Poetry

All poetry by Bruce Dale Wise. Originally published by the SCP 9/26/18 Consumer Rights by Cal Wes Ubideer Accountability, transparency, and search control, consumer advocates are fighting Big-Tech's data hold. For far too long consumers have been powerless to fight the Goolag Commie-Tsars and Facebook Social-Fascist might. We have the...

  The Immigrant As his ship now departs to cross over the sea, He looks back as he fondly remembers The dear family he leaves, the quaint house by the lea, And two eyes that once sparkled like embers. For the passion he saw in those eyes, like his own,...

  “Hunter, you’ve disgraced the name of 'Biden.' Your laptop’s in the hands of some porn cop! I’ve told you, as a Biden you’ll be spied on--- Get thee behind me, spawn of dumb Corn Pop!” “Dad, your words don’t pass the Biden smell test--- You’re rankled by my deeds?!...

  after Chesterton's "Lepanto" Note: Cahaba Run is a river in Alabama Dogs dash in black and tan through clouds of briar and bush, All sprinting, unrelenting, such no city man could hush. They cast a shadow long, a gait that’s wide, a bellow deep, And stir awake all creatures...

Ego Feci Hoc A man, I was, of flesh and blood and bone, Nine-hundred years ago, I lived and died; A Norman mason skilled at cutting stone, An honored trade in which I took great pride. Eleven-Hundred Anno Domini Was when I was appointed to depart From home and family...

  There are smiles that we will never see. There are kisses that will never be. There are songs that we will never hear For this thing that stretches, ear to ear, Will be with us till our dying day And I hate it more than I can say. I...

  The Reindeer The reindeer winter-cries in vain for his lost mate His cry turns brittle frosty-mist, ascends the clouds. His hooves make run, his antlers gouge the whited shrouds That veil the trees. He stops. The land is desolate: A savagery rests still and wild---the trees are stark The...

Newspeak During a hearing held on October 13, Senator Hirono informed Supreme Court nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett that the term “sexual preference” is now offensive even though Hirono herself and the late Justice Ginsberg have used the term extensively. Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary has now labeled the term “offensive.” Senator Hirono...

  On the PBS TV Series 'Bob Ross, the Joy of Painting' I float, as happy as the clouds, Upon a sea of liquid white. Whilst cherishing this time allowed, This interval of pure delight. He speaks to me, as if I’m there. I answer back, I don’t know why,...

  “Censorship is to art, as lynching is to justice.” —Henry Louis Gates, Jr. by Caud Sewer Bile Joe’s never spoken to his son about Burisma—No! The New York Post was not supposed to show that it was so. That treasure trove of laptop data wasn’t for our eyes. That...

Retired K-9 When I was young, you kept me in a cage. But as I got a little calmer, older, Sometimes you’d let me ride in the front seat Shotgun, with my paw upon your shoulder. It wasn’t just for toys and treats, you know— Sniffing out drugs and shells,...

What if I do compare you to a rose Or summer’s day or beauty like the night, Or drone of how I’d sit and drink a coke With you instead of viewing every sight This world can give?—the seven wonders are No wonder without you. Or should I count The...

. The Tweeter Strikes Back At midnight, Don was not asleep, and so, he rose to eat and tweet. He ate McD’s; he felt relaxed. He walked around, and then he spat. On Fox, he watched a Democrat who launched a partisan attack. The Dem said, “Donald is a blight”,...

Juvenalia by Reid McGrath, Kelsay Books, 2019 by James Sale Regular readers of The Society of Classical Poets’ pages will be familiar with the name of Reid McGrath; he has been extensively published here, and in 2015 won First Prize in its annual poetry competition. This collection of his work,...

  No Signal, Please Stand By by Lu “Reed ABCs” Wei Perhaps the most intriguing thing about the past debate between vice-presidential candidates was its strange fate, that when Vice President Pence spoke, the Chinese censored it: “NO SIGNAL PLEASE STANDBY” was how the Chinese rendered it. The moment Harris,...

  Brave, brave, Charlotte Corday, took upon herself to slay that man of revolutionary violence, Jean-Paul Marat. On July thirteenth in ninety-three, the convent girl from near the sea, stabbed Marat to death in his bath, before he could attempt to flee. Brave, brave Charlotte Corday. Appalled by all the...

  When springtime has come to the high mountain ranges The melting of snow bares the landscape to changes; And creatures awaken from seasonal slumber In valleys below, where snows never encumber The passage of feet between tussocks still growing Through long months of winter—the season of slowing. Then, kangaroos...

  While Sitting by Her While sitting by her sometimes I would eye Her dextrous fingers plying to and fro While unbeknown to her, as she would sew And crochet, knit and stitch and satisfy Her urge to work for charity, defy Approaching death with kindness. So although She had...

See the winners here. Above is a recent photograph of Chateau Boswell, a winery, vineyard, and tasting room located in California. It has suffered terribly because of the recent “Glass Fire” in Napa Valley. Write a poem based on the above photo and post it in the comments section below....

  Eternal Apocalypse I’ve managed to escape a coming ice age; A mammoth hasn’t tossed me to my death. I’ve dodged the planet’s ozone-waning end-stage; Our green and pleasant land’s still drawing breath. The polar bears are plentiful and healthy. The ocean hasn’t swallowed coastal homes Of cunning cons who’ve...

