Branders Yields

Lay a wreath on the Cenotaph
Of fallen soldiers from times past                          

Warmongers Gordon Brown,
Tony Blair, Phillip Hammond
and John Major
 parade wearing their red poppies
 on Remembrance Sunday 2014

On a day of romantic remembrance
Cultivating a smugness of reverence
Somber reflection and gratitude
Procure the expectant mood

This be your indoctrination into war
Nothing more
A cold,stark reality 

Today's soldier faces great disparity
Like the alcoholic's moment of clarity
There is freedom in economic parity

They didn't sacrifice their lives for you
To eschew, what is known to be true
Dead soldiers are memorialized
Dead soldiers are editorialized
The propaganda arm of government
A military and media formed covenant

What does it mean to be free?  

Is Remembrance the day to see?

Are we forever tied to our past?

The Cenotaph, Whitehall, London

To be free in the moment, at long last!

What would our "Glorious Dead" want for us?

To not think for ourselves or discuss?

A national audit on what freedom means

Not what bureaucrats in Washington dreamed

Shall a single nation rein supreme?

Have we returned to when one got queened?

The pomp, the show, excess and flair

To remember freedom once in a year

Shall we kill our way into being free?

Hear our dead call to us from the debris

Yesterday's colonist, today's imperialist or globalist

The Cold War never ended, the plot just had a twist

America and Russia fund every war on earth

They seek to remove what God gave at birth!

What To Look For In A Toronto Mayor

A mayor is not a demon slayer

Doug Ford, Olivia Chow
and John Tory took part
in their final debate Thursday
 evening. Torontonians head
 to the polls on Monday to
vote for their next mayor
. (Canadian Press/CBC)

A mayor is a policy conveyor
A mayor dares to dream, dreams
Realizing people's strengths
By placing them in teams

Not teams of competition
Teams of fruition
Skillful in understanding
The human condition
That all people require sustenance and nutrition

Sustenance and nutrition
Of hope and opportunity
Of all inclusive community
Avoid the divide and conquer
Political disunity
                                                                                                               

The three top mayoral candidates,
Olivia Chow, Doug Ford and
John Tory shared a moment
of levity following Thursday
 night's debate. It was the
last mayoral debate before
Monday's municipal election.
LUCAS OLENIUK / TORONTO STAR

Avoid a mayor for pomp and status
Or one that looms like the stratus
A mayor can know the apparatus
Then let go
And need not micro manage
The natural flow

Choosing a mayor to save us money
Is like believing in Santa or the Easter Bunny
Like a child who wants every day to be sunny
If there be a land flowing with milk and honey
You'll find someone to believe it, like a dummy

Everybody wants a guarantee
What's mine is mine, and me, me, me!
A mayor that's for more social housing
Shows helping people is more arousing


If you think a mayor must get us out of debt
You're ahead of the world, because we ain't there yet                
If a mayor's sole purpose is to balance the books                                
We're paving the way for charlatans and crooks                          
A charlatan will tell you what you want to hear
Make you love them, for your trust to endear

Ford Nation’s
anti-establishment views likely
 to endure, even if family’s
influence fades.
 National Post

Is it realistic for us to be debt free-
And term the world "global community"?
Doesn't global debt, reflect all debt?

It's the world we all wanted
Now, now don't fret!

Government is of the people my friend
Putting money first makes us descend
Into what seems to be a political trend
Cut spending on the weak, is what we defend
Government isn't business, so let's not pretend
Business profit, must exceed what they spend
For good governance, it's to people,we must tend.

