed this one. And you caught the direct connection to the "press conference". It's interesting to live in an age where politicians can lie, lie, and lie, and lie some more, while all the while doing obviously horrendous things here and abroad, and no-one seems to bat an eye. Just amazing.
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well written.
nice.
not what i had expected.
actually it kinda pulled me from place to place.
i didn't know what you were talking about at first.
i did get hints of work.
favorite parts was the one with the slicking greasy lies
and head swelling grotesque to bursting from your dark black suit
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Might replace "across" with "over" in that stanza you've pointed out, but still undecided. Yes this is an unusual one. Thanks for having a peak.
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NICE!
I really didn't associate this poem with the political realm, until I read other's comments. At first I thought you were talking about the devil, and I guess you were. lol Brilliant write. I would love it if you would read my "Rummage Sale At The White House" piece. If ya have the time, or even want to. Superb penning you have here! Sorry, no smiley guys left, or you would have got all of them! PEACE
POETDONTKNOWIT
WRITING IT HER OWN WAY
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It was meant to be interpretable, though I rather guessed most readers would catch on to the political overtones because of certain phrases.
Yes, it just could be the devil this poem describes.
If, after you leave pertinent thoughts as you have, you want to link me, and other readers of mine, to a related poem, you'll find it helpful to actually make it a link and not just the title. I had a look through your list and couldn't find the poem you mention.
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wow this is great poem!!!
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This sounds like Karl Rove ...
or maybe Rush Limbaugh ... or both.
It's sadly all too spot on. We've been cursed with these people for years now, but hopefully November will see a sharp turn in our fortunes. One can hope at any rate.
You've done an amazingly accurate depiction of a particularly rabid sort of reprehensible radical, and your vocabulary is also spot on. The form you've used even lends itself to your character description since it's loose and untidy while allowing you the freedom to weave your words into it like a little old lady knitting by the fire and watching a video of Richard Nixon disintegrating before her eyes.
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Impression - the image screams authority to me.. establishment, rather like the 'agents' in the Matrix movies.. or 'men in black'
I quite like 'toxic eyes'
the image I'm left with at the end... is of a politician, not a specific one, though I could easily fit one into the picture..
or a traveling salesman.. or those people who carry the bible door to door.
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Ah yes, Matrix Agents, Men in Black, Assholes at the Pulpit. It all fits.
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woooow that was interesting but i liked it
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Ah yes! Interesting! Glad you liked Remi.
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cool
a little creepy been some time since i've read a poem like this but i loved it -
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Glad you enjoyed.
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amazing! So vivid, and strong, like a stench both sweet and wonderfully sour! This creates a very harsh reality!
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Awesome
Oooh so graphic. I love it!
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wow that was so creepy gross sick and twisted....I LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!
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Glad you loved it. All this positive feedback makes me want to take up political poetry. lol But, no, that's not my calling.
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omg....
Omg, that was brilliant......
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This, this is why you are my most favorite
I'm so proud of you, Z. I don't mind breaking more rules for you lol, though I didn't really mean to. Sometimes it takes ignorance to lead us to wisdom. This is what the many people who have been led by my ignorance have discovered--I can see it in the messages before this. This is also one of the lessons that we can somehow draw from our experience with the monster you describe in this piece. Anyways....
I just dropped by again to register my applause and yes, hugs
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I was so surprised with all these comments started coming that I clicked all over looking for where this poem must have ended up. In one of the groups? On the front page? In one of the forums?
*click-click-click-click-click*
Then I discover it was you! lol Thank you Carmen for sharing this with people. You've really made my day, week, month, year, life!
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I stand and applaud you!
your tongue slithers in and out
slicking greasy lies
like rancid butter
across rows of microphones
My friend you are amazing!
The words and imagination here is unlike anything I have ever read!
I stand and applaud you for penning something so painful and straight to the point, in such a way that it rolls so beautifully from your lips!
