America Online

Shut it all down
and the pathogen will be eradicated
Shut it all down
and we won't know how to do the simplest of tasks
Shut it all down
and kiss goodbye to our imaginary free speech
Shut it all down
and watch our portfolios plummet
Shut it all down
and our masks will become optional again
Shut it all down
and go back to the way it was
before our addiction

Birth of a nation

I want my children to love you
I don't even know what that's supposed to look like anymore
Perhaps you don't even know either

I stare at that black frame with three smiling faces snuggled closely
I stare and see genuine joy
Free joy

I stare and I cry and I wonder
Is this how you feel, too?
Do you wait and wonder if your kids will grow up to love you too?

Do you glance at the pages of Scripture and notice their portrayal of you?
Is that really you?
Was that ever really you?

Those who have seen you have seen the father
But is the inverse also true?
I rely heavily upon my bride for such hope and training in love

To see the father
To be the father
We never saw before

Do you rely upon your wife too?

Fear Porn

This is not like the flu
I repeat: not like the flu
Click the animated graph
It's a really good graphic
It reminds me of the continued importance
of masks and limiting exposure
From mid March to mid June 
there have been more deaths due to this
than by anything else on the chart
It reminds me of how important it is to follow the experts
who are all saying the same thing
It's really shocking to see things this way
Like and share if you agree
This is unlike anything we've experienced before
I repeat: unlike anything we've experienced

The quelle of all problems

we will not rehearse the case
for that hypothesis over there
nor offer arguments against
this one over here

definitive arguments
for any hypothesis
or against any hypothesis
or their variations

are not possible

at best, we propose scenarios
in which all or most or some
of the data is accounted
most of the time

by what we think of
as the most probable explanations
observe and trust what we say
and our craftsmanship

we sit in the seat you adore

Vader's Day

I'm waiting
While the world unwraps the gifts they offered this day
I'm waiting
To see some change
I'm waiting
For a smile without pretense
Joy without shaming
With nothing to sell
Completely and freely gifted felicity

To see you love
dot dot dot
To see you think
dot dot dot
To see you enjoy
dot dot dot
Without being the expert
Without being the victim
Without being the patriot

I'm waiting
For you to not recommend shooting protestors
I'm waiting
For you to not be anxious
I'm waiting
For you to show some family resemblance with a son
Some joy without shaming
Without preaching anything
In bold, all-caps, and dots

Sitting across from the treasury

Our history is filled with violence

Demolish its icons

Our heritage is loaded with exploitation

Sue their asses off

We cannot undo the wrongs of our past

Demonetize those deviants

We must acknowledge truth to begin to heal

Censor rival narratives

We need to work together to fight fascism and restore justice

Donate today and pledge your last two lepta

Lifetime of Toxicity

It's all a joke
except only some of us find it humorous

Protests with thousands are worshipped
while gatherings of faith are demonized

And all of a sudden, black lives matter
so that moral grandstanding can force its weight on novel necks

Three generations thick in this dream of empire
and suddenly it's against community guidelines to question the contents of their koolaid

Once questioned, renewed imperialism rushes in to interfere with all fevers
for eradicating all future disease and suffering

Because everyone needs doctoring for health
just like every child needs education for language

Two irreconcilably opposed philosophies of political order pervade each cityscape
and only those with masks are granted permits to protest

In response to these 'global health crises' 
the enlightened ones swoop in, dissect concepts, and spew rhetorical venom

All lives matter, but some lives matter much more right now
except those tiny black ones who are defined as fetuses

A brief voilà, some abracadabra, and poof! 
The hypocrisy of that conversation is now muted

It's all a joke
and it's okay to laugh as long as you stand six feet apart