19 September 2025

I Want To Live in This Country

This is the country I want to live in:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

And:

43 ¶ Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. 44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

Instead, the one I live in right now:

And I've been very clear from the moment that I have become chairman of the FCC, I want to reinvigorate the public interest. What people don't understand is that the broadcasters, and you've gotten this right, are entirely different than people that use other forms of communication. They have a license granted by us at the FCC and that comes with it an obligation to operate in the public interest. And we can get into some ways that we've been trying to reinvigorate the public interest and some changes that we've seen. But frankly, when you see stuff like this, I mean, look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct and take action frankly uh on Kimmel or you know there's going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.
-- Brendan Carr

This is a twisting of "public interest" to satisfy an audience of one, your dear leader. The FCC's legitimate "public interest" charter is to manage the airwaves in a way that balances fair access, freedom from government interference in protected speech, and improper frequency broadcasting interference.

The murder of Charlie Kirk is a horrendous and despicable act by an evil person, and you, Brendan sir, have made it worse by not only explicitly refusing to follow 47 U.S. Code § 326, but doing so in a premeditated way, complete with current and future threats by name as a stated punishment for protected speech.

"Easy way" or "hard way" is the language of the mob, not an official who swore to support and defend the Constitution.

18 June 2025

A Blaze of Light

Like solar flares, our thoughts, they zap and flit
And make us want to slot and clip
And organize to tale or song.

Then the through line, 
The red line, 
The bottom line, 
They box us in, 
And keep us rough,
And mean, 
And quick.

Until we float above, and look, 
And comprehend
The things we couldn't see, 
The flares of others,
Bright, 
And sharp. 

Against the edge,
Occluded by our satellite,
Our blind spot, 
But not all. 

Their corona streams around
And slides and twists
To our perceiving eyes. 

But only if we watch,
And wait,
Are still enough to see,
To act aright,
And love.

15 January 2025

Ways of Blindness

We want hard 
And feel fast
and overlook 
the others' grief
others' sorrow 

We can't see 
Because we look
and want to look
above the rest
actively miss him
or mishear her 

Where would we
Get calm and reflect? 
is not the other
real too?

What about inside?
Where does the look go
that we miss
actively lie
by misseeing

When life is short
And hearing takes long
And what we miss
Will not repeat 

Every sight
Every together
Every one
Counts

07 January 2025

Oneita

he told his mom, I think she might... be the one
she told him... go and buy a ring
she drove past when he was getting home
before he knew her friends would come 
they met, they saw, they joined as one

but then he saw the writing on the wall and signed
she went with and welcomed little Jim
then back home where Steph came in
he saw and welcomed her ambitious words
she'd wait again, when he wasn't home

they wanted more, but then they came another way
two red heads, first John, then Phil
and growing up they brought their light
and shone and burned, she loved them right

but then he could not drive himself back home
it broke her heart when Phil was gone
but she still had Jim, and John
they'd call, invite and hold so many little ones 
who all grew up, and left to live their own

then off to England, to help them write
evr'y name and date and place of 1881,
and back again, and to Nauvoo to count, and write, and do
but crack, it didn't hold, and Jim was gone 
way before his due

when Milton came she welcomed him
they lived and loved a wave of little ones 
the heart that loved then beat no more
and quiet then, and lonely too
and slower then, and slower too

she loved and cared and started to review
and count and tell and hold all them
all those who wandered through 
then two angels came to care and live and watch
they stayed, she lingered there

then softly and quietly, in the night, she too was gone
she'd taken flight, and hoped that Jim would hug her tight