The Murder of Robin Williams

When no one knows
What the inside shows
Judge they may;                            

When that familiar pain
Rips at familiar flesh
It's gone again
And all is well
Come what may

When the hurt is real
It cannot conceal
It would not, it's real
I never wanted to feel

I pushed it way down into that familiar place 

Lonely, dark and barren

Scant and empty

When the tangles
Are wet, dripping cold
Taking me low
Neath the snow
With no room to hold
My frozen soul
I start to pray                                                                  

Take it away
Make it better
My heart unfolds, inside this letter
I wished only, you knew me well
What absurdity, words never tell
They would only betray
My bitter hell

The matching outside face
The jester                                                                            

The happy ace
We played the fool
We sang, we laughed
But the pain still stayed
So I chose the pain
A dear companion
As my friend
Embraceable pain, with no foreseeable end

It wasn't me
The world had changed
Unrecognizable
The inner boy stained                                                    

Enmeshed, tragically with gain
And me at the epicenter
As ever,
The comedic, trend setter

That's who you wanted right?
Not the real me
The one whom I allowed,
For you to see
What little I had
Was picked away
In the end
Only decay, left for me

Reach into my chest
Feel my walls
Hold my heart
Hold my breath                                                                                            

The force of my blood, feel it pump
Make it stop
Make the beating stop
I go, now I part

Breathe my air
Squeeze my lungs
Hold me tight
Embrace my cold,
I go into the lonely night
All is well
Come what might

Lamentable

Nothing's changed

Since days of yore

When we did ponder
Times long passed

Oh it was
Much simpler then,
We yearned a future
At long last

A technology
To elevate;
A state,
We thought
None surpassed.

Yet we remain,
Tethered by chain;
To a material realm,
Unknown, unmasked.

Did Newton intend,
Or Einstein for this?                                                    
Is the wish of death
Our desire to kiss?

Headlong here
Dare we tread
Midst the barely living
And our glorious dead,
With no brave soul to lead the way
It's lamentable
Humanity has gone astray.

Is this our point of no return?
We killed God in us,
His children too;
For our brutality who will burn?
Repent to pay our just due.

                                 
      

A letter to the voter, signed: dejected-(sigh)-There's No Use In Voting

Dear Voter:

Withhold your vote
Don't vote for a fed,
Never a mayor,
Surely not a premier;
One thing's for certain,
Money's gone to their head,
Here in the West,
Democracy's dead!

Brad Katsuyama,
Proved stock markets are rigged!
If the stock markets are bad,
It's a trough for the pigs;
It's the tip of the iceberg
Corruption's real big!
One things for certain
Politicians,
Always renege.

A Politician will whisper,
Sweet nothings
In your ear.
You're the giggly prom date
They want to be near.
Seduce you they will,
With what you want to hear,
When you become pregnant
From abortion they'll steer!

Elected  officials,
Require lessons from Piketty,
About how the wealth gap
Made 90 percent rickety;
Politicians,
Must fix the split,
Lickety;
Neoliberalism's a failure,
That's far too persnickety.

There's no use in voting
If these conditions remain:
Kids with no future,
Income tax gains,
Mental health issues,
That drive us insane,
Homelessness soaring,
addiction its bane,
A serious debt load,
One job can't sustain,
No chance of a pension
No chance to maintain
Then to top it all off,
A select few;
Amass wealth they retain.

The Plutocrats from Pluto

Do you expect different
Than what you've got,
When they sold you,
What you always bought?
The leaders of the West
Are in the economic pot,
Of a financial soup
That's boiling hot!

In all of Obama's eight wasted years,
American inner cities still have their tears,
The American wealthy still have no cares,
They enjoy fine dining and imported beers.

Canada's political leaders
Consort with the rich,
Withhold funds,
Like the Christmas stealing Grinch.
Never once did they visit,
Toronto's Jane and Finch
Yet they claim to relate
To Canadians in a pinch!

Trudeau and Harper
Profess to endear
Measures to promote,
Equality and good cheer;
Harper's cabinet ministers
Snicker and jeer;
Middle class and working poor-
Efforts they smear;
They seem to be aiming for a Harper two tier,
Extolling the virtues of corporate welfare,
This has Canadians wondering
 In the world where;
Are the economic policies of Thomas Mulcair?

This is why Ford,
In Toronto might win,
Malvern or Jamestown, he'll go left and walk right in
He didn't thumb his nose to everyone's chagrin
Like the voice lesson Stintz pulled by Karen
Or the party line tow by Hudak or Wynne,
Not even God can absolve the elite of their sin!

But a conservative leopard won't change its spots;
Not a Tory like John but a Tory like Clark,
Conservatism today is a bit of a lark;
A leopard will eat anything, much like a shark.

