Toney Bars, Hip Coffee Shops and Trendy Restaurants

Rebuilding America for long-term sustainability

They call it progress...redeveloping urban poverty zones into toney hangouts...for white people

Opening tattoo parlors, and piercing salons for young, eLife, college-grad baristas

Jacking up rents and hanging banners proclaiming the latest new arts district

Weekend farmers markets with goods brought inside the huge refrigerated trucks of corporate suppliers

Real estate professionals buying up surrounding properties for pennies as the influx jacks up property taxes

Following a proven plan, they non-violently oust the blacks, Koreans, Indians and other native inhabitants

Then come the hip foreign and fusion restaurants staffed by illegales...who of course live shabbily...elsewhere

A few change-the-world tech startups emerge, trumpeting their new and cosmically-important apps

Bearded hipsters open trendy “Buy Local” shops hawking the latest in Millennium trends...at exorbitant prices

And then come the doctors, lawyers, salesmen and entrepreneurs bidding more than the property asking price

Aging GenXers swooning for the aura of pricey, upscale, retro lofts created from abandoned ghetto warehouses

It’s all and only about the food, drink, entertainment and snarky, gentrified lifestyle atmosphere, Right?

Sustainable Progress?...Really?

Goodbye Cetaceans: Though We Never Knew Ye

Threats to cetaceans are almost exclusively from human impacts

It seems our large-brained brethren – the whales, dolphins, and porpoises may have had their day at last

We almost wiped them out with our primitive harpoon hunting methods from wooden ships, long ago

Then came the military artillery firepower and those factory rendering ships

But, at last, seeing the error of our ways thru their loss of profit potential to us, we ceased the slaughter

But now we have unleashed a more lethal arsenal with which to treat them to:

They drown struggling, entangled in our factory fishing nets and are treated as unwanted, wasted bycatch

Our dribbled toxic chemicals accumulate in their blubber for they lack the enzymes to break them down

Plastics, both micro and macro are consumed in ever-increasing quantities by our ocean-dwelling kin

Though whales help reduce CO2, warming oceans disrupt migration patterns and destroy their polar habitats

Our military and commercial underwater noise pollution confuses them and often leads to mass strandings

Confused by the cacocphony, many whales suffer ship strikes which maim or kill them

They also suffer quietly as our oil, sewage and litter foul the homes they’ve known for thousands of years

And we even still hunt them for their meat!

But, wait, we are not rushing about making savage war upon these supreme creatures of the deep...

It’s just that our frenetic ordained progress to support an unsustainable population has blindly doomed them

When they’re all gone forever, we’ll never grasp the mystery of their large brains, but we won’t have to care

Sadly tho, once we’ve extinguished them, visiting aliens won’t have rational creatures to communicate with

In My Exceptionist Hindsight

Always moving forward, getting on with life, I had no need to glance behind at my destructive wake

In any case, the way back was always shrouded in smoke, dirt and dust from my many burnt-out memories

But, nonetheless, I easily believed that it all was merely part of some beautiful and mysterious plan

For I knew I was meant to move ever onward riding the glorious wave of our divinely-ordained progress

Looking back now, but not too closely, I firmly resolve: I would not have changed a thing

Yes, from here the actions and activities of the lucky few like me make a perfect and enduring sense

Training a distorted lens on tangled recollections, my mind creates false patterns to suit my current beliefs

So, I can look around with a feeling of satisfaction to remark that in the end, things do indeed make sense

Certainly the past looks less attractive than that sun-strewn Morning In America now in my windshield

Nonetheless, I certainly find no grounds for any type of even the very least of regrets...Whatsoever!

For really, what’s done is done and the ancient history of 10 years ago is irrelevant to our moving forward now

In the unlikely event I should miss the Next Big Thing, I’m already ensured a 5 Star place in Heaven

Turns out that me and my little friends were right about ignoring their various false environmental scams

We realized that simple belief is a powerful force against control-seeking, socialistic, money-driven science

It’s so true that everyone’s simply grabbing as much as possible is the best way to ensure all of our futures

Our self-anointed exceptionist destiny has ensured us a dais well above the lowlife foreigners of the world

It’s obvious now we cashed in so very well in the pursuit of happiness solely due to our own abilities

I note with satisfaction that luck played no part in my arrival at this current privileged station

It was simply my god-given talents, faith in his word and, mostly, my own hard work that mattered

And all you pitiful whining losers need to remember this simple true fact: The victors always write the history

Howlelujah

Hallelujah - From Hebrew, ‘Praise ye, Jehovah’ Leonard Cohen, Howl – By Allen Ginsberg

