The Gathering of The Presstitutes

It was the gathering of the presstitutes as the sun went
Down, the cryptic night was calling and the lights danced
Mesmerically, for New York’s finest minds had gathered
On Madison – and The New York Times, The New Yorker,

And The Wall Street Journal presided – as if Jesus, the Virgin
Mary, and the Archangel Gabriel the weary earth had kissed –
While the half-light bled into the moons and told of songs
Undrowned; the glasses sparkled hypnotically, while the

Imperium flowed on, as they flirted and back-slapped and
Numbers were exchanged, and all the finest schools were
Represented on that hour, as were Brooks Brothers, Gucci,
Prada and Pierre Cardin; for the flower of our intelligentsia

Had descended unto that untrammeled zone of omnipotent
Night, full of boldness enshrouded were they lords of a cruel
Dominion, and champagne, caviar, and lobster had been
Ordered; suddenly, The Times tapped on a glass and called

His brothers to order: “Fellow stenographers, careerists,
Shameless whores of Capital, here’s to our benefactor, who
Taught us how to deceive and beguile, to turn night into day
And day thrice back to night again, to use our power to betray

And lead our flock astray, to make of the fool a murderer, and
A slave to the knave unbowed, to teach the insouciant to war
With his brother, to make of genocide liberation, and cruelly
Shun the hallowed calling; for it was he who made it possible

For us to be here today, with private school tuition covered
And multiple vacations each year, a toast to the one that gave
Us our power, a toast to he that lurks beyond the death knell –
A toast to our Father who beckons from Hell”

David Penner’s articles on politics and health care have appeared in Dissident Voice, CounterPunch, Global Research, The Saker blog, OffGuardian and KevinMD; while his poetry can be found at Dissident Voice, Mad in America, and redtailedhawk.substack.com. Also a photographer, he is the author of three books of portraiture: Faces of The New Economy, Faces of Manhattan Island, and Manhattan Pairs. He can be reached at 321davidadam@gmail.com. Read other articles by David.