The blinds have been opened. But, I sit in the dark.
Another morning at the table, set for one.
Alone in thoughtful reverie, with nowhere to run.
Heaving from grief and sorrow, viewed on every screen.
We are all aging fast before the onslaught
of armed men, masked and acting obscene.
This is not some video game we are playing,
detached and watching, divorced from reality.
When did Americans stop believing
what their own eyes could clearly see?
It did not just happen. It is not new.
It happened many years ago.
Americans took flight in fright
from the reality unfolding before their eyes.
How we came to this fraught moment
is actually, not a great surprise.
People of color best know the story.
Wages stagnated and prices rose.
Profits soared for those “in the know”.
Americans ignored responsibility
and entertained themselves endlessly.
While women and girls became commodities;
and discounted people, un-housed and un-fed
roamed the streets living in dread.
Soldiers returning home from un-named wars
and too many tours, stopped being cared for.
Now fake soldiers, cowardly cruel, take their cue
from technocrats and bureaucrats
seeking wealth and power.
There is no man of the hour calling the shots.
This is not what all this evil is about.
We did not get here led by a single man;
nor by a single party, nor political stance.
We got here as the great pirates planned,
as we entertained ourselves with games of chance.
We could have noticed where we were headed
with a single, wake-full, glance.
But we were led on a merry dance.
And the dance no longer matters, as we die
at the feet of civil disorder.
We rise up and listen to new voices.
We now have limited choices.
But, still we can open our eyes
and seize the prize, once earned
by those who have gone before us.
Lift voices of hope and power
into a freedom-seekers’ chorus.
annarino writes 
DECONSTRUCTION
The streets were lined for blocks on end.
Signs reminded all who rejoiced to attend
Why they walked and talked and smiled and waved
At passing cars who braved delays
While drivers honked horns and shouted out
“Vote him out and make it a rout!”
Costumed critters danced to our delight
Knowing their freedom would give him a fright.
Deconstruct the lies we have been told.
Deconstruct the narrative being sold.
Deconstruct the bullie’s hold.
Deconstruct institutional mold.
Gather in peace the young and the old.
Stronger are you, more wise, more bold.
Deconstruct so we can rebuild
What he has destroyed with his minions’ lack of skill.
We know how to do this, and more.
We have done it many times before.
My thanks to my friends in Clintonville area of Columbus who helped me attend this moment of patriots’ challenge to the con men robbing the USA of its power, wealth, ideals and humanity. The lack of media coverage was appalling. The misrepresentation of attendance numbers cannot be challenged when media fails to provide images of the gatherings. A local station covered it AFTER it was over and crowds had dispersed. Another stated hundreds attended when it was actually thousands. We are here. We are resisting. We are going nowhere until the despotism and kidnapping of people and the Supreme Court, universities, news organizations, social media outlets, medical and public health Institutions… even our very language and the meaning of words and phrases has been brought to an end and freedom restored.
We shall not be silenced.
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