For no single drop can claim to be river

But river is many drops water

No one tiny fish steers school

bait ball moves as one

Single step begins journey

Forgotten paces define trek

Single leaf cannot whisper

Breeze sings stories thru a tree

I could not build cathedral

My trace in final glory

Any true god fulfills need to faith

Combined their yammering but simple noise

Entropy a guiding force in evolving universe

In a moment sense Eternal minding Indivisible

We march only forward trampling mistakes

Incidents long forgotten arise and torment

Dust upon window obscures a view

Misty Milky Way above a cosmic portal

Howlelujah, invisible, unknowable and unprovable

Adapt best flowing with the Tao

Clouds embed mystic images in upturned faces

But, as fog, cloak in equal shade of gray

Staring into clean, cold water all is clear

From beneath the surface, nothing above retains focus

Rise as one for sacred flag

Shit together upon mother earth

Upon occasion, bow heads to pray

Baste in corporate fantasy all day

Consciousness lost forever, rejoins beckoning void

Puny effects approach...nothing...forever...Howlelujah

Praised Be Those Merciful Caregivers

Nurses, Medics and Techs

Through them flows the true milk of human kindness from that hidden spring of grace

Always ready to abandon their keyboards to look into your eyes and really listen

They actually take the time to answer all your questions...and get answers if they cannot

They will simply chat to help and calm you down, take your hand when things are truly overwhelming

They do not simply provide required health care...one knows they actually do care about their patients

Providing that real caring is some of the finest and most effective interventions a human can perform

And they actually remember their patients and seem truly eager to hear of their progress

For theirs is that miraculous tender mercy that cannot be learned or faked

Underpaid for their job descriptions, they nonetheless continue to dispense an unpaid tenderness to the sick

Dealing with the sick, injured, soiled and dying every day, though subject to burnout, they selflessly deal

Like opening a window in a dark room, they enter and patients bask in the warm sunshine of their support

No slaves to fashion these modern Madonnas, we remember them for their reassuring voices and gentle smiles

More likely to burnout given the huge numbers of sick and injured they must treat every day

Possibly suffering a loss of empathy due to grinding schedules forced upon them by corporate overlords

Those left unscathed are too often those for whom caregiving is simply a means to an economic end

But, your thankfulness can re-inspire them. Therefore, Show your love for your caring Providers - PRN

Won’t Ever Use The Real N-word Again

Because it’s emotionally supercharged, blatant, evil racism – a racially-sensitive White Nationalist

Those N-words better not think I’m a racist cuz I’m not even using the real N-word

Hey, even the least educated N-words are smart enough to see:

At least now we got a tag that aint prejudiced but still expresses our powerful but unconscious bias

So, yo, all you N-words out there! Don’t be getting all like uppity about it cause it’s not a racial slur

And you gotta know, our honorable black citizens are certainly not to be confused with N-words

You see, it’s just a tiny minority who are drunks or drug addicts...

Just a very few others who are robbers, carjackers and inter-racial rapists...

And we’re not even counting the small fraction of multi-generational N-word Welfare Professionals

Why, I’ve known many N-words for years, take for instance our lawn man, Clarence and his little sons

And I’m just glad for them that they were lucky enough to be born here in the blessed USA and not Africa

Cuz, man, the N-words over there don’t have a chance what with all that filth, poverty and disease

Yup, our N-words got it made, getting lifetime Affirmative Action, Medicaid, SNAP, SSI and TANF

Now that we got rid of that fekin N-word Obama we’re makin real progress with N-word unemployment

I’m sure real N-words like the term better too, cuz it dont carry no damaging racial connotation

Hell, I use it every day at work on own my white friends as well...

Nope, it aint no racist slur and the N-word don’t cause no permanent psychological scarring, either

It’s like using sanitized words such as Darn, Shoot, Gosh or Geez – each of which substitute for an obscenity

Now we just all need to train our tongues to forego the racist slur and use the safe and clean N-word instead

So, listen all you libtards out there, you all just stop being so thin-skinned and use it without prejudice

Nope, not using the real N-word and not holding them down without even a single conscious thought or action

The Real Estate Developers Tale

Of sondry folk, by aventure yfalle. In felaweshipe, and pilgrimes were they alle, That toward caunterbury wolden ryde - Geoffry Chaucer

I was born in comfort and raised steeped in the sleazy art of backroom deals and hidden contract details

I learned well how to avoid small contractor liabilities thru costly litigation, unaffordable to them

When faced with uncomfortable facts, I knew I could angrily lie again regarding false statements I had made

