I Respectfully Disagree

 A most excellent blog. (Photo: Courtesy of/Infidel753)

There's a blog I like to read; a recent topic: Greece

And how its new government announced that it will cease

Efforts at austerity imposed by the E.U.

Author felt that was the sanest thing the Greeks could do.

Mounting unemployment; their economy's a wreck...

Greeks feel like the E.U.'s hung a noose around their neck.

Article blames Germany (who finances the debt)

But, though I respect this blogger - whom I've never met,

That seems too simplistic to me; see the Germans' side.

Why are they responsible for stopping Greece's slide?

Germans work and save and squeeze a Deutschmark 'til it squeaks;

They don't want to finance better lifestyles for the Greeks.

Puts the German Chancellor, Frau Merkel, in a bind;

Can't ignore her voters or they'd fire her behind.

I agree austerity is not the way to go

But, do I believe it's fair to blame the Germans? No.

Dear Members of the Media; I'm Begging You...

With elections 2 years off, the race is underway;

Candidates are lining up.  I wish they'd go away.

Please don't give them airtime now.  Why cover them at all?

Who cares what they have to say - at least until next Fall?

We've just held elections.  Work is waiting to get done.

It's not news that Donald Trump's deciding if he'll run.

That's not journalism; it is gossiping, at best.

Members of the media, please give the race a rest.

Aren't there more important things the country needs to know?

Don't waste time reporting on their dog and pony show.

If you can't find things at home, there's plenty overseas.

Wait another year before you talk elections, please.

Thank You Barry

Made it through the blizzard safely - never lost our heat -

But we got so much snow that they've measured it in feet.

We got over 30 inches...  That's a lot of snow.

We'd begun to shovel it but our progress was slow.

Suddenly, a mighty roar was heard above the wind

And our neighbor (on whose grass our dog has often sinned)

Carved a path across our yard - snow blower set on high -

Coming to our rescue because he's that kinda guy.

Hours worth of digging out...  In minutes, he was done.

His machine's amazing.  I have got to get me one.

Even more amazing is our neighbor, Barry Moore.

Thanks to him we're shoveled out and our old backs aren't sore.

Battening Down The Hatches

 Forecast for New England? Major blizzard's on the way.

"This could be historic," local weather people say.

Having lived through these before, I offer this advice:

Stock up now so you're not driving in the snow and ice.

Plan on losing power (though, I'm praying that we won't.)

Make sure you've got water, bread, and batteries.  I don't.

Sitting in the dark while cold and hungry isn't fun

So, I hope that you'll forgive me but I've gotta run.

Embrace The Hate

 


Hard to love a sports team every other city fears...

Now I know how Yankees fans have felt for all those years.

I've cheered for New England since the Grogan Super Bowl;

Now the country hates my Pats, according to a poll.

64% of them believe the NFL

Ought to ban the Patriots from Glendale...   What the hell?

Let's all take a breath here and, as Rodgers said, "Relax."

Even if we're guilty, it's a misdemeanor... Max!

Belichick and Brady said that they were unaware

Footballs used to beat the Colts were down 2 pounds of air.

Brady threw the balls they gave him and, once they were switched,

Pats scored 28 more points...  Still, Chuck Pagano bitched.

Mr. S., my Yankees' fan, reminds me - there are perks.

Who cares if the country thinks my Patriots are jerks?

I can learn to live with that and just embrace the hate;

Knowing it's the price you pay for dynasties this great.

What Was I Thinking?

(Vincent Van Gogh's Starry Night)

Working on a jigsaw puzzle; progress has been slight.

It's 2,000 pieces worth of Van Gogh's Starry Night. 

I had planned to glue and frame the puzzle when we're done.

Out of all of Vincent's works, this was my favorite one.

Edges have been put together; did the glowing moon,

But the middle won't be finished any time too soon.

Random blobs of color smeared together...  Mostly blue.

Swirls of purple, green and yellow - browns of every hue.

No straight lines of any kind; chaotic strokes of paint.

This jigsaw would even try the patience of a saint.

Now I get why other artists thought poor Vincent mad.

Someone must have dropped him on his head when still a lad.

The Patriots - "Say It Ain't So, Joe"

 

What's an old New England fan like me supposed to do

Learning accusations made against the Pats are true?

We used footballs that were not the legal PSI.

Hoped it was an accident but now I wanna cry.

Didn't change the outcome of the game; the best team won

But, 'though other quarterbacks admit it's often done,

This makes us look dirty...  And for what? A needless ploy.

It has made this Super Bowl much harder to enjoy.

