Go ahead.  Go.  I think I'll stay here.  What you hope to alter
Is fixed.  It won't change.  Our glory's behind us, and what we
Have left is a hastening tumble from there into ruin.  Anyway,
What you suggest we once were was public relations, bullshit,
Not real.  We never did much for anyone's freedom, not in
Other countries, surely not here.  We never did right by 
The ones who weren't like us, the women among us, the hungry
And halt.  It's always been easy to shut someone up, to bludgeon
Dissenters, and make sure your vote goes to people who answer
To others, not you.  What's changed, for the most part, is that
No one bothers to utter the platitudes we used to hear.  Our
Grotesqueness is naked.  We point to it proudly.  If you'd like
To search for a path back to glory, then put on some good shoes,
And, go ahead, go.  I don't believe that you'll find what you're
Seeking, so I won't be moving from here.