Your a talented poet my friend, holy crap!
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Very strong approval! Thank you!
Well I have yet to try this poem out in a reading venue, but maybe I'll give it a whirl tomorrow. I'd love to print this poem up by the millions, leafing every major American city with copies tossed from aircraft.
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Wow. That was REALLY good. It disgusted and awed me... that's impressive. Great poem!
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It's kind of cool that I've been able to convey this sense of extreme disgust I feel upon seeing and hearing GB (or his cabinet members) at the pulpit onto my readers, even without them necessarily getting that this is what's inspired the poem.
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hmm. I realized it was about corrupt-ness, though not specifically in George Bush. Personally, I think it gives him too much credit... he might do such evil things, but most of what he says is just an expression of his stupidity. (I'm not saying this to criticize your poetry at all. I think it is a great poem.)
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interesting...
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Disgusted shocked and impressed! Some fantastic imagery, which gave rise to these emotions. The imagery on the ears and voice was especially strong. I think I might hear the harsh sound of a scraping shovel for the rest of the day.
I found the beginning of this piece completely repelling. Not an easy thing to do, without being tasteless. It absorbed me straight away.
The last lines are very provocative and I like the way they read.
I hope to read more of your work. Great job.
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Great thoughts DJ. Glad you enjoyed the poem and found it so provocative and repelling all at once.
It's rare, in fact near to the point of non-existence, that I write on any political topics, so though you may read more, it's unlikely that you'll ever find another "Bush" poem from me. But I hope you'll enjoy the other sorts of topics I tackle as well.
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woahhh i liked the decriptive words
Thanks for the read
It was great
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Glad you liked.
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I like the episodes of thoughts and imagery. The dark taste creeping into thy words proves that you have mastered the art of writing - you have proven that you have versatility and diversity.
I have seen the visible and invisible world in this write. The form, presentation, line breakage, and vocabulary are sufficient and appropriate - bull's eye to your target readers.
Hope to see more from you Sir. Thanks for always keeping me in awe.
HENSLEY
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Nice to hear from you Hensley! Yes the dark taste can sometimes creep back into my writing. Once upon a time poetry of a darker nature was the norm for me.
I think I may send a copy of this poem with my next check to the IRS. You know, I always put "U.S. Treachery" in the "For: " line instead of "U.S. Treasury".
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WOW!
This is crazy! Its awesome! You have some talent!!!!!!!!! Great write! The imagery is sick. I can picture everything! Its awesome!
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Thanks for the kind words. I normally don't go near poetry that's even remotely political, because for the most part I'm politically indifferent. But I have to admit to feeling overcome by a singular disgust for our current "leader"...
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Wow. This is sooo well written! I love the description - the words you use but a very stunning picture in my head. I love the way your words flow together - all in all this is definitely one of the best pieces that I have read on all poetry. Good luck and keep writing!
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Thanks Athena. Very glad you approve.
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this was so beautiful.
i cried.
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I don't even know where to begin.
You've restored my faith in allpoetry.
Keep writing stunning poetry.
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Now there's a strong statement. Hope you'll still feel the same after you've had the chance to read a few more of my posts here.
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Wicked cool poem. Awsome word choice, and fabulously descriptive. Very nice.
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Glad you enjoyed.
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not sure what its about, but i like it. cool imagery, obviously very well thought out.
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Thank you sue.
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holy shit.
this is tragically amazing;
the imagery is so...
twisted,
and I LOVE it.
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Ah yes! Twisted as those who inspired them.
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Wow, very, very interesting, PERFECT imagery, I can imagine such a feeble being, and I love the comparisons. I like how you positioned the stanzas, it somehow adds to it. I would like to know what it was about, so if you could put that in the authors notes we could relate to it a lot better. Great job
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Here at AP I never, or at the most rarely, explain the poems, but my readers tell me what they saw and/or felt as they read. This allows me to see some small distance into the interpretive process of my readers, and to gain insight into how my poem was experienced by another.
