Inaugural doggerel dock
history ran up the clock
the man fell down
the land is clown
the king is changing locks!
(See Spot stop on the seesaw top)
--- Contratimes poet-laureate
_________________________history ran up the clock
the man fell down
the land is clown
the king is changing locks!
(See Spot stop on the seesaw top)
--- Contratimes poet-laureate
The authoritative words of an expert:
"Words matter. Language matters. We live in and express ourselves with language, and that is how we communicate and move through the world in community.
President-elect Obama has shown us at all turns his respect for the power of language. The care with which he has always used language along with his evident understanding that language and words bear power and tell us who we are across differences, have been hallmarks of his political career. My joy at being selected to compose and deliver a poem on the occasion of Obama’s Presidential inaugural emanates from my deep respect for him as a person of meaningful, powerful words that move us forward." -- Elizabeth Alexander, Obama Inaugural Poet
Dear Ms. Alexander:
Thanks for the lesson. I did not know that words matter, nor did I know we use them to communicate. Did you discover this on your own, or did you read it somewhere? But permit me to ask you a serious question: Do you really believe that "we live in ... language"? Please submit your revision by tomorrow's first bell.
_________________________
Indeed, as Ms. Alexander proves (or so she believes), Barack Obama IS SUCH A MAN of LANGUAGE. From his inaugural address (seriously):
Thanks for the lesson. I did not know that words matter, nor did I know we use them to communicate. Did you discover this on your own, or did you read it somewhere? But permit me to ask you a serious question: Do you really believe that "we live in ... language"? Please submit your revision by tomorrow's first bell.
_________________________
Indeed, as Ms. Alexander proves (or so she believes), Barack Obama IS SUCH A MAN of LANGUAGE. From his inaugural address (seriously):
We will harness
the sun
and
the winds
and
the soil
to fuel our cars
and run our factories.
Dear Mr. Obama:
Please rewrite. Explain how it is you plan to "harness" the soil. Is the soil untamed; wild? Is the soil running amok? Explain how the soil, once harnessed and apparently tamed, will "fuel" our cars? And please note that we have left the 14th-Century B.C.: the sun is not a chariot racing across the sky. Harness the sun? Will this require a bit, bridle and reins? Also, please study the problems in the passages below. I think you'll see (from my placing your contradictory sentences in a more direct sequence) that you have some serious reconciling to do before this piece merits a passing grade. Please revise and put your final draft in the mail slot for the English Language Arts team -- to my attention -- by 11.6.12.
_______________________Please rewrite. Explain how it is you plan to "harness" the soil. Is the soil untamed; wild? Is the soil running amok? Explain how the soil, once harnessed and apparently tamed, will "fuel" our cars? And please note that we have left the 14th-Century B.C.: the sun is not a chariot racing across the sky. Harness the sun? Will this require a bit, bridle and reins? Also, please study the problems in the passages below. I think you'll see (from my placing your contradictory sentences in a more direct sequence) that you have some serious reconciling to do before this piece merits a passing grade. Please revise and put your final draft in the mail slot for the English Language Arts team -- to my attention -- by 11.6.12.
On this day
we gather
because
we have chosen
hope
over fear
Our nation is at war
against a far-reaching
network of violence
and hatred.
This is the journey
we continue today.
We remain the most
prosperous,
powerful
nation
on Earth.
Our economy
is badly weakened
a consequence of greed
and irresponsibility
on the part of some
but also
our collective failure
to make hard choices
and prepare
the nation
for a new age.
Homes have been lost
jobs shed
Our workers
are no less productive
than when this crisis began
businesses shuttered
our goods and services
no less needed than
they were last week
or last month or last year
Our capacity remains undiminished
On this day
we gather
because
we have chosen
hope
over fear
Our health care is too costly
our schools fail too many
Our minds are no less inventive
and each day brings
further evidence
that the ways we
use energy strengthen
our adversaries
and threaten our
planet.
But our time of standing
pat
of protecting
narrow interests
and putting off
unpleasant decisions
that time has surely
passed
On this day
we gather
because
we have chosen
hope
over fear
These are the indicators
of crisis, subject
to data and statistics.
Less measurable
but no less profound
is a sapping of
confidence
across our land —
a nagging fear
that
America's
decline
is inevitable
and that the next generation
must
lower
its
sights.
On this day
we gather
because
we have chosen
hope
over fear
Today
I say to you
that the challenges we
face are real
They are serious
and
they are many.
They will not be met easily
On this day
we gather
because
we have chosen
hope
over fear
Our nation is at war
I just love "standing pat", don't you? I do it all the time, except when I am sitting pat. Or patting stands.
Peace through dissent.
©Bill Gnade/2009. All Rights Reserved.
