La La Landia: Three Poems

by G. Tod Slone (May 2018)

Mural Study, Ben Shahn, 1930s

 
Questions for Poets in La La Landia

 

How does a poet get listed 

on the website of the most powerful 

poetry corporation, Poetry Foundation?  

 

Who are the faceless gatekeepers who control the list?  

Absence of transparency brings absence of accountability!

Who determines who shall be anointed a poet laureate?

Well, the librarian of Congress alone makes that choice.

Absence of democracy brings the lionization of safe hacks! 

 

Why do poets not wonder about such matters?  

Why are they so accepting of poetry la la landia’s taboos?

Absence of curiosity brings uniformity and conformity of thought.

All the News That Fits the Narrative

The press has been outed for extreme bias.  
So, what does it do?  Well, instead of addressing
the problem, it masks the problem with mottos
for We, the Plebes (readers) are stupid right?
“Democracy dies in darkness” brandishes
the Washington Post implying, of course,
that it is a light of unbiased truth. Hmm.
“Real journalists. Real journalism.” boasts
the Boston Globe,” as if that makes it better.
“Independent. Trusted. Real.” self-promotes
the New York Times, and then “Real journalism.  
Like nowhere else” and then “Independent journalism.  
More essential than ever.” Any more?  Well, yeah,  
“Truth is hard to find. But easier with 1,000+ journalists looking.”

But even if 10,000+ journalists looking, what difference does it make
with an editorial board blinded by bias, bias, bias, and more bias?

Bullshit—Diversion from Truth—Divide and Conquer

 

bullshit everywhere

pc bullshit, blablatage bullshit

inclusion bullshit, diversity bullshit,

white bad; black good bullshit,

bullshit tweets, bullshit vids, 

and bullshit bots on the phone, 

equality bullshit, BLM bullshit,

hands-up-don’t-shoot bullshit,

racism, racism, racism bullshit,

Daca bullshit, wall bullshit, 

white supremacy bullshit,

the n-word bullshit, shithole bullshit,

Nazi, Nazi, Nazi bullshit,

white privilege bullshit, trans/cis bullshit, 

systemic racism bullshit, dyke bullshit,

intersectionality bullshit, 

wrong/right pronoun bullshit,

islamophobia bullshit, hijab horseshit,

sharia bullshit, double-standard bullshit,

and our thoughts and prayers bullshit

 

Now, did I miss any bullshit?  Oh, yeah,

I forgot the bullshit about academic bullshit . . . *

 

* “Higher Education Is Drowning in BS” by Christian Smith (Chronicle of Higher Education)  Aberrantly, Smith wrote that it wasn’t the professors but only the system.  How absurdly can it get?  

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G. Tod Slone, PhD, lives on Cape Cod, where he was permanently banned in 2012 without warning or due process from Sturgis Library, one of the very oldest in the country.  His civil rights are being denied today because he am not permitted to attend any cultural or political events held at his neighborhood library. The only stated reason for the banning was “for the safety of the staff and public.” He has no criminal record at all and has never made a threat. His real crime was that he challenged, in writing, the library’s collection development statement that “libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view.” His point of view was somehow not part of “all points of view.” He is a dissident poet/writer/cartoonist and editor of The American Dissident.

More by G. Tod Slone.