My enemies were many and I made up insulting, teenage-style nicknames for them, one and all

I fraudulently avoided military service yet cloaked myself in a phony patriotism whenever it suited my needs

Sold myself as a bravely-independent entrepreneur as I greasily back-doored deals with greedy politicians

Constantly sought out the spotlight trying to fill the gaping maw of insecurity at my core

Thrived only due to my total inability to feel the effects of my self-serving actions upon any other people

I demanded absolute loyalty from my lieutenants but quickly heaped blame on them to clear myself

Still, often the filthy lackeys flipped on me with total lies just to save their own weak and stupid necks

But all the women loved me, so I grabbed them whenever and wherever and paid them off to shut up

I always made my deals with Other Peoples Money but took lots of profits, writeoffs and all of the publicity

I sold my gauche de-constructions built for the noveau riche as job creation and community development

I actually did not notice how often I immediately repeated whole sentences during my many tirades

I never had to apologize because, as it turned out, for my entire life I was never actually wrong

Looking back, I can honestly give myself an A+ in all aspects of my personal, public and business life

I sidestepped accusations by concocting explosively-false distractions to cover my own improprieties

I combined a ruthless vindictiveness with a long memory against those who dared raise my childish ire

I proclaimed myself a fount of unvarnished truth and labeled all stories unfavorable to me as evil fakes

I publicly declared myself a true genius, deserving of the adulation and adoration of all my little people

I was always at the center of the very Biggest, Greatest, Fantastic, Tremendous and Beautiful things ever

I never wasted time studying the details, for my gut instincts always guided me in the right direction

I found the vast majority of people, especially those who opposed me, to have really low IQs

I loved to be seen with the beautiful people enjoying the lifestyle of the rich and famous, with some bimbo

I lied spontaneously and guiltlessly and later smoothly denied and contradicted myself with further untruths

I found it necessary to hyperbolize myself as larger than life and to hyper-inflate my crooked deals

I attacked with a red-faced lying bluster those fools who dared contradict me in any way

I suffered a painful jealousy of those richer than me and savaged them with a loud & venal intensity

I found I simply had to inflate my monetary worth and therefore had to hide my real financial details

I found myself to be above, and secretly operated outside of, any laws my fixers were unable to skirt

I knew more than so-called experts and loudly spread that word as far and wide and as often as possible

None of my projects resulted in less than fantastic success and I always deserved and claimed all the credit

My lawyers ensured I never testified knowing, given all my lies, I could not help but clumsily perjure myself

I became an expert on any subject merely from two page summaries in large print with lots of pictures

I always began negotiations with impossible demands expressed in a harsh Take-It-Or-Leave-It fashion

I found that repeated bombastic claims made without evidence often enough produced the desired effect

I thrived creating raging, meaningless controversies by garbling the facts and repeating proven falsehoods

I could not speak without modifying terms like tremendous, and fantastic with the word very

I found my voice was especially attractive to the masses of frightened and ignorant lower class help

Yet, all alone, I found myself scared and insecure, starving for the spotlight and more fawning adulation

Oh, and I hired yet another fawning sycophant to write this story – but of course I take all the credit

I’ve only read a summary of it...

I was born in comfort and raised steeped in the sleazy art of backroom deals and hidden contract details

I learned well how to avoid small contractor liabilities thru costly litigation, unaffordable to them

When faced with uncomfortable facts, I knew I could angrily lie again regarding false statements I had made

My enemies were many and I made up insulting, teenage-style nicknames for them, one and all

I fraudulently avoided military service yet cloaked myself in a phony patriotism whenever it suited my needs

Sold myself as a bravely-independent entrepreneur as I greasily back-doored deals with greedy politicians

Constantly sought out the spotlight trying to fill the gaping maw of insecurity at my core

Thrived only due to my total inability to feel the effects of my self-serving actions upon any other people

I demanded absolute loyalty from my lieutenants but quickly heaped blame on them to clear myself

Still, often the filthy lackeys flipped on me with total lies just to save their own weak and stupid necks

But all the women loved me, so I grabbed them whenever and wherever and paid them off to shut up

I always made my deals with Other Peoples Money but took lots of profits, writeoffs and all of the publicity

I sold my gauche de-constructions built for the noveau riche as job creation and community development

I actually did not notice how often I immediately repeated whole sentences during my many tirades

I never had to apologize because, as it turned out, for my entire life I was never actually wrong

Looking back, I can honestly give myself an A+ in all aspects of my personal, public and business life

I sidestepped accusations by concocting explosively-false distractions to cover my own improprieties