Let's Throw A Political Party

Throw a political party
Right off a cliff!
Something's rotten in the West
Just take a whiff!

The hijacking of Government
By the one percent rich
Throw a political party!
Right in the ditch!

Throw a political party
Out in the street
They shut out the people
Who are not the elite

They stole all of our blankets
Now they're here for our sheets
They'll leave you buck naked
And they won't be discreet

Throw a political party
Right into jail
They overthrew democracy
And let greed prevail
They stole people's homes
Left them timid and frail
Then the party moved to Wall Street
With the alumni of Yale!

Throw a political party
Off the George Washington Bridge
Mr. Christie's traffic jam won't budge a smidge
Their trigger finger's itchy for another Ruby Ridge
Parties go rotten when left out of the fridge!

Ghosts Of Disdain

Imagine if you will

Political harmony,

Better still;

Something more commonly

Wished for,  

International unity. 

You'd be called a dreamer

An ideological schemer

Ontological and eager. 

To believe in the essence

And meaning of being. 

Realize, who the real dreamer is.
Those who entertain
They will remain
Segregated;
Tucked away;
From the political fray;
A fabricated community
With preferential immunity.

There is no escape,
From the rape
Of times passed;
The hoarders of wealth
Treasures amassed,
Better pray to the horde,
Justice comes fast.

Pay the poor their ransom
Your cab is still Hansom
You live in a mansion
Your prosperous tantrum
Will make you a mere phantom
Of this day;
Your ignominious past.

Ask Yourself This:

Ask yourself this:
Is my natural environment worth comfort driven bliss?
After I'm gone; how will my kids and grand kids live?
How sustainable is it to receive, but never to give?

Are reducing and re-using the only solution?
Shouldn't we call buying more than we need, greed-pollution?
Is recycling a scheme to make us feel better?
Why don't we demand goods be made durable and to the letter?

Ask yourself this:
Who does my government work for anyway?
Should markets be free or their true cost outweigh?
Would term limits on politicians, help us to put on the brakes?
Should we have the last say in the deals our government makes?

Do we need to put on the breaks for runaway capitalism?
Isn't a democracy of the people; for the people; by the people; solely our decision?
Should free market benefit outweigh the cost of stat driven job creation?
Do we need more big corporation; inundation?

Ask yourself this:
Can sharing in the love of family and friends coexist with 60 plus hour work weeks?
What  kind of personal havoc does placing business ahead of my family, wreak?
Who is getting rich in my drive for the attainment of comfort or wealth?
Is buying my kids whatever they need good for their health?

What is community but families and friends living and sharing together?
If everyone aims to satisfy themselves, can we handle the weather?
What is of major importance in order to have a good life?
Could my focus on more than one thing be called, a double edged knife?

Simple Dichotomy

City; car
Bustle!
Job; far
Hustle!

Week ends
Bills; chores
Family; friends
Games; scores

Snow; ice
Climate; weather
Summer; nice
Hills; heather

Hurricane; tornado
Oil; war
Flood; volcano
Banks; gore

Sochi; Olympian
Medal; Russian 
Putin; Crimean
Obama; repercussion

Doctor; Doodnaught
C.P.S.O; joke
Toronto; caught
Justice; yoke

South; Africa
Reeva; Oscar
beauty; anathema
Nike; sponsor

Us; we
World; country
Her; he
I; me


 

In Scrutiny of Canadian Unity

What is the Canadian strategy for unity?

Defining our culture is of prime concern;

This requires viable, social opportunity;

That political immigration, did not discern.

Like, how well do we relate to one another?
Are there meaningful interactions outside ones culture?
Do we see ourselves as Canadian sister or brother?
Which of us feel locked outside, Canada's social structure?

Being Canadian is more than acting nice and polite.
We shouldn't procrastinate on such issues;
This is not about  political left or right.
 But ignoring them will have us crying in tissues.

Canada is not just anyone's oyster;
It's a pearl for the collective wealthy immigrant.
Cultural groups have power in cloisters;
A trade off for being, Liberal or Conservative constituent.

