Monday, November 4, 2013

Sticks and Stones

A boy cleans the street after Kristallnacht (November 10, 1938)
Sticks and Stones
The Athens/Chicago School of Debate

In Ancient Greece, Sophist elites

taught how to cast a spell

to make more great the lesser cause,

and what's true hard to tell.

With sly wordcraft, with sleight of phrase,

with slick persuasive sell,

one could both draw forth benefit

and still poison the well.

Political sticks, rhetorical stones -

the items which are always thrown

when Truth is what must not be known -

political sticks, rhetorical stones.

These rules our Ruling Class use well

and show it with each word:

“extremist,” “racist,” “arsonist,”

“terrorist,” “wacko bird,”

“hostage taker,” and “kidnapper” -

nothing is too absurd

when “news” is just ad hominem

so people won't be heard.

Political sticks, rhetorical stones -

those networks in their pockets sewn

serve as alinsky megaphones -

political sticks, rhetorical stones.

Survivors old look on in fear

at what they see once more:

a ruling class that's risen up

and what each held in store.

With ev'ry demagogic word

they think, “How long before

the ‘useful’ smash the windows in,

paint ‘TEABAG!’ on the door?”

Political sticks, rhetorical stones -

this scorched earth that's the new “new tone”

is how each gulag gate is grown -

political sticks, rhetorical stones.

Dismiss this and the fault's your own -

political sticks, rhetorical stones,

political sticks, rhetorical stones.

 

 

 

 

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