A question

To Mr. Bush:

Have you done everything that you can
To end genocide in Sudan?
You say you abhor
The deaths in Darfur
But you've buried your head in the sand.

Kerry outraged at Bush's 'toothless' response to Darfur
TurkishPress.com, 10/17/04

Is that a bulge in your suit or...

So, was Dubbaya poorly attired
Or did Rove have the president wired?
The bulge in his suit
Is an issue that's moot.
His performance should get someone fired!
(preferably, him)

Bush's bulge stirs media rumours
BBC, 10/9/04

Of a different color

"We must not let our president down;
Stay the course," many say, but I frown.
Things are not as they seem.
Change the horse in midstream?
Yes, I would, if he caused me to drown!

Meanwhile: Being Bush means never having to say you're sorry
International Heral Tribune, 10/13/04

He stood tall

For Christopher Reeve we will mourn;
His stem cell support was well worn.
A true super hero -
While President Zero
Just values a life when unborn.

Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation

Maybe you meant 'fatcheck.com?'

We all make mistakes now and then;
Mr. Cheney, but gosh, you know when
I went to check facts
Your intel was lax
And I knew you'd misled us again!

Factcheck.org's take on the debate

Cheney's 'Factcheck.com' Plug Yields Questions
NPR, 10/6/04

Tuesday's double play:

Santana/Edwards vs. Mussina/Cheney

"We're sittin' on needles and pins
Just waitin' to find out who wins.
No, not the debate!
that don't rate
On a par with da Yankees and Twins."

Baseball vs. debate?
The State, 10/6/04

The decision makes scents

Their research was sure to impress
Though it won by a nose, I would guess.
Now Axel and Buck
Can share the good luck
And enjoy the sweet smell of success

Two Americans Share Nobel for Smell Research
NPR, 10/4/04

Bush's rebuttal

Well, so what if I scowl and I smirk!
Yes, I know; it's a personal quirk!
My brain was a hummin';
A thought could be comin',
And, you know, "it is really hard work!"

Reaction shots may tell tale of debate
Washingtonpost.com, 10/2/04

Of debatable value

To call it "debate" is a sin
For each side will declare "it's a win!"
It's a partisan skirmish
Where truth is a dervish
Caught up in political spin


Voters Chew Over Dissected Debates
Washington Post, 9/29/04

Close the door! You might let in a...

Security Mom Alert

The solution they're likely to craft
For an Army that's so understaffed
Will get a new name.
They don't want the blame,
So our leaders are dodging "The Draft."

It's a place that they don't want to venture
For the fear of severe public censure.
But the final prescription
Could bring back conscription
Cuz it's not just a job it's indenture.


"I would vote for Howdy Doody if I thought it would keep my boys home and safe."
Beverly Coco, mother of two grown sons - CBS

We're Dodging the Draft Issue
By Jonathan Alter, Newsweek, Oct 4 issue

Rain of terror

The south coast is barely survivin'
After weeks, now, of stormin' and strivin'.
With Charley then Frances,
Just what are the chances
This terrible reign ends with Ivan?

Hurricane wreaks more havoc in US
BBC News, 9/17/04

Like Bush, the "memos" may not fly

CBS has the press in a lather
Over truth of the news that they gather
Says Dan, on appeal,
"It's all basically real,
Unless actual proof you would Rather..."

Rather defends 'thrust' of report on Bush service
The Washington Times, 9/16/04

Cellblock: the "it" color for fall

Though Martha is headed to jail,
The Stewart cachet cannot fail.
A nation now waits
To scarf up tin plates
When her Prison Collection's on sale.

Martha Stewart opts for prison
CNN, 9/16/04

Maybe we should elect an optometrist

It's enough with the steel and the flint.
Mr. Bush, let us give you a hint:
You claim it's your mission
To bring a "clear vision,"
So why is it, then, that you squint?



Bush shouldn't accuse anyone of flip-flopping
Statesman Journal, 9/9/04

Banned guns don't save lives;

People, who ban guns, do!


For a decade, we'd brought to a halt
Sale of weapons, used just for assault.
So when Billy or Suzi
Get killed by an Uzi
Please remember the gun's not at fault.

Assault weapons ban to expire Monday
CNN, 9/13/04

Grim prediction

I posted the following image in April under the headline "Is this picture worth a thousand lives?" - an unfortunately prophetic question. Common Ground magazine made it the cover of their July issue and they were kind enough to post my comments on it there:

Art is art and should not have to justify itself. What the viewer brings to the experience always colors the experience. In the tradition of the best of art, your image is neither didactic nor easily interpreted. As a veteran myself, I find the images of my fellow servicemen and women to be both poignant and a tribute to their willingness to serve. What wartime leader would not acknowledge that their "image" is truly built on those that serve at the frontlines? I congratulate you on creating an image whose meaning and motive is not simply discerned, unlike the subject of that image.
- The Limerick Savant

The War President
courtesy of Joe Wezorek at American Leftist


Click image for enlarged view

Fortunate Son

Creedence Clearwater Revival


Some folks are born made to wave the flag,
Ooh, they're red, white and blue.
And when the band plays "Hail to the chief",
Ooh, they point the cannon at you, Lord,

It ain't me, it ain't me
I ain't no senator's son, son.
It ain't me, it ain't me;
I ain't no fortunate one no,

Some folks are born silver spoon in hand,
Lord, don't they help themselves, oh.
But when the taxman comes to the door,
Lord, the house looks like a rummage sale, yes,

It ain't me, it ain't me,
I ain't no millionaire's son, no.
It ain't me, it ain't me;
I ain't no fortunate one, no.

