Kafka Re-Trial

Kafka lands resurrected in Crewe deposited by a silvery alien craft, And whilst he is wondering what to do He is asked to show his pass Or pay an instant one off fine At a cash dispenser of his choice And they are checking all the time On his irises face and voice.

And of course they find that he is not, They discover he just cannot be there, Although he seems as if he is visible, And has hands and toes and hair, If he is not on the Great Data Bank, He plainly and simply cannot be, He is not listed and he is not ranked He is surely not like you and me.

So they cant detain him in custody But they do not have to let him go He never ever happened, period So who can ever tell, or know. So on a lonely bench in quiet shade He sits alone and unremarked, Wondering what games they play, Against the backdrop of the park.

And so, are we just the opposite, Are we all consigned to hidden files, Are machines deciding who we are, Where we live, and when we smile, Is nothing a certain and real fact, Unless computer correlated true, And should your dossier go into error, How can you prove, you are really you.

How do you verify yourself for a loan, If your ranking gets compromised, How do you overturn all their data, Making you a pariah in others eyes, You may hold letters of validity, They may grudgingly know its you, Unless their system grants absolution, There is nothing they can say or do.

So unless we are verifiable as sound, And our image assuages Superhal, No one will ever trust us again, No one will ever want to be our pal, But this is not like yesteryear, When a quick query cleared your name, Your questions are merely registered, And you just get told how to complain.

Complaints are collated and quantified, They are cross filed and referenced, You must never lose this number, And you must never take offence, You are continually adjourned, Or moved to yet another floor, In the hope that you will falter, From all that has gone before.

Meanwhile youre mugged, not statistically, Contract MRSA, but its not on file, Your children cannot read or write, But their qualifications raise a smile, You always hit potholes that dont exist, To save waiting on trains that dont arrive, But whose flexitimes prove you missed, The only one late out of fifty five.

You cry out to be heard aloud, But the echoes mock your voice, You cannot afford the telephone, Cant bypass enforced menus of choice, Cannot contact a single human being, By department, name or reason, All this evolved like a dripping tap, Season upon big brother season.

Then one day walking in solitude, Your will to try nearly quenched, There is the quiet of the shady park, There is the man upon the bench, Who looks at you knowingly, And asks you if you ever read, And says Then I am Kafka, You Must Tell Me What You Need.

So He went up to their doors, The Nameless Man with Faceless Face, And bearded them in their hallowed den, Their plush revered and holy place, And caused unmitigated consternation, As he either was not really there, Or indeed actually physically existed, Solidly sitting silent in his chair.

So they asked him what he would want, If he were real and not mere illusion, For his appearance was so inopportune, His face and features causing confusion, His DNA was an embarrassment, Never born, nor listed, nor created, Never taxed, treated, nor arrested, Never receiving a non education.

So he stood up to his full height, And drew up his deepest breath, That made him seem immortal, And made them all fear death, And his mighty voice resounded, So much the walls retained his words, We want to be individuals again We want to speak and to be heard, We want our voice to really matter, And we want to hear no more lies, We want illusion swept away, Replaced by council of the wise, We want common sense to prevail, And not statistical subterfuge, Which tries to tell us its all ok, When we know it must improve, We want you to abdicate and take, Your machines and Mandarins away, And we want it done immediately, Oh Yes, we want it done today.

Or else I will shine in prime time, And then all will see its me, The man who is not Kafka, The man who simply cannot be, Then where will your credibility go, Will they ever listen to your pleas. No, far better for you to go now, And leave reality to me.

And they went away in disarray, Whilst he heralded a new era, No one knew who the hell he was, But yet everything seemed clearer, Everything was as it appeared, Nothing hidden, no more of the lies, And no one filed his disappearance, When he finally left our skies.

They can media us its always fine, Statistic prove what cannot be true, They can try to justify their lies, Attempt to airbrush history in two, They may perceive us all as fools, Force fed on false soap opera goals, But cannot forever control our minds, Nor assume they own our souls, For Long term lies have multiplied, And now are ringing empty and hollow, What seemed so reasonable yesterday Will be disproved upon the morrow, And with these endless lies surfacing, Just Like The Man Who Could Not Be, The truth will slowly become visible, And the truth will set us free.