What about Canada as speakers of English or French?
What about Canada's First Nations, Inuit, or Metis?
Language has the power to culturally entrench!
Should we all learn Mandarin or Punjabi?

Politicians lack the guts for discussing cultural unity;
This is why ordinary Canadians must exert pressure.
Don't let your politicians operate with impunity.
Use your vote as a political measure!

One person can't make a difference you say?
But it's OK to send off our troops to be killed in war!
Being involved in your country's politics is the way;
To strengthen Canada, without blood or gore!

 But I can't stand politics, you whine;
I feel insignificant and full of emotion!
It's the selfish, who can't spare the time;
Defining Canada, should be our sole devotion!

You ask, why should I chance being called, racist swine;
Yet you harbor resentment, because of personal inaction.
You blame immigrant cultures for our economic decline;
When Canada's politicians created our global detraction!

Canadian culture begins in our schools;
Weak Canadian identity caused us to falter.
English and French should be taught as a rule;
And Indigenous history our Rock of Gibraltar.

Canada: An American Love Story

There once was a country sandwiched in the middle;

Between the American Dream and the British second fiddle.

But woe did she strive to make a go of it on her own;

Though lackluster leadership made her people feel alone.

The people craved leadership, sure footed and strong; 

To provide sound direction, not roll them along;

Like a worn, old tire, you toss down a hill.

They were sick of politicians just eating their fill.

The people didn't mind officials earning good money;

But not Senators who stole, and vacationed where it was sunny.

Canadian federalism was becoming more of a sham;

It had no real vision for the Canadian youth, woman, or man.

Some lamented life was better across the border;

Others wanted us to have a European social order. 

Most Canadians wanted an identity uniquely theirs;

And multiculturalism only seemed to perpetuate their fears.

Where would we be in the next twenty years?

Could American money help alleviate our fears?

Politicians reasoned, financial worries had Canadians in tears;

Not to mention we did well, pedaling American wares.

It made ruling easy to call yourself a fiscal manager;
A self described money expert was certainly no amateur.
The economy thus became the new rallying cry;
That many were struggling daily, would be hard to deny.

People naively followed the piper's new money tune;
Striking oil in Western Canada was a Conservative government boon.
It would curry favor for the contrived American energy crisis;
While giving political strategists full partisanship license.

What did this mean for Canadians on the ground?
For many poverty deepened and jobs were scarcely found.
The feds were out of touch and national unity waned;
Political parties pointed the finger to absolve themselves of blame.

Give them cheap cellular rates and more American TV channels;
Keep them distracted from citizen groups and citizen panels.
Sell them the American dream wrapped in a Canadian narrative;
Discouraging political engagement was of major imperative.

So there you have it; a love story uniquely ours.
Like our PM and Defense minister's love for American cars.
Justin Trudeau likes his Mercedes 300 SL.
While ordinary Canadians board the bus and put up with transit hell.

"Who Are You!?...WHO! WHO!"

The solution for what's ailing the world, is you!
Do you even believe this to be true?
Have others defined your worldly significance?
Do you equate wealth, as global magnificence?

The master morality, wealth; vis a vis the slave morality, poor;
said Nietzsche of the origins of, social class war.
Rich or poor, which do you abhor?
Whatever you are, the opposite you deplore.

Political power is stymied by independent thought.
So stop zoning out on those gadgets you bought.
Balance their use and connect with your heart.
Acknowledging God and the self, is a start.

Many close their minds to mere mention of God;
But He condemned religion as political fraud.
Your soul is the force behind who you are;
Vain body consciousness won't take you far.

Material worth, must balance with the spiritual.
Thus is the path of the enlightened individual.
Those fast asleep can't see past the physical;
They treat their own essence, as though it were mystical.

We got mood stabilizers for  social expedience.
 A pill to subdue our emotional ingredients.
 Pent up emotion results in, spiritual disobedience.
Feeling your feelings is treated, like social deviance.

Who do you say that you truly are?
Is your identity more than a house, job or car?
Are you a lowly subject or true individual?
Then why place your intellect above everything visceral?