Uppercase Hyperbole

Noise proves nothing. Often a hen who has merely laid an egg cackles as if she laid an asteroid. ~ Mark Twain

Sound the alarm!  It’s time to panic!
Unhinge the senses and send a text.
Tweeter on Twitter, full-blown manic,
and set a fire for the doubly-vexed.

Apocalyptic conversations
are full of nothing, empty and vague.
Upend the world and all its nations.
Quick!  It is coming, another plague!

An existential threat is at hand.
We must scream a little bit louder;
for, if we shout, they will understand.
Words are to wounds as guns to powder.

I don’t care to hear the other side.
They are idiots in denial.
Carbon emissions are amplified,
and we must ramp up the damn dial.

This is the paradox of our time:
the louder we shout, the less we hear.
The more we distort, the less we prime
the will of a once listening ear.

The more we hype the truth, as we know,
the less likely we are bound to bend.
This partisan scourge, a body blow,
must come to naught for our own good end.

All good men must sit at the table.
Good women must participate too.
Be respectful, mindful, and able
to listen to those in front of you.

We can have the most beautiful world,
the most beautiful world ever seen,
a heaven-on-earth world, a dreamworld,
absolution in gardens of green.

Author's Note

Reviews

[Einstein Noodle]

hear hear young lady! i agree 100% ... quite with the dividing (who needs Russia - we do it ourselves) it's shameful how the Democrats from day one have gone off the cliff with accusation after accusation after accusation and so far all to the tune of no evidence and millions and million s of tax dollars spent and worthwhile Bills languishing in the House ... disgusting says i! i feel this poem to the quick my friend! if someone wants President Donald Trump out of the White House then vote ... its not that far away eh!? sheesh!! the rhetoric is viscous, vitriolic hate mongering without substance ... stop stop stop says i! please!!!!!!!!! >;[
E.
ps. thanks for the forum Linda! ;)

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

Thank you, E. The election will determine the outcome, and I believe Trump will win by a landslide.

[Einstein Noodle]

i'm with you dahlink! ..unless some real proof of a real transgression is brought to light .. i can't wait to vote for this most successful President I have seen in my 50 voting years ... he actually is doing what he said he wanted to do .. i just don't understand the hate :(

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

I didn't support Trump nor did I support Hillary. For the first time, I opted not to vote. Since Trump had been a lifelong liberal, I simply didn't trust him. I understand the hate because the left has done nothing but stir hate from the moment he was elected. They have tried everything, manufactured so many lies, and I fully believe have tried everything by hook or crook to remove him from office. The impeachment mess is the same. I personally wish he would stay off of social media, and I have always felt that when he talks he sounds like he's talking to the lowest common denominator. He honestly makes me cringe with the stuff he says sometimes. I am able to separate my dislike of that, however, from his policies. I do believe he loves America. He cares about how our money is invested. His tax reform plan and the bi-partisan opportunity zones bill has resulted in more money being put into the pockets of working Americans and is investing money to fund new and small businesses, develop blighted properties, invest in key local infrastructure projects, finance facility construction or refurbishment, and a number of other activities intended to revitalize and enhance local economic ecosystems. The unemployment rate is the lowest ever, particularly for blacks and Hispanics. He cares about our border; and after what happened with 9 Americans being killed in Mexico, it is but more proof that he is right. I'm all for legal immigration, but we need to secure our borders, both with Mexico and Canada. I think Congress needs to pass immigration reform to make it easier for people to come here but still have requirements in place to make sure that there is value in coming here. The "American Dream" shouldn't be one of open borders and giving away the house. Anyway, I could go on and on. When it comes to optics, one has to admit that Trump is not very presidential. He oftentimes looks uncomfortable in his own skin, talks without thinking, has some of the craziest mannerisms; and let's face it, because of his wealth, power, and status, his ideas towards women are very sexist. No surprise to me. A man in his position will always have women throwing themselves at him so his attitude is based in experience.

[Einstein Noodle]

I am Independant and voted for him .. he does say things off the cuff that are usually exagerated and tainted by the media .. but he is no dummy for sure ... and he fights back ... so refreshing .. love on ya Linda ... Donald Trump reminds me at times of JFK .. neither needed anyones money and so the "swamp" were afraid ... both acted on their instincts and heart .. they don't owe any "favors"

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

I totally agree with you. :-)

[Stella Armour]

it's all become so noisy , a mishmash of voices vying to be heard , so much so that any truth or sense is drowned before it can breathe.
Europe trying to rule Britain, Trump telling British politicians who the best leader will be , Immigrants demanding over and above what the native people have.
i am going selectivley deaf .... before my mind blows.

