Rise Up!

I love my country. I really would die for my country. But what has been happening saddens me more than I'd like to discuss... I don't care if a politician gets caught sending a naughty texts. I don't even care as much if another politician gets accused of inappropriate actions with a hotel maid. These stories, though minutely important, are only distractions. Media will downplay what’s really happening and conspiracy theorists will also greatly miss the mark. Truth is only for those who look and care to see. That's why I read our Constitution, Declaration of Independence, and other foundational documents late into the night because they bring clarity. It feels like we're loosing ground more ground that could possibly be recovered. Military cut backs, space program cut backs…Things that set this place apart scientifically and intellectually. Parties can't agree on budgets and the gap between rich and poor only widens. State governments shut down. The state that I live has a capital that's on the verge of bankruptcy and no one seems to really know or read the news or listen to NPR. They seem shocked when you tell them what you've been reading and listening. There are debates about natural resources (marcellus shale) that can pull this area out of a serious deficit, but no one wants to drill in their back yard. I wonder if I care too much and if anyone else here really cares; so I'm quiet... I'm tired of not wanting to rock the boat, but I'm forgetting how to stay silent...

No, I’m not blind. And no, I’m certainly not some overly liberal artist concerned with the legalization of marijuana. I’m not one of the “space cadets” that gets lost in self serving spirituality though I do indeed believe in God. I am a patriot at heart and art has only ever been a hobby. If anything, I know we as a great nation will die if we don’t stand up for what we believe. Democracy is worth fighting for, but we’re too financially bound to countries that could care less for the thread that binds us all together as a democratic people…

And though poetry has been an indirect voice, I speak in indirect ways too often. I’ve grown weary of not wanting to rock boats. And sugar coated poetry in this instance will not speak to you. Need I be blatant? WAKE THE FUCK UP!