I combined a ruthless vindictiveness with a long memory against those who dared raise my childish ire

I proclaimed myself a fount of unvarnished truth and labeled all stories unfavorable to me as evil fakes

I publicly declared myself a true genius, deserving of the adulation and adoration of all my little people

I was always at the center of the very Biggest, Greatest, Fantastic, Tremendous and Beautiful things ever

I never wasted time studying the details, for my gut instincts always guided me in the right direction

I found the vast majority of people, especially those who opposed me, to have really low IQs

I loved to be seen with the beautiful people enjoying the lifestyle of the rich and famous, with some bimbo

I lied spontaneously and guiltlessly and later smoothly denied and contradicted myself with further untruths

I found it necessary to hyperbolize myself as larger than life and to hyper-inflate my crooked deals

I attacked with a red-faced lying bluster those fools who dared contradict me in any way

I suffered a painful jealousy of those richer than me and savaged them with a loud & venal intensity

I found I simply had to inflate my monetary worth and therefore had to hide my real financial details

I found myself to be above, and secretly operated outside of, any laws my fixers were unable to skirt

I knew more than so-called experts and loudly spread that word as far and wide and as often as possible

None of my projects resulted in less than fantastic success and I always deserved and claimed all the credit

My lawyers ensured I never testified knowing, given all my lies, I could not help but clumsily perjure myself

I became an expert on any subject merely from two page summaries in large print with lots of pictures

I always began negotiations with impossible demands expressed in a harsh Take-It-Or-Leave-It fashion

I found that repeated bombastic claims made without evidence often enough produced the desired effect

I thrived creating raging, meaningless controversies by garbling the facts and repeating proven falsehoods

I could not speak without modifying terms like tremendous, and fantastic with the word very

I found my voice was especially attractive to the masses of frightened and ignorant lower class help

Yet, all alone, I found myself scared and insecure, starving for the spotlight and more fawning adulation

Oh, and I hired yet another fawning sycophant to write this story – but of course I take all the credit

I’ve only read a summary of it...

I Am A Stinking Coward

And it even took me all my life to overcome my fear of admitting it...

Yes! I am afraid of hidden automatic weapons firing hundreds of rounds at me every second

Sadly, I always identify only with the anonymous fallen in those movies of valiant actions on the battlefield

Never could picture myself charging out in the open towards an enemy position raining fire upon us

I just know I’d wind up hiding somewhere sobbing and smelling of frightened urine and cold sweat

Never dreamed of achieving fame and glory somewhere off in those far-flung foreign killing fields

But, I do have nightmare visions of my guts dragging in the dirt as I crawl off to die, so far from home

Afraid that some skinny little fucker whose ass I could whip would blow himself up, right in my face

Don’t ever want to pursue a guerrilla enemy through his own country...where everyone looks alike

Can’t stand the thought of bullets hissing past my head, each capable of instantly shattering my brain

I’m also too cowardly to hold my closest brother, cradled in my arms, writhing, pleading, bleeding...dying

I simply cannot abandon my fear and rush forward thoughtlessly into the jaws of death...for leaders in safety

To me, ignorance of the horror that awaits and false hype are required to pump our boys up with courage

Don’t think I could blindly ignore half-naked refugees stumbling off, hungry, dirty, homeless and destitute

I know I would be one of those taking refuge in too much alcohol, drugs and stupidly violent R&R

Very much afraid that I would learn to condone uprooting families, torturing prisoners or bombing weddings

I am a coward and all my life I was so very afraid to admit it, even to myself...to avoid the humiliation

I saw the crippled veterans, toppled churches, orphan children and sobbing mothers and I was sore afraid

Tho I feared our enemies who were always coming to eat our kids, rape our women and end our way of life:

I never felt enough anger to go off to fight and die for the fictitious causes of slick corporate politicians

I was always ashamed by my lack of commitment to our fearless leaders endless, pointless orders to slaughter

I cowardly dodged military service but I never had the guts to protest wars in public, much less out loud

So I felt guilt for resisting the call to arms to foolish conflicts in faraway lands where we were not welcome

Often felt I should have actually come out against the lying crooks who insanely sacrificed my brothers in vain

But I never felt I missed out on something that would have made me a better, more human being

Never felt the need to prove myself tough enough for Basic Training simply to be randomly sent to the front

So, I envied the honor of those who served but avoided the bullets, bombs, death and destruction

And admired those who could come home, injured but alive, and go on to raise families and lead decent lives

But I knew I would have joined my 2 cousins and many others in a lonely, PTSD-haunted, drug-overdosed death