The Speaker's Stunt

Speaker Boehner says he plans to sue the President

Over, what he claims, has been selective enforcement

Of some laws Obama swore an oath that he'd uphold.

Boehner says Obama broke the law but I'm not sold.

Has Obama tried to work around the GOP?

Maybe so, although he had no choice it seems to me.

If Obama said that grass was green or sky was blue

Congress would investigate and find it wasn't true.

Since the Congress blocked his moves Obama had to punt;

Now it will cost millions fighting Boehner's latest stunt;

Money we could better spend on paying off our debts,

Education, health, or roads, or caring for our vets.

What the hell's the matter with these people anyway?

It's no wonder Presidents look old and worn and gray;

Finding that they can't deliver on the things they'd planned...

Why someone would want that job, I'll never understand.

Brazil 2014 - A Wet Heat

 

Thank God for my air conditioner, because it's hot;

Outside it's a muggy swamp...  Inside my house it's not.

Here the air is cool and dry so I'll be staying in,

Sitting on my couch and hoping for a U.S. win.

I cannot imagine how the World Cup players feel

In the kind of climate with which teams have had to deal.

They have played in jungle heat, in air that's thick and wet,

Running up and down for 90 minutes, dripping sweat.

Still, I guess it's better in Brazil than in Dubai

Where it's like an oven ('though I hear the heat is dry.)

Those are some amazing athletes out on soccer pitches...

Either that or just a bunch of crazy sons of bitches.

Later...

Germans won the match and they must be congratulated;
Good news is the U.S. team was not eliminated.

Dear Mr. Cheney et al. - You're Kidding, Right?

Former Vice President Dick Cheney

ISIS is establishing a modern Caliphate

Based upon fanaticism...  Isn't that just great.

Thank you Bush and Cheney; you guys kicked the hornets' nest,

Certain that America was right and knew what's best.

Ever since, the region has been going up in flames.

Now Dick Cheney's claiming it's Obama who he blames.

It was not Obama who invaded on a whim;

I cannot believe the gall of Cheney blaming him.

This war has been brewing for a century, or more.

It's about religious sects and settling a score.

Once dictators fell, removing pressure from the lid,

Experts warned some countries might explode - and so they did.

All the blood and treasure spent on playing global cop

Didn't make this process one the U.S.A. could stop...

But, to say Obama caused the current Mid-East mess,

Means you're badly misinformed (by FOX, would be my guess.)

Egypt - Just Say No

Egypt sentenced journalists to 7 years in jail

Despite lacking any evidentiary trail.

Claimed that they were working for the Muslim Brotherhood.

We'd planned on resuming aid; now, I don't think we should.

To be fair, I didn't think we should have anyway.

These men aren't the first the government has locked away.

Al Jazeera's journalists may have to serve some time;

Hundreds of Egyptians received death for the same crime.

General el-Sisi, who is now the President,

Isn't someone we should send a single, U.S. cent...

Led the revolution, seizing power in a coup,

Calling for the deaths of leaders that he overthrew.

Journalists are under threat and so there's no free press.

Why on earth would we go wading in to such a mess?

Egypt's military's doing fine without our aid.

If we really want to help we ought to foster trade.

Switching Wagons

I can't "un-see" this face-palm meme of the World Cup logo, now.

Suddenly the nation's filled with rabid, soccer fans.

Those who've never watched the games are rearranging plans,

Making sure they're free to see this Thursday's game at noon...

Hopping on bandwagons; singing team USA's tune.

I am very happy for our team and wish them well

But, when watching World Cup soccer, I'm still bored as hell.

I will grant that it's exciting when somebody scores;

It's the other 87 minutes which are bores.

If we tie with Germany on Thursday we advance

And, although our coach believes that we don't have a chance,

I guess no-one told the team that they're supposed to lose.

This time, when I watch them play, I plan on drinking booze.

That might make it fun to watch...  Perhaps you need a crowd

In a bar that's full of happy people being loud.

Maybe soccer fans aren't watching players when they cheer,

They're just saying "Thank you" to the guy who bought the beer.

Solstice Eve

(Photo/Courtesy of independent.co.uk)

It's another perfect day; I'm headed to the beach.

(Sparing all of you my own incessant need to preach.)

I don't know what's happening in Washington today

And I do not care what politicians have to say.

Can't say if the market's trending up or if it's dived.

Saturday's when summer has officially arrived.

Seeing as it's Solstice Eve, I'm off to celebrate.

Hoping you and yours are well and that your weekend's great.

Foreign Policy Isn't For Dummies

(Mr. Bennett's cartoon/Courtesy of The Christian Science Monitor)

President Obama's seen approval ratings drop

Because there are conflicts in the world he cannot stop.