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Interesting. Very good writing. Quite powerful. Best of luck in the contest.
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Contest?
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I very much enjoyed the intense energy and the imagery used to portray this piece. It is definitely my style of reading.
I do feel however, that some of the prepositions could have been eliminated from sections of this piece to give it more drama and depth.
Other than that puny criticism, I absolutely love it!!
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Hmm I'm curious: Which prepositions caught your eye?
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hey, your friend carmen suggested this piece. i love it. i like how it flows and the way you paint it out. so detailed!
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I'm glad you enjoyed.
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Not really an enemy to me, but more of a disease, something that needs to--hopefully before it's too late--be surgically removed.
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I see what you mean by correcting me, yes a disease... however as a large part of the 'fabric' which serves to cover up clear thinking and healthy regard towards life, I think it fair to describe it as a face of that which is indeed an enemy to vision more true... and no, of course not personal but global.
Sol
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This is a rant for sure hope it made you feel better to vent.Always good to get it out does no good to keep it in.....
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Well, I enjoyed finding a creative imagistic mode of expression for the ideas and impressions hidden between the lines.
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I guess this is someone you don't like very much. It reminds of a poem I wrote about someone I knew back in primary school but this is more extreme.
The imagery really gets your feeling across. I like "sea to noxious sea".
Would you be talking about a politician by any chance? The black suit is a clue.
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Well neither like nor dislike, but definitely someone who has done incredible amounts of harm to our country and its future. The ripple effects from the current administration will eventually rival and surpass the atrocities of Hitler, Albania, and Rwanda combined.
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your imagery is both gruesome and perfect at the same time. its well written and an interesting read. good work
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Thank you sir! Glad you enjoyed.
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Nicely done, so much to say about this and not enough words to describe it. I really enjoyed the read it kept me interested all the way through and I have a very short attention span when it comes to reading forms of dirty pretty. This flowed well and the imagery is very intense. Thanks to your friend for introducing me to it and thank you for writing it.
Keep up the good work.
Corrine. xx
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Well I hope you'll peruse other posts as you have time. Most of my posts don't go anywhere near politics.
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Very nice. I love the descriptions used and the imagery you created to personify this one (or maybe group of people) person. Very unique and very well written. Great job!
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I'll admit that the "one" person to inspire the poem and its imagery is the current president of the states. However, as I wrote it I decided it should fit any member of the cabinet, and those like them.
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Wow the words, images, everything was beautiful. Great work. I have so many people like this in my life...you made something so ugly turn into pure poetry.
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This was the idea, in part. To take something ugly, really ugly, and turn it into poetry.
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This surely sounds like a lot of people
we all know, people that hopefully
one day not too late
will change and realize
that they need to change.
This poem, was good.
Thanks for writing it.
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If there's one thing the average human being isn't very good at, including myself, it's changing our habits. And those in power, whether they choose to accept it or not, are just average human beings that happen to be in positions of power.
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Monstrous
This is a very graphic portrait of a monster "enjoying" as he suffers his own curse. Can there be any stranger thing than that? I could not exactly recall how I felt about this man when he first unilaterally called for a war, dragging my own countrymen, and even one of my college best friends near his grave, but I tremble as I read this again as if a monster is in front of me. It must really be some strange disease that drives negative energy into people. It doesn't feel good at all.
But you know what's more strange for me, it's my visual reaction to this, in that I see not only THAT man in dark black suit as the monster but every face I remember to have something to do with the pursuit of that war. This to me, in a way, explains why in spite of one lady's brilliance--and repentance--many still found her hard to believe. Indeed, we cannot trick the subconscious, much less our conscience. This uncalled for war has claimed thousands of innocent lives and ruined the future of many for its instigators and supporters to be easily forgotten. It has planted more terror than it has managed to stop it; it created graver horror than the one it tried to kill. That, I think, is the biggest lesson of it and everyone who's justified this war will suffer every symptom of this "strange disease" in the eyes of everyone. Yes, even to those less familiar about their part in it, because the spirit of terror that has already intoxicated their senses will never break away from them inasmuch as our instincts will never betray us.
