Happy 4th of July! This year I’m reprising my poem about patriotism. I wrote it sometime about 2010 and posted it last year (and it’s in my book Some Poems About Life, available on this website), but I think it’s still apropos today.
The Patriot
Jerry is a patriot,
he loves his country dear.
He waves the flag on July 4th,
he makes his feelings clear.
He fancies himself vigilant,
his loyalty is defined.
But when it comes the time to vote,
It tends to slip his mind.
He thinks the world of veterans
who’ve come home from abroad.
But when it’s time to pay his taxes,
His payments border on fraud.
He has the flag in his lapel
on every suit he wears.
But he gets his news from the loudest screamer
when talk radio airs.
Now Jerry sits and wonders
when he reads the news.
“Bailouts, gridlock, deficits,
What are we to do?”
Jerry looks around and frowns.
“How could this ever be?
How could we be in such a mess
with patriots like me?”