Where are now the times of hope I from youth recall?
Where is the world with plenty and justice for all?
They have passed like a candle’s flame in the night,
In the shadows, the mere memory of light.

Wolves howl in the hills, their warning to us clear.
Recognition blooms at the dawn of this New Year:
To understand history, we failed the test,
The strong shall inherit the Earth and cull the rest.
​
The acrid taste of destruction on our tongues,
The pungent smell of hubris fills our lungs,
Stumbling, we enter the warrior’s domain;
We have burned before, and soon we must again.

The Emperor is happy, he is content,
For all again talk about his content.
The bombs have stopped for hour or day,
Job is done, world is saved, time to play;
The posse is here, coup-man, self-coup-man,
Chainsaw man, suck-up marshal of Pakistan,
Sleepy state fifty-one, lord of Chaosland,
The little one from fascism high-command,
A beautiful angel, a sack of white rice.
These fools, they dance or pay the price.
​
The God King smiles to cheers of his court,
Future shareholders in his great resort.
Peace in our time, forged by mind sublime,
Unfettered by understanding’s paradigm;
Precedent, knowledge, cause and effect,
Foolish trifles, unworthy of respect.
Rationality, Pragmatism: false idols,
All who matter are his ego’s disciples.
Ivory tower denizens may bleat and cry,
But he has a country to prisonify.

A dream dies amidst thunderous applause,
To smiles of a few who self-congratulate.
I wish not to fight for this lost cause.

Now we become that which we despise,
Feeble hands grasping at mangled hope,
To stave off a deserved demise.

A new beast crawled from monstrous womb,
It needs lebensraum, demands sacrifice:
Withered flowers die for the new bloom.

This creature of unpleasant aspect
Carries the oligarch-odour of our cowed land,
Yet its hunger and tenacity demand respect.

Birds of a feather their throat may sever.
Time to leave the high road’s cul-de-sac,
Lest our lord keep his throne forever.
​
So, Godspeed to you sin-born titan,
Let your rampage gather our lost momentum,
And your grip on Godfather’s neck tighten.

​Re-calibrate your trajectory.
…
Terra is the land I have walked,
And the land I will always walk.
Here I stand in a city of extremes,
Beside a dirty vein of commerce,
And I watch the scum flow by.
Nothing more down-to-earth
Than this city of revelry and coin.
All ‘round the cocaine-fountains,
Cultures clash, collide and mingle,
While tyres screech on wet asphalt.
This sodden land is my future.
There may be wonders here,
But I long for something more,
Sights unseen and tales untold.
The silver screen entices me,
But the gates to terra incognita
Remain shut by both physics and time.
As you crash into the riverbank
I know that this is the closest
I will ever get to those other worlds.

​You held your hand out to me, and I knew what to do,
I reached into my pocket and handed your bribe to you.
You caressed me with propaganda flyers,
Warmed me by the fire of stolen campaign funds.
We dreamt together about breaking the establishment,
And sent love letters to our bureaucratic overlords,
And then we giggled when they failed to notice
The runes, the eagle and the proud striped banner.
You held me to your gas mechanic’s bosom,
And promised protection from the world,
For the measly price of a few small tenders.

Your elaborate swearwords echoed through the airport
As you were caught trying to skip the line.
From your billboards a smiling Jew winked at me,
Your taxi driver charged me extra,
To shuttle me past never-ending constructions works.
I opened the door to the smell of alcohol,
And I knew I had arrived home.

Yet instead of showing affection,
You baked me in your underground,
As if I were some chimney cake,
And froze me with your winter’s kiss
As I crawled along your asphalt skin.
You called me a traitor, an imperialist agent.
You said I wanted you dead, legacy erased.
Yet, I think I have been faithful, in my own way,
It’s just that our ideals don’t really coincide.
​
You took my hope and drove me away,
I pretended not to care.
But I realized you were still a part of me
That I could or would not shed.
Too many mutual axioms and cultural codes
That have become integral to who I am,
Too many sarcastic inside jokes
That only you would understand.
And all these memories, and mutual friends,
That I don’t have the strength to forget…
But even if you change, as some now hope,
Will it be enough, to bring me home?

​I want you to feel the rage
Of this splendid new age.
Mutilation, war and rape?
Well-equipped is the human ape.
In Raqqa, Daesh can give you a course.
And you can ask the Saudis for a source.
You want some true Darwinism?
Look through Putin's Russian prism.
Ukraine falls, but no one cares,
We're stuck in black Friday’s snares.
At the Maidan party, the punch turns bitter
When Vladimir says, cry me a river!
Assad tries a new pesticide
And our ally bombs our friend aside.
Walls are built, to keep them out,
But the refugee horde will not rout.
Europe splits like the Red sea,
And our enemies watch with glee.
Is it to be an Eulogy?

​Limestone lies beneath the crust,
Its engravings gone to rust.
Smallpox claimed our old muse,
Yes, our race deserved abuse!
We looked upon our works of old,
And now we have all gone to mould.
Fallout has brought despair,
Damage we could not repair…
Abiosis, silent nights,
A new world order will arise;
Enacting, instead of lies,
A splendid view of the northern lights,
Shining through our toppled heights,
Reminding Earth of ancient blights.

​Are you indeed omniscient and almighty?
Kindly saint whose words drip condescension.
I see the self-righteousness in your eyes,
Those piercing orbs of contempt,
You believe see the nature of reality.
Why do you think it is only you who suffers?
Why do you think that only yours matters?
Why are always you the victim,
If you are the one to dispense the pain.
Will you not learn white bearded tyrant,
That inspiring fear is not inspiring love;
That thinking so, doesn't make you right;
That one can survive not having it their way;
That we all have to make some sacrifices...
 
Selfishness might be a human failing,
But masquerade it as selfless charity,
And you will be despised,
By those who see what's under the veil.
Why do you act as if you loved us?
Why do you act as if family mattered?
It’s slaves you need, not family.
Buy some. That’s the limit of your toolkit.
I’m tired of fighting your oppression,
And hard words hurt both ways.
We gave you all we could give,
But our patience is running out.
Do you really wish to die alone, forsaken?
It might already be late to make amends.