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Poems and Thoughts by Frank Maurer

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Racism

So, Who Has Suffered Most? opus 245

Is the tragedy in Gaza today
The equivalent to the Jewish Holocaust--
Or to the gypsies annihilated alongside the Jews--
Or to that of the early Christians thrown to the lions--
Or to the genocide of the Armenians--
Or to the terrible Clearances of the Scots
From their bucolic pastures--
Or to the cruel transport of Africans to the New World--
Or, indeed, to all slavery throughout history--
Or to the religious fury of Sudan
With its new South Sudanese neighbors--
Or to the punishment of the Bretons
By the French government--
Or to the persecution by the Puritans of MA
Of Roger Williams who then became the founder of RI--
Or to the extermination of Russian dissidents by Stalin--
Or to the victims of the Alamo who were
'Defending' territory stolen from Mexico--
Or to the mass Agent Orange killing of
The Vietnamese by the American bombers--
Or to the subtile psychological takeover of the world
By those who no longer support the fair,
But cumbersome methods of Democracy------

Is it the number involved or the general cruelty?
Is this all due to our species, who (which) evolved
Parallel to the Chimpanzees rather than to the Bonobos?

The New Palestinian Nation--A Proposal opus 309

Is it a good idea--wise--to create a new Palestinian Nation,
Divided between two territories--Gaza and the West Bank?
I am suggesting that the two areas be combined to one,
Total acreage would be the same, but a question--
To which general area would the combined Nation be established?
My thought, without profound research, is possibly that
The West Bank area should be 'transferred' to Gaza
So that Palestine would border Egypt, having a substantial seacoast.
This would cause a great uprooting of the established Israeli population,
But Israel did cause the centuries-old uprooting of the Palestinian people in '48.
This would establish a strong nation, having a connection with the world.
One way or another, this potential challenge could be faced.
So much was formerly taken from the Palestians
And if the Jews could have carved out a new Israel-Nation,
The Palestinians might be given the equivalent for THEIR new nation.

Our Two Critical Compromises opus 333

In order to muster strength enough to counter British rule,
Conflicting opinions of the worth of African humans, transferred to the New World,
Were compromised in our Constitution in Article 1, section 2,
Valuing the 'voting population' worth of slaves.
This decision has plagued our nation to this day.

Additionally, in order to maintain the individual autonomy of each state,
Versus the need to create a strong, legitimate nation,
A balance had to be decided to allow the demands and will of both needs--State versus Federal.
For this nation, the two outcomes of these two compromises,
Has now and ever shall be the continual give and take,
Determining the ultimate outcome of this experiment in democracy,
Manifesting the final result in our human 'pursuit of happiness'.

(The Texas--Federal border conflict is a present-day example of such.)
(The Florida education laws are a present-day example of the former point.)

Slavery--Here?--In OUR History? opus 336

During the '70's, I was hired to teach by the University in Lesotho, Africa.
Lesotho, being very small, I would occasionally travel to the surrounding South Africa.
This large, Apartheid country had a white ruling minority.
Apartheid means 'apartness' and mimicked the segregation in my US country.
There, I witnessed many examples of cruelty and segregation between 'races'.

Many years later, I heard Nikki Haley question slavery in historical US,
While challenging Trump for the presidency.
I, and many others, were incredulous listening to her denials!
A citizen here must admit that our White House construction used slave labor.
Now Florida's governor has created laws to soften historical facts.

My point here, is that the aftermath of our sad history
Has left many 'historical fossils', manifesting what actually occurred.

I heard today about the founding of 'Easter Monday',
When Blacks in our country started this celebration after 1878,
(When segregated egg rolling at the White House was initiated as an Easter celebration),
Because Black people were forced to work on Easter sunday.
They appeared on Monday and celebrated in all their finery,
(Just as their white counterparts did on Sunday!),
On the next, closest day to the period, when hopes for some of the white world members
Celebrated the new Sunday day of--'hope for the world has arisen'.
If one leafs through the fossil historical recorded accounts,
One finds numerous reported facts which, of course, clinch this slave history.

In the light of Florida's actions today, do many really wish to 'leaf through'?

Any Compensation for Palestinian Lands? opus 356

Much before the creation of Israel in 1948,
Palestine endured great turmoil
With continual internal harassment,
From those anticipating, at last, a Jewish State--
Even to the point of poisoning drinking wells
To remove both human and animal from their homes.
The oppressed side calls it Nakba which it seems
Will never be forgotten, thus perpetuating
The present great unrest.

Perhaps if established today, in the light of justice,
Might there not be from the start,
A logically created two state solution--
Each side maintaining its national dignity and pride?
How simple and straightforward a conclusion
For the equality and autonomy of both--
And how, so much strife might thus be avoided,
Both in Palestine and for the concerned world at large.

Our National Mindset opus 496

It is not guns alone causing our chaos,
But rather a national state of mind, 'allowing' a source of violence.
As long as we elect leaders who use 'violent speak',
Our national mentality will increasingly shift from a loving, caring center,
To a state of accepting and even approving the violent approach.
(Greenland, to be taken over by our military?? etc.)

