Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

How will we pay for it?
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
12 Jan 2022
🖨️ Print Article
How will we pay for it?
M. Wuerker POLITICO Universal Uclick

                                                                                            How will we pay for it?

How will we pay for it?
How will we pay for it:
59 missile shooting spree—
$110, 000 a pop?
Mother Of All Bombs?
A boondoggle bomber?
800 bases in faraway places?
States with more warheads than congress members? A modern-medieval torture
chamber on foreign soil? A weapons lab disguised as an apartheid state?

How will we pay for it?
How will we pay for it:
Surgical strikes on hospitals—
renaming babies Collateral Damage?
Orders to “Light ‘em up!”?
Lethal gifts dropped on wedding parties?
‘Taking out’ other nations’ generals?
Swapping strongmen for wrong men?

How will we pay for it?
How will we pay for it:
Drinking water juiced with jet fuel?
Freedom to breathe blue-black air?
Fracking fluid flavored springs?
Freedom of fires gorging themselves year round?
Freedom of floods to wash away labor’s fruits?

It’s not neurosurgery or rocket science—
and I’m no genius but— I know-I know
I know-I know-I know-I know-I know-I know…
I know-I know-I know-I know-I know-I know…
Tents, tarps, cardboard mattresses—cancer,
Diabetes, tooth decay are one way we pay—
Feel free to fill in anything I’ve missed…
 

© 2022. Raymond Nat Turner, The Town Crier. All Rights Reserved.

Former forklift driver/warehouse worker/janitor, Raymond Nat Turner is a NYC poet;  BAR's Poet-in-Residence; and founder/co-leader of the jazz-poetry ensemble UpSurge!NYC. You can Vote for his work at:  

GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-town-criers-big-tooth-fund

PayPal: paypal.me/towncrierRNT

Military Industrial Complex

Do you need and appreciate Black Agenda Report articles? Please click on the DONATE icon, and help us out, if you can.


Related Stories

Biden has Money for War, but Not for the Poor
Danny Haiphong, BAR Contributing Editor
Biden has Money for War, but Not for the Poor
23 March 2022
Joe Biden and congress have plenty of money for the military industrial complex, but only austerity for the people.
US War Lobby Fuels Conflict in Russia, Ukraine, and Syria: Ex-Pentagon Advisor
Aaron Maté
US War Lobby Fuels Conflict in Russia, Ukraine, and Syria: Ex-Pentagon Advisor
12 January 2022
A former senior advisor at the Pentagon confirms what was obvious to those who pay attention.
Raytheon’s Raven caws “War—Evermore!” Not wind beneath Negroz wings…
Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
Raytheon’s Raven caws “War—Evermore!” Not wind beneath Negroz wings…
29 September 2021
Afghan Crisis Must End America’s Empire of War, Corruption and Poverty
Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies  
Afghan Crisis Must End America’s Empire of War, Corruption and Poverty
01 September 2021
The U.S.

More Stories


  •  BAR Book Forum: Danielle N. Boaz’s Book, “Banning Black Gods”
    Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
    BAR Book Forum: Danielle N. Boaz’s Book, “Banning Black Gods”
    21 Jun 2023
    This week’s featured author is Danielle N. Boaz. Boaz is Associate Professor in the Department of Africana Studies at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Her book is Banning Black Gods:…
  • “I Will Stay Until 2026”: Boluarte Rejects Early Elections as Perú Gears Up for The Third Takeover of Lima
    Clau O'Brien Moscoso
    “I Will Stay Until 2026”: Boluarte Rejects Early Elections as Perú Gears Up for The Third Takeover of Lima
    21 Jun 2023
    Peru's coup government and its president Dina Boluarte remain in power despite the deaths of protesters and planned mobilizations for the Third Takeover of Lima.
  • The Duplicitous Legacy Of Bipartisan Compromise Obscured From The History Of Juneteenth Is Too Important To Ignore
    Jacqueline Luqman
    The Duplicitous Legacy Of Bipartisan Compromise Obscured From The History Of Juneteenth Is Too Important To Ignore
    21 Jun 2023
    The Juneteenth holiday is an opportunity to delve into Black history in a serious way. Unfortunately, the designation of a federal holiday has trivialized Juneteenth's meaning and given license to…
  • Black People, Guns, and the Troubling Reaction to Ja Morant
    Gus Griffin
    Black People, Guns, and the Troubling Reaction to Ja Morant
    21 Jun 2023
    Ja Morant plays basketball in Tennessee, an "open carry" state with lose firearm regulations. But the issue of Black people carrying guns is not one of strict legality. Racism is also the issue.
  • Violence is Their Religion!: How Murder Gives the White Settler Purpose
    Jon Jeter
    Violence is Their Religion!: How Murder Gives the White Settler Purpose
    21 Jun 2023
    This episode of Black Republic Media is the second in a series entitled, Murder Inc: The White Settler Republic as Homicidal Maniac.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us