Scandals haunt Bill Belichick; they're calling him a cheat.

(No one but a Pats fan loves a coach who won't be beat.)

Even if we crush Seattle, Belichick can't win.

He will only be remembered for another sin.

I don't think Head Coaches check the balls; it's not their job

But, because he's arrogant and rude (and he's a slob)

There are calls to fire Belichick...  That's really dumb.

Bill has won so many rings he wears them on his thumb.

I believe the Patriots will win with any ball;

It's our year and, although pride goeth before the fall,

Knowing that our reputation's underneath this cloud

Means I needn't worry that I'm gonna feel too proud.

Je suis Ahmed

 

Muslims are offended (not a shock; they always are)

Saying, once again, that Charlie Hebdo's gone too far.

Can't portray the Prophet on their cover... That's a sin.

I think Charlie had to - or let terrorism win.

Followers of Allah and the Prophet also say

How are they responsible for ISIL, anyway?

Claiming double standards when we ask them to condemn

Terrorists whose targets, up to now are - mostly - them.

Problem is; these criminals are acting in their name.

Muslims don't agree a strain of Islam bears some blame:

Thinking lack of education, poverty, and strife

Are the only reasons young men choose to take a life.

I agree; those play a part in helping to recruit

But, when Imams preach that choice, these finer points are moot.

Islam may be peaceful but its angry youths are not...

That should be their focus - Not what cover Charlie's got.

The Patriots - Once More Unto The Breach

 Here we go again, I guess... The haters gonna hate;

Jealous that their football teams will never be as great.

"Pats win 'cause they're cheaters"? Thought we'd put that one to rest;

Thought we'd proved Bill Belichick and Brady are the best.

"Not so fast," the haters say.  For now we stand accused;

Claim was made that we deflated balls that Brady used.

So, although we crushed the Colts to win the AFC,

This might further tarnish the New England legacy.

NFL has got investigations underway

While the Patriots, who've got a Super Bowl to play

(This one makes it number 8) continue to ignore

All the haters - who can't stand the thought we might win 4.

Another Prayer for The Patriots

(Photo/Courtesy of @cdinopoulos on Twitter)

Local sports reporters say the Colts are over-matched...

I don't like when we get cocky; chickens haven't hatched.

Even if it's true it isn't nice to say out loud.

Sports gods do not like it. It's a sin and not allowed.

You will never hear New England's players talking smack.

They don't do an interview and make some stupid crack.

They heap praise on everyone that they're about to play.

Other teams don't show as much restraint in what they say.

I'll be watching Sunday night, with toes and fingers crossed,

Praying to the sports gods as the coin's being tossed

(Trying to remember that I mustn't be too snide)

Please dear sports gods; Pats were good.  Let Luck be on their side.

Boston 2024?

Boston 2024's a possibility

But not everyone is greeting that idea with glee.

Not sure that they want to see Olympic Games played here;

Worried at the massive costs, and that's well-founded fear.

New Olympic Villages and stadiums aren't cheap...

Have a look at London's Games before we take the leap.

Boston sees itself as Athens but just ask the Greeks

If their debt is worth the fun they had for those few weeks.

I would love the honor and excitement of the Games

But, if anything goes wrong, guess who the country blames.

We will have to foot the bill; Olympic Games ain't free...

Never mind the I.O.C., start by convincing me.

I Need Chocolate

 

All the recent news I'm hearing's making me depressed;

Even my New England Patriots have left me stressed.

It's become an effort just to shower and get dressed;

I can't seem to focus on the many ways I'm blessed.

News about how badly poor Nigeria's been led;

Watching their Northeast collapse - with thousands lying dead...

Hard to get atrocities like that out of my head.

It all has me feeling like I should have stayed in bed.

Seeing Congress try to pass another pointless bill;

Posturing and pandering (as politicians will)

It's become a pain to watch their antics on the Hill...

All these woes of humankind have left me kinda ill.

Think I'll watch The Cooking Channel; it might help my mood.

Chocolate does wonders for a rotten attitude.

Since I cannot change it and it doesn't help to brood

I'll ignore the world and just start focusing on food.

Sticks and Stones

U.S. Cent. Com.'s on-line social sites have been attacked;

Both their YouTube Channel and their Twitter feed were hacked.

Postings made by something called the Cyber Caliphate:

Threats and a recruitment ad for the Islamic State.

It's a war of words in which we find ourselves engaged;

Battles in the chat rooms of the web are being waged.

'though we clearly lost this one, the war ain't over yet...

So we need to strengthen our defenses on the net.