If Only, If Only opus 532

Slowly, painfully, the Israeli hostages are being returned.
So joyfully those few lucky ones are greeted and hugged.
So cruelly taken and held by those 'others'.
But wait and ponder how those 'others'
Have been held since 1948 in an open air prison.
Human emotion and anger and despair can only be controlled for so long.
If only, if only, everyone, forming the new Israeli State, in 1948,
Had considered both sides, creating equal territories for each people--
Sovereign, equivalent, nation states.
If so, there might have been no hostages,
No hate, no revenge, and perhaps,
Equal trading partners and equal neighboring States.
They would have been living juxtaposed in peace.
Will those in power now finally realize, this is the only long-term solution?

Only Two Sexes! opus 535

Our new (and repeat) president has declared there are only two sexes.
Scientific studies and enquiries show there are many more orientations.
Of course, there is now political reaction
Against these restricted, officially declared dual sexual orientations.
Perhaps history will replicate itself as, for instance,
Occurred in Black Sports History.
Blacks were ostracized from baseball,
So they created the infamous Black Leagues,
After which Whites, upon seeing the potential value of Black players,
And posing Jackie Robinson as the 'change agent',
Blacks are now dominant in the baseball legacy.
Prejudice and hate sometimes melt into a new positive reality.

Lesotho--Where's That? opus 614

Did you happen to catch it, when President Trump said,
"No one has ever heard of Lesotho."
 (Pronounced LES SOO TOO, a very small Southern African country.)
The subject of Lesotho came up because Trump placed a 50% tariff thereon.
Trump may not have heard of Lesotho, but the Basotho have heard of him.
I, personally, had heard of Lesotho, the country,
Because I was an 'English lecturer' (assistant professor) in their university about 1976.
This country was and still is one of the poorest countries in the world.
When I lived and taught there, the poverty was evident.
Young boys, tending goats in the wild, were still hunting mice,
To be roasted over a small fire, providing a small amount of needed protein.
The hunting weapon was a sharpened stick called a Tsenene.
In the winter, children wrapped themselves in a single blanket,
And walked around with bare feet on a very cold earth-surface.
As I remember, perhaps Denmark (?), had started a clothing company to create jobs.
This infant industry has now grown to produce and become 'the denim capitol' of Africa.
They also produce the golf shirts of clothing, which even Trump himself wears!
The 50% huge tariff, Trump placed on Lesotho because of the 'trade imbalance'--
Lesotho actually exports more to the US, because it is so poor; US products being relatively too expensive.
As a result, their clothing companies are challenged, losing trade because of the excessive prices--
Businesses are closing, workers are being laid off,
And a long fought-for national industry is, because of Trump's complete ignorance of the situation,
experiencing crumbling sources of desperately needed employment.
Meanwhile the tariff has somewhat mercifully been reduced to 15%,
But the Mosotho Secretary of State reports it will require many months for the needed recovery.
Yet one more tragedy in a long line of uninformed legislation.

'Daddy' opus 644

My, there he is, sitting in his own egocentric self portrait.
Civil War hat and black shirt, with burning Chicago painted behind him--
One of his many cities, he was as president,
Benevolently to nurture, guide, and care for, as all before him.
'I love the smell of deportation in the morning ...'

I remember we voted in a president; lowering food prices;
And one who would not touch our vital Medicare;
One who aspired to earn a Nobel Peace Prize.
In reality, just what have we unleashed upon ourselves,
And all of the world around us?

Is This Another Form of Genocide? opus 743

As of today, 720,000 recipients (480,000 children) dependent on US AID,
Have died from the sudden lack of food and medication.
Can one man really decide to determine the fate of so many?
Myriads  are crying out.
When such a system is created, is it criminal to suddenly withdraw
Such a backup system, upon which so many are dependant,
With no possible alternative to which one might rely for their survival?
Other projected stats determine many possible outcomes:
The Lancet (June 2025) estimated that the loss of US AID programs
Might result in over 14 million preventable deaths by 2030.
(This includes about 4.5 million children under 5.)
Projections (2025) indicate such cuts would result
In an additional 166,000 malaria deaths,
Plus a daily loss of 1,500 babies being born HIV-positive,
Due to the halt of maternal medications.
Might this action be defined as the creation 
Of a political holocaust of our time? 
In spite of these projections, Secretary of State, Mario Rubio,
Asserts in his Congressional testimony 
That "no one has died" from these aid cuts!
Just how far can the truth be pulled? 

Alex Jeffery Pretti (1988 - 2026) opus 758

When a law officer decides, often quickly,
Whom they might be eliminating in a second;
Does it even go through their heads as to who they may be eliminating,
As opposed to whom they might be sparing the final 'Coup de Grace'?
Alex was only 37 years old, a nurse at a VA hospital.
Did he ever suspect he would die at the hands 
Of another fellow Federal Agency?
A Boy Scout, an honor graduate of Preble High School,
And, musically, a talented vocalist in the Green Bay Choir.
He cared for veterans; he enjoyed mountain biking. 
And was committed to humanitarian efforts.
He was helping a woman who had been pushed to the ground.
He held no weapon and was shot while pinned to that very ground.
The Administration is in disarray and modifying its verbal tactics.
Perhaps they now realize that US citizens have experienced enough,
And even some of the Administration's followers now realize
Exactly the total harm they have allowed.