Thursday, October 24, 2013

96-year-old tees off on Congress

Ben Horack has lived in Charlotte most of his adult life. He was the senior member of Horack Talley, a prominent law firm. Now he's 96 and living in the Southminster Retirement Community. He is amused and frustrated by Congress's ineptitude. So much so that he has taken to verse to decry their inability to govern.

The rhyming and meter are unique, but he captures a sentiment that readers might appreciate. Without further ado, Mr. Horack's poem:

 
TRICK OR TREAT
(Halloween, October 31, 2013)
By Benj. S. Horack
 
October 31 is the special day
That we know as Halloween — When rank and file Americans
Play pranks — sometimes harsh ‘n mean.
But there is a bunch in Washington
That trick and treat throughout the year,
Who act like Demons, Ghosts and Goblins
Each day of their careers.
I refer to our esteemed President
And all 525 members of the Congress
Who purport to represent our Nation,
But seldom show much progress.
These political Ghosts and Goblins
Trick not only their home front neighbors,
But also the various colleagues
With whom they are supposed to labor.
Our intrepid President Barak Obama
Will never go down in flames
As long as he can find someone
Upon whom to place the blame.

Not one of these politicos
Would really be worth his salt
If he weren’t good at pointing fingers
At others in the game of Finding Fault.
Some say that Government Entitlements
Are overdone and deeply flawed —
That they teach us to be dependent
And are also fraught with fraud.
The Dems condemn Republicans
For bringing the Government to a STOP
‘Cause they don’t like Obamacare
And, though lawful, think that it will flop.
Some of them view Nancy Pelosi
As flying around the House Chamber room
Dispensing her legislative wisdom
Comfortable astride her private broom.
Others say: “Bow to Tea Party extremists
‘N we will be knee-deep in clover
But, if we don’t, there’ll be Hell to pay
When the bubbling Tea Pot boils over.”
Our demonic public servants
Have taken our Nation to the brink
In a contest about Debt Ceiling
To see who will be the first to blink.
About these and a bunch of other issues
The 2 sides fuss and fight each day.
Each Party is happy to negotiate
As long as each completely gets its way.

These Ghosts ‘n Goblins are virtuosos
At getting opponents demonized
And Past Masters when it comes
To getting voters confused and tranquilized.
This infighting is characterized
By casting epithets and invectives
And by fabrications and untruths:
To demonize is their sole objective.
Much effort is devoted to things
That help win the next election—
To prevent their legislative careers
From being a sudden vague abstraction,
An area based on treats, not demonic tricks,
Is when all these legislative jerks
Eagerly join together and agree
To preserve all their self-interest perks.
A Spooky treat that is most impressive --
Solving problems on the threshold to explode:
Ghost ‘n Goblin Statesmen play Kick-the-Can
To push these pesky problem down the road.
 
HAPPY HALLOWEEN
&
GOD BLESS AMERICA !!!

 

2 comments:

Veronica said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Redlight said...

Veronica---can't stand the truth?