Sony and Home Depot and at least a dozen more

Companies whose customers must track their credit score

After hackers stole their data...  Happens every day

To the folks who've dared to use a credit card to pay.

We could all be victims of this type of cyber crime

But that's not what ISIL's hackers did to us this time...

We were cyber-bullied; had our noses rubbed in dirt.

Meanwhile, ISIL's getting more than just their feelings hurt.

Confessions of a Frazzled and Superstitious Patriots Fan

Only now - on Monday morning - have I caught my breath;

Saturday the Patriots had me half scared to death.

Twice they trailed by 14 points and twice they battled back.

Once or twice I may have let my calm composure crack.

Maybe more than once or twice... I have been known to yell

When it looks as if the football game has gone to hell.

I don't worry that we'll lose, despite the uphill slope;

Belichick and Brady mean that there is always hope.

Don't know why I lose my mind; I know it's just a game

And I know it's impolite to call the ref a name.

Wish I had more self-restraint but, sadly, I do not.

Don't know how much more that I can take.  My nerves are shot.

(Hope this rhyme is not perceived by sports gods as a sin;

That they know I really do appreciate the win.

I don't want to make them angry; that would really suck

Next week when New England plays a quarterback named Luck.)

Unsolicited Advice re: NYPD's Blue Flu

Mayor of New York City has a problem with the cops;

When he dared to criticize the force, they blew their tops.

Turned their backs at funerals whenever he walked by...

Now, to get arrested there, you really have to try.

In a further show of anger by New York police,

Interactions with the public have appeared to cease.

No-one's getting busted - short of very violent crimes -

Rates dropped 92%, according to The Times.

New York City cops have got their noses out of joint,

Angry (even though the Mayor had made a valid point)

Now they've turned their backs on us because we've dared to ask

Why is truthful dialogue a Herculean task?

No-one thinks the cops are racists but the studies show

Blacks have poorer outcomes with police - who have to know

They cannot ignore that problem... It won't go away

Just because they've all decided not to earn their pay.

Je suis Charlie

 

"God is great," scream terrorists as they prepare to kill;

Claiming that their crimes are an expression of His will.

Preaching retribution; ideologies of hate...

Seems to me the god they follow isn't all that great.

I would never worship any god who says that I

Must become an instrument for innocents to die.

Any god so cruel and petty's not the one for me

('though he seems to fit these brutal killers to a tee.)

Terrorists insist they want to see God glorified;

But a god who's truly great is only horrified

When they slaughter people as a way to spread The Word...

That must be the worst excuse that S/He has ever heard.

Snowboarding - Not Cool When It's Cold

Eldest needs a ride up North...  He wants to hit the slopes,

Which is certain proof (for me) his friends and he are dopes.

With the wind, the temperatures are 35 below.

Not the day - for those with sense - for playing in the snow.

I know that my son believes this proves I'm growing old.

I'll grant snowboarding is cool, but not when it's so cold.

I think he'll discover, on his 1st or 2nd run,

Losing feeling in your nose and fingers isn't fun.

I don't really want to give the kid a lot of flack;

I don't mind the drive (which takes 3 hours there and back.)

I'm just worried that these lunatics are gonna freeze...

Wish they'd wait 'til temperatures go up a few degrees.

No Room At The Inn

Lebanese authorities were forced to shut the doors

At their border on the flood of refugees that pours

Out of towns in Syria, where civil war and strife

Forces their civilians into fleeing for their life.

Millions of uprooted have escaped to nearby states,

Which has driven wages down and raised the housing rates,
Causing major problems for the native Lebanese

(With one quarter of their population refugees.)

Now, at last, they've had enough and won't take anymore;

This is not a problem which the world can just ignore.

Lebanon has done its part (and more) and so should we.

We must end the conflict that the Syrians now flee.

It's past time for all of us to take a long, hard look

At the wars we're fighting which, as People of the Book,

Seems a form of fratricide that nobody can win,

Which, in all religions, is regarded as a sin.

Wallowing in Misery

(Artwork courtesy of/Dreamstime.com)

Holiday is over...  Seussilitis rhyming's back.

I'm a little rusty though so, please, cut me some slack.

Haven't written anything that rhymes in several weeks.

Kicked the gear inside my brain but I'm afraid it squeaks.

It's not like there isn't news for me to write about;

Overseas or here in Boston and, I have no doubt,

Congress will provide me fodder for a hundred rhymes

(Sadly, we are living in some interesting times.)

But I've got a nasty cough; I'm feverish and sick

So the part of me that cares about the news won't click.

Wallowing in misery; I'm going back to bed.

Hopefully, tomorrow, I will have a clearer head.