One Form of Annihilation Interrupts the Other

One struggles to distinguish one afflicted
Pen of beasts who live to feed, to grunt,
And then be slaughtered, from the other,
Filled with human beings, milling, lowing
In response to shrill-voiced leaders of their
Separate tribes. Bell cows, nothing more
Than that, these leaders bask in adulation
As they call on those who follow them
To save their own from all the evils
Of association with outsiders. “Be on guard!
You must prepare to fight!,” the bell cows
Bellow, as their followers, becoming
Restless, shake their heads and paw the dirt.
The stupidest of species, only humans
In their filthy pens would take to slaughtering
Themselves, and will, if they are given time.
Alas, the herd of pigs is nearly gone, brought
Down by deadly flu, and humans, separately
Enclosed, are perishing before they fight,
Likewise victims of some sort of plague.



Poetry by Lawrence Beck The PoetBay support member heart!
Read 28 times
Written on 2020-02-29 at 15:32

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