[Gregory Dowling]

On John Whitworth's thread on Accomplished Members Rose Kelleher wrote:

Maybe we should start a thread in Mastery for kickass political poems (or revive it if there already is one).

I'm sure there have been such threads but I haven't been able to trace one in a brief search this morning. So here's a new one. If anyone finds an old one, maybe they could provide a link in this thread.

Let's start with one of the poems mentioned by John, which he himself acknowledges as a powerful sonnet:

P.B. Shelley:
England in 1819

An old, mad, blind, despis'd, and dying king,
Princes, the dregs of their dull race, who flow
Through public scorn--mud from a muddy spring,
Rulers who neither see, nor feel, nor know,
But leech-like to their fainting country cling,
Till they drop, blind in blood, without a blow,
A people starv'd and stabb'd in the untill'd field,
An army, which liberticide and prey
Makes as a two-edg'd sword to all who wield,
Golden and sanguine laws which tempt and slay,
Religion Christless, Godless--a book seal'd,
A Senate--Time's worst statute unrepeal'd,
Are graves, from which a glorious Phantom may
Burst, to illumine our tempestuous day.

And just to stir things up a little, here's one by John himself, from his volume Being the Bad Guy:

Old Bull and Bush

How may hands have I shaked' is a quote from 'Bushisms', a little yellow book everyone should own.


How many hands have I shaked?
How many geese have I cuken?
How many bribes have I taked?
How many lies have I puken?
How many promises breaked?
How many enemies nuken?

How may saves have I baconen?
How many bulls have I shatted?
How many earths have I quakenen?
How many highs have I hatted
How many grasses bin snakenen?
How many scenes bin well quatted?

How many warms have I freezened?
How many nonsenses natteren?
How many palms have I greasened?
How many truths have I ratteren?
How many reasons unreasoned?
How many stinking fish batteren?

How many documents fakenen?
How many treaties forgotted?
How many bad guys outstakenen?
How many terrorists potted?
How many widows upwakenen?
How many kiddikins shotted?