Checkmate Poem by Bill Upton

And the call went out to summon a leader
Which brought about the raising of 20 sets of hands.
Among those volunteers were hidden alter-egos,
Weak characters and false prophets
From whom exuded short-comings
Exposed daily by the New York Times and Fox News.
Guns, we have learned, are no longer
The main weapons of the mercenaries.
Twitter accounts have supplanted them
As the means of ruin du jour.
Boldfaced lies that once were whispered to avoid exposure
Now are shouted from the mountain tops
Without the batting of an eyelash.
Disagreements and name calling frenzies
Now 'trump' policy issues.
And the call went out to summon a leader
Which brought about the raising of 5 sets of hands.

The American Dream has taken a sabbatical.
The red, white, and blue colors of Old Glory
Have run together to create a purple rain,
A torrential downpour onto the over saturated fields of liberty,
Flooding the land with the future promise of leadership
That would sell its soul for 30 pieces of silver
For personal gain.

America waits for its White Knight to ride into view,
But the stables are empty,
Quarantined by corruption and arrogance.

And the call went out to summon a leader
Which brought about the raising of 2 sets of hands.

Sadly and uncharacteristically,
The flag now flies at half-mast
Commemorating the death of the soul of the nation.
Sadly and unexpectedly,
The eagle has abruptly landed...
Eliminated by friendly fire.