Readers React: Microaggression, terrorism and Vlad Putin: Ringing in 2016 with poetry

When microagression becomes an obsession
You know something’s terribly wrong.
When out on the stump we haven’t much choice
It’s like we’ve been struck by a gong.

The world’s gone PC — oh say, can you see
Our fierce enemy now is just gluten.
Years ago we would shake just a bit
To glimpse a shirtless Vlad Putin.

Our defenses are weak. Our future is bleak.
The jobless cannot make a living.
This gig economy’s taking its toll
It takes much more than it’s giving.

The enemy wants our heads, hearts and souls,
They’re ruthless, barbaric and crazed.
If they ever lived by the Bill of Rights,
They would be shocked and amazed.

Land of the free and home of the brave
In the world we’re losing our place
How could this be? Where have we gone wrong?
Why have we fallen from grace?

Some try to diminish our global position
By forcing us down several pegs.
We see through their game but it won’t be long
‘Till we’re back up on our own legs.

We’re resilient, strong, and filled with new hope
We continue to fight the good fight.
We refuse to lie down, to fail, or give up.
It’s a new year — now let’s get it right!

Irene DeBlasio, Studio City

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