Post-truth 2016

poem by: Ultan Mulhern
Written on Nov 16, 2016

Post-truth 2016

A year of untruth and deceit
A spiral of division and pain
When were these seeds of anger sown
What mired our values in such disdain

New world disorder may emerge
Dimming our enlightened age
Bringing grist to the bigots’ mill
Fueling their hate-filled rage

Propaganda machines well oiled
Charming smiles and populist appeal
But scratch below their smooth veneer
Their dark underbelly is soon revealed

Uninformed attacks on enshrined law
Their leaders know not restraint or tact
A black swan moment, our world upturned
Persuasion trumps established fact

 

Tags: anger, depressing, confused, pain, dark,

Add Comment


Geoffrey Brewer commented:
Yes Obama and Hillary have a lot to answer for.
Aidan Fashena commented:
I like this poem for a several reasons. The first is that it's very topical and addresses what a lot people are fearing. Secondly, although I'm terrible at scanning English verse, it seems like you did a good job of sticking to a metrical pattern in addition to having a consistent rhyme scheme. Thirdly, I like the symmetry of your stanzas, not just with the meter and rhyme but how you always include vivid imagery concisely phrased in each stanza's third line with more abstract imagery in its surrounding lines.

 

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Post-truth 2016 A year of untruth and deceit A spiral of division and pain When were these seeds of anger sown What mired our values in such disdain New world disorder may emerge Dimming our enlightened age Bringing grist t... Read more