The Revolution Has Been Televised

The revolution
Has been televised
And compromised
Pasteurized and
Homogenized
Proselytized
Refried and
Despised
Dehumanized and
Categorized
Dehumidified and
Dehydrated
Over rated and
Berated
Castrated and
Syncopated
Demonized and
Simonized
Ionized and
Patronized
Capitalized and
Sterilized
Capsized and
Chastised
Captured and
Co-opted
Repackaged and
Savaged
Mutilated
Folded
Spindled
And repudiated
But mostly it has been
FUBARed
Beyond
All recognition
FUBARed
Beyond
All recognition
So please
My brother
My sister
Please
Do not
Raise
Your fisted
Hand to me
I am a POW
Of the cause
I am a casualty
Of the war
All of my erstwhile
Ideals
Have been left
On the editor’s
Cutting room
Floor
I have seen
Too many
Of my former
Colleagues
Warriors
Barristers
Lawyers
Gangsters
And fellow travelers
Convicts
And Inmates
Co-workers
Co-conspirators
Union organizers
Dedicated teachers
Preachers and
Social workers
Social engineers
Aspiring politicians and
Gifted musicians
Poets and
Painters
Reindeer
And goat
Herders
Berated and
Demeaned
Vilified and
Horrified
Glorified and
Crucified
Immobilized and
Categorized
Specialized and
Professionalized
Neutralized and
Gratified
Stratified and
Satisfied
Magnified and
Recognized
Unrecognized
Abused and
Neglected
Like a one legged
Step child
The revolution
Is beyond
Salvaging
Restructuring or
Resurrecting or
Self-Correcting
It cannot be
Remedied or rescued
It has been
Premeditated and
Over inflated
Berated and
Degraded
Persuaded and
Incubated
Intubated and
Deflated
Coroneted and
Deposed
Reposed and
Exposed
Debated and
Masturbated
Celebrated and
Prostituted
Procrastinated and
Debunked
Defunked and
Skunked
Clunked and
Up chucked
Cuckolded and
Aborted
Adulterated and
Punctured
Raped and
Manhandled
Mishandled
Mislabeled
Misidentified and
Misplaced
It has been
Misappropriated and
Maltreated
But mostly
Mostly
It has just been
FUBARed
FUBARed
Beyond all
Recognition

Maya Angelou
May well claim
To know
Why the caged
Bird sings
But I’ll be
Motherfucked
If I do

jhmarkowitz
Philadelphia, Pa. 2011