John McCain can name you three the U.S. should invade;

Plus another couple where he thinks we should have stayed.

I don't think he understands how that would be perceived.

When we throw our weight around the Arabs feel aggrieved.

Libyans are mad we grabbed a suspect off the street,

Hustled him aboard a ship, and sailed off with our fleet.

"Well...  It took us long enough," said everyone on FOX

(Proving true the nickname for TV - the idiot box.)

These wars are religious...  They're the kind that can't be won

And we shouldn't risk the life of one more mother's son

In a fight that's lasted for at least a thousand years.

When we've jumped into the fray before it led to tears.

Once we put our foot down innocents are always crushed.

Thankfully, this President won't let himself be rushed.

Sykes and Picot Were Idiots

During World War I, the major powers drew some lines;

They decided who got oil and who got diamond mines.

Sticking to those borders, which were drawn without regard

For the locals' feelings on the subject's, proving hard.

They're the cause of "civil" wars, attempts at genocide;

Hard to estimate how many people may have died,

All because we started drawing lines upon the sand.

I suspect this isn't working quite the way they planned.

Africa, the Middle East... Religious sects and tribes;

At each others throats (when they're not out collecting bribes.)

All those simple lines they drew aren't easy to erase.

Even now we feel the need to straighten up the place.

Seems to me we've done enough; we'll only make things worse.

Rising tide of change is something we cannot reverse.

Militants will not be stopped by lines drawn on a map

But by locals who decide they're tired of this crap.

Not Even On A Dare

Give me blizzards any day; their howling winds and snow.

I will stop complaining when Nor'easters start to blow.

I will even take the floods we get from too much rain

Over storms Tornado Alley faces...  They're insane.

Massive, whirling funnel-clouds which drop out of the sky?

Some folks learn to live with them, I guess...  At least, they try.

But you couldn't pay me to; not even on a dare.

I'm too big a chicken to consider living there.

I've Got An Idea

ISIS - so extreme al-Qaeda's leaders think they're bad -

60 miles outside of Iraq's capital, Baghdad, 

Executed hundreds of unarmed, Iraqi men.

Army has to stand and fight for, if not now, then when?

I have got a great idea...  Let's give the women guns.

When we offer training, choose their daughters not their sons.

If the ISIS forces win it's girls who lose the most;

Highly motivating them to not abandon post.

Arm the female population; teach them how to shoot.

I believe it's likelier our efforts will bear fruit.

We should arm all Muslim women.  That's who we should back;

They're the ones the most at risk...  And not just in Iraq.

ISIS Makes Dramatic Gains in Iraq

ISIS forces now control a large swath of Iraq.

Baghdad asked if we would send some U.S. assets back.

Iraq's army stripped to skivvies, dropped their guns and ran.

(Clearly, then, our training mission didn't go to plan.)

People under ISIS rule must be the ones opposed.

Islam needs a Reformation...  Those can't be imposed.

Muslims have to be the ones who move beyond the past.

Let them form their Caliphate; the thing will never last.

Sunni, Shia, Kurdish tribes; a thousand different clans...

Let them live as ISIS wants.  There won't be many fans.

This war is sectarian and one we shouldn't fight.

Even with our best intentions, we won't get it right.

Had Enough?

Gun advocates dispute this number, saying that some shootings are "just gang violence."

In my high-school student days ('though it's been many years)

Tests and late assignments were the sum of all my fears...

Trying to be popular though, sadly, I was not

But I never worried that, one day, I might get shot.

Not like kids today, where high-school shootings are routine;

Added to the pressures that they're feeling as a teen

Is it any wonder that their tests show lower scores?

They're distracted by crazed gunmen coming through the doors.

I am not a helicopter parent, but...  Come on!

As I watch more grieving parents mourn a child who's gone

I have got to wonder why our daughters and our sons

Can't get some protection from the lunatics with guns.

Have we grown so powerless that we've just given up?

Let the NRA control the conversation?  Yup.

Time to take the power back.  We have to make a squawk.

Tell your politicians that it's time to walk the walk.

The Beautiful Game?

Soccer fans are flocking to the cities of Brazil,

Met by angry residents who'll have to foot the bill

For the World Cup tournament that they are hosting there.

It's the biggest thing in sports...  Americans don't care.

Our team's in the "group of death;" unlikely to advance.

So much so, our coach has said that we don't stand a chance.

Plus, it's not that popular here in the U.S.A.

We prefer the kind of football NFL teams play.

'though the world calls soccer "football" ('cause they use their feet)

Here a forward pass is something quarterbacks complete,

Not a kick from guys in shorts that cause a ball to roll

Toward some other guy in shorts who'll try to block the goal.

I know that the world may disagree, but it's a bore.

