Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Ululatus, Volume One, Number Two

Herewith, the latest selection from dusted-off published poetry and short fiction, circa 1970s vintage and beyond....

Under The Sun And Brother Mars

Still at it, those tired old hacks.
Groping words of warning to shape
the world; gloom prophets. And Mars
down from his bloody planet laughs
striding killer boots over the
shrinking earth. Lame-minded prophets,

like hobble-foot Hephaestus, pleading
peace. Tired platitudes. What
mindless destruction? Civilization
has reached its zenith. In scientific
technology in detachedness.

Innocuous that word; neutron. From
neutral? Undecided?
Not taking sides. Impartial
Switzerland was once a nation of
mercenaries. Hephaestus, remember, was
a blacksmith, himself clanged weapons

of war. Too lame to fight but provided
the means. It all seems so damn
familiar. We are grateful for mass
anonymity and sanity prevails. We've
leaped forward to a time of great

understanding. Understanding as we
do that the dead are only
television images.

c. 1978 Rita Rosenfeld
Published by Ululatus, September 1978

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