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

It makes me think of the middle east where for thousands of years there has been so much infighting. We try to intervene, proposing that we heal their sectarian division, while, all the while, we can't fix our own problems. Insanity!

[Stella Armour]

So true, politicians are just like children they don't know when to walk away ..

[augustus]

Your poem illustrates just what politics is in this Country of ours! Opposites, each shouting their heads off with countering arguments! Ugh! How I hate it!

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

Yes, it is awful. It makes me want to stop the planet and get off.

[JTD]

You chose such a great caricature to go with your poem. I like the way you presented both sides without picking a side but gave the solution - to listen. If one's only recourse is to shout the other side down, they have already lost the argument.

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

Thank you, JTD.

[John the Baptist]

This very well rhymed offering is a portrait of our current period of history. It captures exactly the pedal to the metal hysteria of our electronic media and the mania/paranoia it engenders. It also notes the extreme partisanship we hear in our politics, where the other side is not just wrong, they're evil! The last two verses are a plea for sanity and calm, but I fear they are falling on deaf ears. Once the trolls and zealots get hold of the microphone, the devil himself can't pry it out of their hands.

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

I worry that we are lost as well but have to have faith that we're not. Climate change is nothing compared to the politically divisive climate that we are living in.

[Relic]

I suppose it's always been an us and them world. I agree with everything you say here. Perhaps there's a mob mentality when it comes to politics. Perhaps the web has created more of a mess than what was intended. Time will tell for sure.

Nice one, and great picture. :)

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

Thank you, Relic. There has always been an us and a them. What we are lacking is the mutual respect and the agreement to disagree. I thought this picture was so cool. The obvious choice would have been a caricature of any one of our politicians but I didn't want to sway the point either way.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

somebody listened once....many moons ago ....back in the 60's...we spoke as one...face to face...

now tweeting, twittering, and texting...the three T's make for tech fools....we are losing touch with what is important...
the grasses are no longer greener anywhere...a tough world we are in ....too crazy and not enough involve...
our leaders need to sit down and really listen to each other and compromise...because the people who elected them to serve are the ones who are being neglected.
power in this write...

Peace!
j.

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

Thank you, Jacob. I long for the days when we had three news stations (ABC, CSB, and NBC), and the news (unbiased) was relayed once in the evening and once at night. Now, it's 24/7 bombardment, rarely truth, and more bias and lies.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

me too...our old newscasters relayed the news, they weren't trying to be celebrities....
and the news wasn't about titillation...it was about facts...those days are long gone...I miss Huntley and Brinkley and Walter Cronkite...and others.

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

I concur. Truly the only way to maintain your sanity is to turn off the noise. I prefer to read the news from a variety of sources, knowing that the truth is somewhere in-between.

[emmajoy]

' .. .. Be respectful, mindful, and able to listen to those in front of you. '

Such a powerful and undoubtedly sincere poem, start to finish. You've used perfect phrasing and meter, wrapped your opinions and emotions in a long and worthy poem that really does touch me deeply.

If only those with the loud, ranting behaviour spent time in thinking, using whatever logic they can muster, plus - good and bad examples from the past.. they just might achieve some peace on our planet. Seems leaders and whichever party they belong to are purely weapons to achieve victory over their rivals.. little or nothing done for the electorate.

Was said by someone - just can't recall who: the wise leader is the person who speaks so softly that listeners have to draw closer and thus, watch his eyes and lips as he speaks.

Many thanks for yet again stirring my thoughts on this topic.

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

So good to see you, Emma. I've missed your visits; and likewise, visiting you. It's hard to broach this subject without being political, which would completely defeat its purpose. People are so wrapped up in their own egos, trying to shout down the opposing side, and no one listens anymore. They create the divide that they despise.

[emmajoy]

How very, very true. Seems those in whatever power these days wield their status like a weapon. Whatever happened to the rare but once Respected Wise Man?

[Linda Marie Van Tassell]

"When the debate is lost, slander becomes the tool of the loser"
- Socrates