We interrupt this poem to bring you reports
of an explosion
of wild untruths and other signs that the news
is broken.
Early indications from those who were first
on the scene
have led to widespread fears of another Sweden
or Bowling Green
and that peace might erupt at any moment
in other places.
It is believed that amongst the rubble of reality
were found traces
of humanity and an understanding that stretches
beyond borders.
Many experts predict this will lead to a new wave
of presidential orders
for such trumped-up charges form part of
a familiar pattern.
But back to the poem: we’ll bring you more news
as it doesn’t happen.
By Brian Bilston 2017
Nice and interesting post, thank you for sharing
You are such a versatile and talented writer! 👏🏻 Journalistic integrity, which is vital to a healthy society, has been eroding for years.
I didn’t write the poem, It was written by Brian Bilston, who is so much more talented than I ever could be. I should have put his name in bold letters. Sorry if this was misleading.
Great share! Sorry I missed that detail. I stand by my comment about your writing. 😊
The networks might explode because nice people are doing nice things. The apocalypse is coming! Eeeeee! He wants to help me change a tire, she wants to watch my kids so I can get a nap! They want to help with Habitat for Humanity! They want to donate clothes to the homeless shelters! NOOOOOOOO!
Nice people are everywhere, so are good people and kind people. Sadly they are not loud enough. Perhaps we need a march of the kind and nice to bring awareness. Now that’s an idea for a blog post.
peace might erupt at any moment— finally, yes! Amen to this! And I’m looking at you Russia. And Others!
This was a fun read. Thanks for sharing. XoXo
Thanks for reading, Selma. Have a great weekend.
Oh, it’s my absolute pleasure, really, B. XoXo
Clever
thank you Amanda.
What a find this is, Bridget! Unfortunately, there is no exaggeration in the poet’s words. We need industrial-sized patience to cross-reference everything we read and hear. Even many of the sources I most trust are not immune from exaggeration or leaving out some contextual elements that might change the story. I hope we’re up to it! The next year or so we will need enhanced critical thinking skills!
It’s up to us how loud our world is. I have downsized my smart phone to a phone-picture-text devise and I think I need to rehome Alexa, because I can’t tell if she is able to speak anymore.
I limit myself to 1 hour of internet a day (news, shopping, fun stuff) and all of a sudden my life got a bit back to normal. Was there withdrawal? Yep!
I follow Brian Bilston on Facebook and he often posts poems there. They are witty and clever, and never disappoint.
I never heard of him. I found it by ‘search-luck’.
A good find! He’s quite well known over here, and has a good following.
Satirical take on media’s scare tactics.
A humorous take on a serious subject, just my cup of tea.
Both powerful, and worrying, poems!
So true. Scary times
This reminds me of the poem “Your Attention Please” written by Peter Porter in 1983 🙂 Poetry can often convey a message much better than prose can.
I don’t know the poem so I assume you are right 🙂
https://www.poetrybyheart.org.uk/poems/your-attention-please
Thanks for sharing the link, Anne. A powerful poem, indeed!
I am pleased that you read it and found it so: different fears – politics at the bottom of both.
Thank you Anne. It’s a great poem.