Ex systems programmer living in England

Lexington Herald Leader

Wendell Berry, poet and conservationist, selected to give 2012 Jefferson Lecture Washington Post (blog) Yes, he's a prolific poet, farmer, staunch conservationist and one of Kentucky's amiable ambassadors, but he's also a thoughtful critic of our times and the natural world we live in. Would that Berry, 77, was one of those nightly pundits, ... Kentucky News Review: Hal Rogers earmarks $7 million for his neighborhoodLexington Herald Leader Wendell Berry Named 41st Jefferson Lecturer in the HumanitiesWFPL Wendell Berry to Give 2012 Jefferson LectureNew York Times (blog) all 11 news articles »

Los Angeles Times

Like that Chrysler Super Bowl ad with Clint Eastwood? Thank a poet Los Angeles Times (blog) But one thing I do know is that of the three people credited as copywriters on the powerful Chrysler advertisement above, the one featuring Clint Eastwood that aired for the first time during Sunday's Super Bowl, one is poet Matthew Dickman. Clint Eastwood Chrysler Super Bowl Ad Shows Obama Messaging Is WeakDaily Beast See That Wieden+Kennedy Super Bowl Ad With Clint Eastwood? It Was Directed by ...Willamette Week TV Linkzilla Daily: Clint Eastwood commercial controversy, 'Pit Bulls ...NOLA.com all 2,278 news articles »

Poetry workshop in Palatine Buffalo Grove Countryside Poet Andrea Witzke Slot will lead aa Second Saturday Poetry Workshop to be held 9 am-noon, Saturday, Feb. 11, 2012, from 9 am-noon. The program, “No Ideas But in Things,” will explore issues of imagery. Witzke Slot is a poet, scholar, teacher, ... and more »

Los Angeles Times

Dorothea Tanning, artist and poet, dies at 101 Washington Post She designed sets for George Balanchine ballets, played romantic matchmaker for poet Andre Breton and appeared in Hans Richter's avant-garde films. But she remained best known as the wife of Surrealist Max Ernst, to whom she was married for nearly 30 ... Dorothea Tanning: Unfairly OvershadowedNew Yorker (blog) all 7 news articles »

The last poet of Viet Nam's New Poetry dies Viet Nam News HA NOI – Xuan Tam, the last poet of Viet Nam's Tho Moi (New Poetry) movement has died in Ha Noi at the age of 97. His funeral was held today. Xuan Tam dedicated his life to poetry, especially the Tho Moi movement, which began in the early 20th century ... and more »

Poetry Off The Page Tucson Citizen 08, 2012, under Arts Poetry Off The Page, a symposium at the University of Arizona Poetry Center will be held on May 18 – 20. If you register before April 18 you will be eligible for an early bird discounted rate. It looks like a multi-media ...

Sacramento County finals for Poetry Out Loud contest today at Rosemont High Modesto Bee By Carlos Alcalá The public is invited to watch 15 high school students perform poetry today in the Sacramento County finals of the Poetry Out Loud competition. Each year, students compete in dramatic recitation of poems by well-known poets. Insight: Sacramento's Human Rights Violations / Marcos Breton / "Poetry Out ...Capital Public Radio News all 2 news articles »

Valley Breeze

Prospect Heights residents honor King with song, poetry Valley Breeze 27, at Prospect Heights, 560 Prospect St. The event featured an MLK poetry contest, a performance by the Alima International Dance Group, dancing from children of the housing development, and poetry readings from residents, all in honor of King's ... and more »

The Poetry of a Classroom Huffington Post There have always been stories of teachers who turned kids on and got them to care, teachers who cared enough, and tuned in enough and got on a footing with kids that reverberated in their art, poetry, and much more. One such teacher is Dennis ...

Words, Students Empowered In Poetry Out Loud (Video) Patch.com By Paul Petrone Tuesday night in Waterford High School's auditorium, students competed in the school's fifth Poetry Out Loud competition. And while the night was to find a winner to go on to the state tournament, the underlying message was simple: ...