There's a lot of running but nobody seems to score.

If they do they bellow "Goooaaal!" when balls go in the net...

It's how they awaken fans who fell asleep, I bet.

Flunking Economics

Neither of our sons will face a huge tuition bill;

They won't have to pay for college 'cause their father will.

I assume they're both aware how fortunate they are

And will quit complaining that we won't buy them a car.

They're in the minority...  Most students need a loan;

Going into debt before they're out and on their own.

Starting life with shiny new degrees and payments due.

'though Obama wants to help, there's not much he can do.

If he said that water's wet the Right would say he's wrong.

You can kiss the Warren bill for loan reform so long.

GOP calls it a stunt; her bill will never pass...

Were I teaching Economics, they would flunk my class.

If your future work-force faces huge amounts of debt,

Forcing them to take the first job offer they can get,

Spending shrinking wages paying off their student loans,

They won't have the income to be keeping up with Jones.

Dear George R.R. Martin; Please Finish Your Song

Sunday nights at my house means we're watching Game of Thrones, 

HBO's hit series; even turning off the phones.

I'll try not to spoil it for the people who don't watch,

'though I highly recommend you do; it's been top notch.

Since I know what happens next (because I've read the books)

Sometimes I don't watch the screen but how my husband looks.

Shock, dismay, and disbelief at something on the show

Cross his face, illuminated by the TV's glow.

Unlike Robert Jordan - 12 books in to Wheel of Time -

I hope Martin finishes, his writing's been sublime.

I don't wish to rob him of an increase in his wealth

But George isn't what I'd call a poster boy for health.

A Public Lynching

(I love Jon Stewart and The Daily Show.)

It appears the country wants to lynch the Bergdahl's boy

I'm convinced it's something that Rush Limbaugh would enjoy.

He is a "deserter and a traitor," FOX News said.

(Taliban has told the kid if he returns, he's dead.)

He has been convicted by a jury of the press

And this "feel-good" story has become an ugly mess.

After his hometown of Hailey came under attack

They've now cancelled plans to welcome SGT Bergdahl back.

As if that weren't bad enough, the press attacked his dad.

I can't listen to them anymore...  It drives me mad.

Leaves his parents out of this.  The only thing they've done

Is to do their very best to try and save their son.

Mr. Mercedes

Just bought Stephen King's new book; I'm more than half-way done.

I'd be finished were it not for errands to be run.

I'm a Constant Reader and I gobble Stephen King...

Then I wait a month and start re-reading everything.

I have tried to pace myself before...  It doesn't work.

(Plus, with sisters waiting, I don't want to be a jerk.)

So far I am loving it, although I knew I would.

Anything he's ever written has been really good.

We Leave No One Behind

White House made a deal for getting Bowe Bergdahl released

But the howls about the swap they made have just increased.

Started with the 5 we traded; all were Taliban

And we never warned the people in Afghanistan.

Didn't tell the Congress, either...  Simply went ahead.

'We don't leave our men behind,' Barack Obama said.

Now the claim is: we did not leave Bergdahl, he left us,

That he's a deserter who is not worth all the fuss.

No-one's come right out and said we should have left the kid,

But they're criticizing everything the White House did.

There are snide remarks on FOX about Bowe's father's beard;

Speculation that the Bergdahl clan is kinda weird.

Speaking as the mother of two handsome, teenage boys

All this hue and cry is only pointless, background noise

(Speaking as a veteran, the same is also true)

I'd expect my country would do all that it could do.

Carpe'ing the Diem

These 6 Iranians were arrested for being happy.

It's another sunny, pretty, Massachusetts' day.

Might as well enjoy blue skies...  Tomorrow's will be gray.

Carpe' diem! Seize the day - should you ask my advice.

Forecast says it's gonna rain.  The weekend should be nice.

I'll believe it when I see it 'cause you never know,

When you're in New England, which way winds are gonna blow.

I will rhyme the news tomorrow, when the weather stinks;

Well researched with back-up proof provided in the links.

Not today, however...  I don't feel the urge to brood.

News is so depressing lately, it would wreck my mood.

I have plans to spread some mulch or, maybe, pull a weed.

Better yet - I'll park my butt out on the deck and read.

It's Summer in New England - Don't Blink

'though it's late arriving to New England, summer's here.

I just played a round of golf - my first time out this year.*

Now I'm heading to the beach for G&Ts, with lime.

I might have a lobster roll...  The taste of summer-time.

Other states might think that it's been summer for a while.

Although they're aware that winters here can be a trial,

That our springs are not the time for turning off the heater,

They don't know that those things make our summers that much sweeter.

*Please don't ask about the game of golf that I just played...

I don't want to talk about the bogies that I made.