by BAR poet in residence Raymond Nat Turner
We are proud to say that Michael Ratner was a friend of Black Agenda Report.
For Michael Ratner
(2 Corinthians 12:7)
by BAR poet in residence Raymond Nat Turner
Another one of John Brownâs bastardsâBerrigan beforeâ
br/> checked out. Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank lost a
Friendâ the Cuban people too
I felt like the air had been punched from my gut, or like a
singer singing a long line, minus inspirationâeven Anonymous weptâŚ
A friend in Cali, a woman reverend, lamented: âHope thereâs a thorn
His size to replace his work.â
Relentless radical peopleâs lawyer, internationalist spirit of Cheâ
Nuclear thorn the size of a 747 in flesh of assassins and torturers!
Though Satanâs emissaries sometimes act as advisors,
Vintage vampires long of fang are lighter on their feet; have
smaller sulfur footprints; trip-plan before coming out of coffins
into light of dayâand no longer laugh like trips to The Hague are
pipedreamsâŚ
Was he ever invited to the War House?
Did he care?
He didnât believe in tooth fairies, âghost detaineesâ
âenemy combatantsâ and black magic of âboots on the groundâ
He didnât respect scribblers opining human rights are âquaintââ
Didnât entertain ticking time bomb âtheoriesâ for torture,
lowlife lawyer-ing making torture âenhanced interrogationâ
Was he ever invited to the War House?
Did he care?
He sued Slick Wily for warehousing HIV+ Haitians at Gitmo; sued Wâs
daddy for invading Iraq without congressional authorization; sued sadist
Rumsfeld for torture, and the âgreat Communicatorâ for funding cutthroat
Contras in Nicaragua, and invading Grenada; sued an Indonesian thug with
tin decorated chest, and a Guatemalan minister of murder; sued the FBI for
skullduggery dealing with Central American activistsâeven sued Pentagon
pimps for in-bedding reporters, turning them out as stenographers for
Slaughter. And, he always won in the court of public opinion!
Was he ever invited to the War House?
Did he care?
Whistleblowers, Wikileakers, political prisoners, detainees,
arrestees, parolees, slogan shouters, marchers, movements
seemed more his ilkâhis element, the elbows he rubbed
One day, not too long ago, he let himself lean back in
his chair humming âJust My Imaginationâ ticking off
Ten points heâd implement as Attorney General of The
U.S. under Socialism:
Beginning with NOT enforcing some laws and
Making the rich pay;
Indicting, prosecuting W and his torture teamâ
Including Olâ Satan, Cheney
Indicting, prosecuting the Christ Child and accomplices
for drone murders across the globe;
Finally, insuring no more Flints: implementing Boliviaâs
Law of The Rights of Mother Earth
He rested his musing, âI can barely wait to get started in my new jobâŚâ
Now, we muse, we pray Michaelâs lifeâs like John Brownâsâ a billion
Sperm swimming, fathering a thousand thorns in crowns of the 1%âŚ
by Raymond Nat Turner.
All rights reserved
Raymond Nat Turner is an acclaimed poet and performance artist, besides being Black Agenda Report's poet in residence. You can find more of his work at the Upsurge Jazz Ensemble.
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(This article originally appeared in Truthout.)