  News of the Revolution Revolt or riot? Both? Or civil war? No matter what, who hasn't realized the revolution's being televised. The camera always wants a little more: the street churns; a building burns. What for? I only watch, aghast and hypnotized; and all the while, an unrecognized, unmastered...

  The harvest of an ancient past can waft to mind as we enjoy a measured taste of last year's blend. The darlings who were chased down vineyard lanes, who drew us to come after her with earthy murmurs, birdsong-laughter, raised eyebrows, whose fondling fingers traced the swelling fruit, whose...

  a parody of Tennyson's "The Eagle" Upon the bronze haired statue head Enringed in evening’s smoggy spread She beak-pecks on a littered bread. There, on the gritty concrete lies A pop of corn she greedy spies And down she like a pigeon flies.     Michael Curtis is an...

  To write of love, or speak of other things Like life or death, or such philosophy As might stir up an eager mind, which brings It to a bold, enriched reality: Oh, perfect, lovely forms! With such delight The poet and the reader can obtain A revelation of new...

…anulbaṇáṃ vayata jóguvām ápaḥ. Weave ye the singers’ work without a knot. —Rigveda 10.53.6 Those pale cream swaths of handmade linen, brought From Sicily around 1905 Lay in our rag drawer over sixty years. We kept them for whatever simple needs Arose from time to time in household tasks: A...

  Ethics Lesson 101 by Caud Sewer Bile Kenosha, Portland, Oakland. Minneapolis, New York: Don’t blame their Democratic mayors; they don’t have a cork. Chicago and Seattle, Albuquerque, Denver too: Don’t blame their Democratic mayors for their points of view. Don’t blame Antifa for the riots, nor blame BLM. Don’t...

In the first World War, taking and holding the high ground was everything. The battle of Messines Ridge, in Belgium, took place June 7-17 1917. It took 81 years until the Irish Peace Park was unveiled there to acknowledge the sacrifice of combatants from the whole island of Ireland during...

  Stealth Warfare in the voice of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Admire. Our virus circulates. __Our muddy money’s hand washed. Our fingers whisk jobs from your plates. __Our clenched fists keep you kiboshed. Our narratives are globalised, __our brief affairs beguiling. Old Sun Tzu’s art is systemised, __we always...

The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival and corresponding to the Harvest Moon in the West, falls this year on October 1.    Lanterns in the Autumn Dark Mid-Autumn's guests head homeward, in the night, Beneath the sphere that mirrors daytime's glow. In silver hues of air, distinct...

  Postponement I disappoint some folks of whom I’m fond, But I, in turn, am irritated by The nebulous assurance that beyond This life, in mansions somewhere in the sky, I’ll have another chance to tell them why I found myself unable to respond To constant pleas. A rain gauge...

Our Worthy Sons dedicated to Samuel Our worthy sons should never be ashamed Of who they are and who they’re meant to be. For far too long men’s gender has been blamed In wars that weaponize identity. To hell with toxic masculinity--- That noxious term indelibly ingrained In minds so...

  Odyssey of Theodicy It is a strange fact, clearly biblical— In this case God’s will is most puzzling: At times, He moves mountains with miracles, But may not remove the cup of suffering. A daughter wrecks her car—climbs out unscathed; A son, stroke-struck, breathes out—and then is dead. Our...

Reflections of an Aging Moon Great brassy stalks of varicolored horns Blow notes to keep the bees awake at noon. Immersed in gaudy zinnia’s stippled forms, They dance and flit, in homage to the moon. Among the varied shapes and hues, a muse Cavorts in blue-strewn, stuff-crimped marigolds More crimson...

  The winds of time will cease to blow, The shining moon will cease to glow, As history comes to an end; Eternity waits 'round the bend. The books and minds of all mankind Will over time, be left behind. What we find important today Will soon not matter anyway....

  Dream on the Horizon I sail the ocean toward the setting sun to find my dreams that hide within the sky. And I will travel till my days are done, to live just one before I say goodbye. I search for fantasies within the clouds and pray that one...

On Troublemakers: Two Translations* from the Latin Poet Phaedrus, Freedman of Augustus (first century A.D.) Translator’s Prologue These little tales from ancient Rome Concern those who would foment strife. See how the first from her scheme gains But how the second forfeits life.   The Eagle, the Cat, and the...

  Castles in Our Heads The old Italians once long held The mind as ordered hall; And in their arm-chair coffers swelled A wealth beyond recall. Each room was filled with hint and clue To trigger thought and mind— Around the halls like sprinkled dew Shone truths like gems refined....

  A Lesson Learned from Trump “We are all equal in the presence of death.” ---Publilius Syrus (100 BC) Today I learned a lesson from the one Whose acid tongue has beaten down the best; A man whose biting slights can’t be outdone Laid every cutting quip and barb to...

Supreme Farewell As every king and peasant must, A justice stands before the Just. We bid farewell to Sister Ruth, Who trembles now before the Truth.     Joe Tessitore is a retired New York City resident and poet.

  “In the Midst of Life We are in Death.” --Book of Common Prayer, The Burial of the Dead In sure and certain hope, we toss The soil in, and bless the dead. The final sentences; that pause Of awkward length, when all our breath, Suspended, makes a short-lived sheath...