These Days

These days
It takes a lot of effort
To break through all of
The bullshit and all of
The claptrap
That pours out of our
TV sets and I pads and I pods
And every other
Make and model
Of electronic gizmo
Under the sun
That pollutes our
Eyes and ears and
Minds
To the point of
Total distraction

It’s a wonder
That we can still even
Think for ourselves

After having been forced
To watch more than
100 million car commercials
And having had to listen to the
Commercials of
Thousands of lawyers
And pitch men of every
Stripe and ilk
Trawling for clients
In order to sue
Every fat cat
Insurance company
For every ill advised pill
And prescribed medication
That has ever been foisted
On the allegedly
Unsuspecting
American public

And after having
Been forced
To helplessly
Stand by and watch
As the jackals of
American industry
Recently brought
The whole world’s economy
To its knees
To usher in
The great recession of
2008 to the detriment of
Millions of families the
Whole world over

It’s a wonder
That we can still
Even think for ourselves

Sometimes it’s called
Mind control or
Programming or
Brainwashing or
Coercive persuasion or
Mind abuse or
Thought control
Whatever
Bottom line
It is the mass use of
Manipulative methods
To force its victims to
Conform to the
Wishes of the manipulator
To the detriment
Of the victims
Who are being
Manipulated

A chill runs down my spine
When I think of the
Hordes of Nazi soldiers
Marching in lock step
Goose stepping
Across the European landscape
Crushing nation after nation
Under the heels of their
Hobnail boots
Leaving nothing but
A trail of death and destruction
In their wake
I can still
Hear the shrill
Barking voices
Of Hitler and
Goebbels and
Himmler
Spewing out their hatreds
Over the radios
And loudspeakers
And newspapers
In unison
In total control
Of all media outlets
It is no wonder
That things went from
Bad to worse
And the whole world
Went to hell
In a hand basket

We moderns
Are similarly
Being subjected
To an endless
Stream of propaganda
Urging us to
Buy!
To spend and
To consume!
And we heed the voice
Of our masters and
We rush out to
The shopping malls and
To the internet
And we rack up
Piles and piles of debt
Willingly
Becoming wage slaves
To the big banks and
Credit card companies
And before we know it
These same banks and
Credit card companies are
Foreclosing on our homes
And repossessing our cars
And we end up drowning
In a sea of red ink and
Bankruptcy

And then we try
To pick ourselves up
To start
All over again

One definition of madness
Is doing the same thing
Over and over again
And then
Expecting a different
Result!

jhmarkowitz
Philadelphia, 2012