I watched the world engulfed in flames
And I saw the lists of bloodied names
It’s not getting worse; it’s just the same
Or is it as the Hopeful claim:
“It’s getting better. It’s getting better.”
We made long strides for blacks and gays
And most of us work ten-hour days
Freedom of speech, so we have our say
All of it recorded by the NSA
“It’s getting better. It’s getting better.”
Living longer, with growing expenses
Eating hearty, as obesity commences
Living closer, with privacy fences
Freely speaking under false pretenses
“It’s getting better. It’s getting better.”
I thought of the first five lines while smoking on the back porch on Feb. 23. They just kind of came to me without effort. The second stanza was written on Feb. 27 and reworked the next day. The third stanza came on Feb. 28. I reworked the second stanza again, slightly, on March 5.