Failed states
Stale fates in failed states
In stalemates with hale hates.
Unequal wealth, unequal health,
Unequal rights for serfs and knights.
The worth of salt, the worth of sand;
The worst default, a dearth of land.
Today’s sorrows, desires clash;
Today’s empires, tomorrow’s ash.
The hardest reigns, the tautest chains,
The tamest beasts, northwestsoutheasts.
A chartered place, a gartered race,
A bartered lease, a martyred peace.
The seed of hope, a timely trope;
The story arcs, amusement parks.
Stale ideals on splintered wheels
On crumbling roads with weary loads.
Male mirages, entourages,
Cruel collages, brisk barrages.
Ice-cube castles, cunning vassals,
Vying currents, themes recurrent.
Policy-makers, butchers, bakers;
Signatory, death or glory.
Cattle-herder, mange and moult;
Attempted murder, rise, revolt.
Condemned creations, foiled fates,
Attempted nations, failed states.
Appears in:
Rhymes for all times [2015]