Chaos in America…BUT… We Can End It! (A Near- Acrostic Poem for Our Times)

Acrostic, current events, democracy, election, government, National Security, poetry, Presidential debates, protecting our elections 2 Minutes

Candidates flailing arms in the air, bent
on talking, one over another
Hapless moderators—too many, too
weak to control the mayhem
Another Democratic debate,
Offering less light than heat
Seemingly not laser-focused on our
closeness to the abyss.

In the far too-White House, a lawless
President—unrebuked by his
tarnished party—
No-nothingly claims the gathering
pandemic will soon be gone

And helter-skelterly seeks funding only
after a ka-chinging Stock
Market dives into waters darkened
by viral uncertainty…
Even as he tears away our protective
Intel and
Rebukes/replaces experts and judicious
judges,
Instead producing pattern-setting
pardons of those justly
Convicted of crimes against the State…
As back in Russia, Vladimir does his
happy dance with wanton abandon.

BUT…

When an aroused people stands together
Elevating our shared goal beyond our
individual predilections,

Change of the most positive nature can
unfold
As we become Citizen Activists as never
before:
Noting the work ahead, and
enthusiastically signing on

Exercising our right to vote for whoever
we think best—but
Not turning away if the nominee is other
than our choice,
Determined to banish the unclothed
emperor above all.

In this nation of great promise and
hard history
This is our time, finally, to get
things right!

__________________________
Note:

In my previous post, I cited the free newsletter by RB Hubbell of California (rbhubbell@gmail.com). His February 26, 2020, issue (No. 380) is a treasure trove of action steps we can take, with links to organizations focused on the important issues of voter registration, turnout, and voter protection, among others.

They include several I’d never heard of, such as Changing the Conversation Together (in which volunteers have issue-oriented discussions with people in their homes), Vote Forward (you sign your name to letters on a template sent to under-represented voters), and one I found particularly interesting:  Payback Project, dedicated to defeating ten Republican Senators (including Lindsey Graham, Susan Collins, and Mitch McConnell), and thereby taking back the Senate.

And in today’s newsletter (February 27, 2020, No. 831), Hubbell adds another compelling possibility: Sister District Project, which tries to turn states blue by winning state legislatures, thereby helping to end gerrymandering. The organization says it has teams “across the country.” With the 2020 Census under way, leading to redistricting in 2021, it is vital that we have Democratic Governors and state legislators involved in this effort to ensure that representation is accurately apportioned.

Annie

Published by annieasksyou

I've been a nonfiction writer for many years, exploring diverse topics that pique my curiosity, as noted in my first blog posting (Greetings!). I'm seeking dialogue with others committed to joining me in this exploration, sharing my conviction that different views can be exchanged in a respectful, civil discourse where we can learn from one another and be agreeable, even when we disagree. These postings depend for their enrichment on your participation: your ideas, insights, knowledge, opinions, and personal stories.

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39 thoughts on “Chaos in America…BUT… We Can End It! (A Near- Acrostic Poem for Our Times)”

  1. Thanks for your poetry and your thoughts. The challenge we face individually and collectively is getting directly engaged with doing something (Robert Hubbell’s listings are great resources to which we can turn) AND encouraging, goading, convincing family and friends to do likewise. Your and my generation, stopped a war and brought about changes in society by millions of us making up
    our minds that changes were necessary and doing whatever we could in ourselves own ways-large and small- to make them happen.

    Let’s just do it! Thanks for reminding us how we can!

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  3. I’m glad you are pulling us up and out of the quicksand I sometimes think I have stumbled into. Of course, it’s time to rally and there are so many things large and small that we can do. Thanks for the reminder.

    Liked by 1 person

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  11. Very cool! I love it!
    I hesitate to offer criticism on poetry, because it’s such a personal thing. Barging forward…
    It’s a little hard to read the acrostic, at first I thought we canned it! Ha. Mm, canned chaos. If it were me, I’d take out some of the line breaks to highlight the acrostic more. You can play around a lot with the format, and nobody would care. Poetry lines can be as long as they need to be. But you gotta do what feels right.
    Nothing wrong with your verbiage! If there’s any form in which you can go nuts on vocab, or use elevated language, it’s this one. Poetry readers love big words and neologisms; it’s like finding delicious crystallized crunchies in an aged cheddar cheese. The words don’t get in the way.

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      3. My god. Get thee to a cheesemonger!!!! Immediately!
        Very aged cheddars, and some other cheeses, the amino acids crystalize into tiny bits of crunchy magic. It’s like having crunchy salt on your cheese, except it’s not salt, and it’s embedded throughout the cheese… It’s a wonderful texture. You gotta find someplace where they let you sample the cheese. Your fromage artist can help you with this devastating lack of having lived!!!

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      5. No; it’s wonderfully tantalizing. The problem is that I’ve developed lactose intolerance at this point in my life. So I shall be enjoying the wonders of aged cheddar through the virtual assistance that your description offers my hungry imagination!

        Liked by 1 person

      6. oh nooooooo, what have I done!!!! LOL, sorry! just… massage some salt into your cashew cheese… it’s totally the same.
        Wait! I thought lactose intolerant people could eat very hard-aged cheeses. Can you?

        Liked by 1 person

      7. Not to worry. My stomach’s been so bizarre lately (though not according to various tests) that I’ve no idea what I can or can’t eat til I try. I didn’t know there’s cashew cheese—must look for that! Thx!

        Liked by 1 person

      8. Kids nowadays be making cashew EVERYTHING. I’ve seen recipes for cashew cheesecake, cashew cream cheese… other things which I’ve forgotten. I hear that it doesn’t taste at all like the foods it’s intended to replace. But raw foodists can’t be choosers.

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    1. I understand, truly, but the lobbyists aren’t gonna give up, so we can’t either. You know there’s lots of good legislation passed by the House that Mitch won’t let through. There’s reason for hope—assuming this guy pretending to be a president doesn’t kill us all—but only if the good guys rest, revitalize, and then resolve to fight for what we’re entitled to.

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  13. Pingback: Wherein My Personal Blogosphere Expands Via a Fun Exchange With a Super New Acquaintance – annieasksyou…

    1. Oh, my; I’m so sorry to hear that. I am definitely still publishing—generally twice a week. Please just click on follow or WordPress follow on any post. If you choose WordPress, you’ll need a password. I’ll confirm as soon as I get the message. If you have any further problems, please contact me at annie@annieasksyou.com.
      I appreciate your reaching out!
      Cheers,
      Annie

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