To me the saddest picture is the one painted in this stanza:
your ears have rotted gray
deaf as battleship decks
slack as the torn and tattered flag
silenced behind you
I don’t know, but nothing disappoints me more than leaders with deaf ear. And by not heeding pleas for peace from many peoples and nations, by continuously ignoring the screams from the innocent, and by his indifference to the blasts that are killing his own army, that is the height of arrogance, one that taints the flag.
If there is one good thing about this war, it is the example it serves to many who are set to get themselves into one. If one wants to fail miserably, just do exactly everything that its leader did. And as this poem teaches, there are at least three ingredients to failure in a war: lies, deaf ear, and fetid agenda.
Unless one starts out with the truth, he may triumph in every battle but he’ll never win the war.
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Too bad that none of the depersonalized power-hungry wealth-zombies at the helm ever seem to heed the warnings of these examples...
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WOW!
I absolutely love this. And seeing as poetry is open to many different interpretations, I felt this was a "perfect" description of a Zombie (lol).
It also felt like what life will do to you on the long run.
Your word choice and your imagery are stunning! (in a good way of course).
I really enjoyed reading this,
Keep up the amazing work.
Nooni
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Zombie! Good! Yes this is one very applicable interpretation. I have always had great difficulty seeing "people" who have become utterly saturated by the soul-virus of unscrupulous avarice for wealth and power as being actually alive. They're depersonalized shells of humans to me, like someone infected with Ebola, the organs of their subtle body liquefied by this virus' unchecked replication throughout their heart, mind, soul and spirit.
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BRILLIANT!
True poetry of the highest grade. So pleased to have been guided to your work (my thanks to Carmen). I can only echo and endorse everything said below by 'mornings' and repeat - brilliant!. Cheers, jimmy
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Aye I was surprised to discover she liked it so much that she shared the link somewhere (still not sure where), and now look at all these comments! Haven't seen so many thoughts on one of my poems here since before the great AP Change took place that made featuring poems kind of moot.
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You directly identify many of the propagators of suffering and death in this world with this work. Is there any more accurate description of them than what is portrayed here?
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Directly identify, through metaphoric description. I'd love to get a copy of this poem to the desks of every monster in power--all at once, all on the same day. Like giving them a mirror to look in.
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Nice writing. Colourful, well formed and your word choice is exsqusite.
I commend you on this high level of writing!
Bravo
'D
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Thank you sir!
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Very intense.
This sounds as if you are describing several politicians that I know. LOL and then again it describes those people that are lying through their teeth and find cheating to be a way of life. This is very intense.
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Several we know and several we don't.
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Very clever indeed. The darkness of this poem's theme is potently reinforced by the skilful and selective employment of poetic devices like alliteration and vivid,striking metaphors:
your tongue slithers in and out
slicking greasy lies
like rancid butter
across rows of microphones
Not only is the alliteration very effective but the onomatopoeia is hissing at me too.
Hope you never turn against me lol.
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Great observations, camus. Yes there are a handful of prosodic devices intentionally employed. Even the stanzaic indentation is intended to loosely represent something along the lines of a hanging drop of phlegm.
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Powerful and provoking imagery, I am filled with disgust, loathing and disdain...nicely darkly done...great poem....
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Yea the creature/s depicted are, in fact, pretty foul. Too bad their sickness seems to be highly contagious amongst people in positions of power.
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An excellent write, descriptive and flowing. The image of a flies life coming to an end haunted me through the read. A fine piece.
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Ah flies, yes, a pestilence from the mouth, eyes, nose, and ears--from the soul--of darkness.
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