Some folks inherit star spangled eyes,
Ooh, they send you down to war, Lord,
And when you ask them, "How much should we give?"
Ooh, they only answer More! more! more! yoh,

It ain't me, it ain't me,
I ain't no military son, son.
It ain't me, it ain't me;
I ain't no fortunate one, one.

It ain't me, it ain't me,
I ain't no fortunate one, no no no,
It ain't me, it ain't me,
I ain't no fortunate son, no no no,


(c) Creedence Clearwater Revival - Chronicle: The 20 Greatest Hits, 1976 & 1991 Fantasy / Creedence Clearwater Revival - Willie And The Poor Boys, (Original 1969) Fantasy / John Fogerty - Premonition(Live), 1998 Warner / Creedence Clearwater Revisited - Recollection(Live), 1998 Fuel 2000

U.S. Death Toll in Iraq Surpasses 1,000
NPR, Morning Edition, 9/8/04

Another bypass operation

Unlike Clinton, a man it behooved,
Dubya's "surgery" won't be approved.
Even though Mr. Powell
May throw in the towel,
Bush is sh*t if his Colin's removed!

End of the rainbow
The Guardian, 9/6/04

Accept nomination?

How about accepting responsibility?

Ideas aplenty you tossed,
Mr. Bush, but at really what cost?
Tax cuts are no perk
For those out of work.
So, where are the jobs that we lost?

Bush vows to protect America
Guardian Unlimited, 9/3/04

From the GOP convention floor

We don't think, any longer, it queer
That George Bush is a monger of fear.
For what fool would say "nope"
Now to "safety" and "hope?"
So, instead, all the stronger we cheer.

Bush casts himself as strong leader in time of peril
San Jose Mercury News, 9/2/04

Best performance by a tool

Yes, Arnold, I may be a girly-man.
When views disagree, as they surely can,
Some men stay the course
Instead of endorse
Like a big hypocritical burly-man.

GOP flexes muscle
Variety, 8/31/04

Extreme makeover

The Republicans hope their convention
Will bury the bones of contention.
The platform's not new
But, with mod'rates on view,
They will dish up a Bush reinvention.

GOP's opening scene carefully scripted
USA Today, 8/29/04

No child left?

A letter to Mr. Bush from Cleveland:
There's a need, in your deed, you ignore
By focusing just on a "score;"
And any excuse
That permits such abuse,
Mr. Bush, like our children, is poor.

Your "compassion" is simply unkind.
For you can't feed a child's hungry mind
By leaving unfed
His body instead.
Now that's when a child's left behind!

Cleveland rates as big city with highest poverty rate
Ohio News Network, 8/27/04

NB: Mr. Bush made no mention of these census statistics on his visit to Ohio the very next day.

Took the hypocritic oath?

For thinking outside of the box
What compares with those Abu Ghraib docs?
It seems that the medics
Weren't tortured with ethics
Like prisoners were tortured with shocks.

US army medics accused in abuse
BBC News, 8/20/04

Paved with good intentions

Want to feel your political oats?
Well, then put on your hats and your coats
And get in the swing.
State that freedom will ring
While you're hitting the road Driving Votes.

Annul result

San Francisco's the city that carried
The banner for Love, free and varied;
But now the state court
Has erased that support
If your gay and you thought you were married.

California High Court Voids S.F. Gay Marriages
NPR 8/12/04

Bin Laden who?

Iraq's such a hotbed that now we
Are faced with Abu al-Zarqawi;
But the man is well hid,
So that what we forbid
Only heightens the threat to Allawi.

Purported Zarqawi threat against Iraqi PM
MSNBC 8/7/04

Kellen Wins High!

Many thought there was really no tellin'
As to whether the Browns would sign Kellen,
But for forty odd mill
Seems the team has the will
Now to buy what the young man is sellin'.

Browns, Winslow finally agree
The Plain Dealer, 8/11/04

I spy...

So now Bush has announced Porter Goss
To become CIA's current boss;
But, with this appointment,
The fly in the ointment
Is: is this a gain or a loss?

Bush Nominates Rep. Goss to Run CIA
The Washington Post, 8/11/04

Fragile peace

When vi'lence erupts like a geyser,
It won't really take an advisor
To tell the Marines,
In Najaf, this means
The mood is al-Sadr, but wiser.

Marines report 300 insurgents killed in Najaf
CNN International, 8/6/04

Athletic supporters exposed!

To host this biennial clash
Cities needn't do anything rash.
For it's easy, you see,
When you know I. O. C.
Stands for major Infusion Of Cash

Olympic agents 'who sell votes'
BBC News, 8/3/04

Vacation in ruins

(The news from Turkey)

Decided to not take the autobus
To top of the city of Ephesus
But walk in the sun
Was not very fun
And sweltering heat was the death of us

Ephesus - An on-line Panoramic Virtual Tour

Still not goin' ta Crawford

I like this one so much, I thought I'd repeat it just Beykoz

Despite the demands of his station,
And aware of the risk to the nation;
The Savant must postpone
The next sine qua non
Just because he deserves a vacation!

Make a change, learn glass in Istanbul, Turkey
The Glass Furnace

Hair today - what's tomorrow?

Someone tell that well manicured pair
That the public does not really care
If they've got the best "dos."
It will only make news,
In the end, if they win by a hair!

Kerry, Edwards head out on first campaign swing as running mates
Cleveland.com, 7/7/04

Gephardt defeats Truman!

In the flurry to be number one
It seems that the Post jumped the gun.
But forgive them their haste
For it wasn't a waste:
They no longer believe Dewey won.

Egg on Post's face in Gephardt vp pick story
The Hollywood Reporter, 7/7/04

First he checked his map...

John Kerry had already said words
That made it quite clear he would head t'wards
A choice, whose selection
Could steer the election.
The only direction was Edwards.

Kerry Picks Edwards and Business as Usual
The Village Voice, 7/6/04