Going for gold

I

So we’ll see who inspires
old, true-blue Tory shires;
they’re watching the race unfold.

Six runners now remain,
but it’s still much the same;
all clearly going for gold.

Silver or bronze, it’s true,
will really just not do;
a soul’s not so cheaply sold.

The most convincing lies
will still capture first prize;
for fortune favours the bold.

II

But the public don’t care
how each one might compare;
or words they seek to intone.

People, they’ve had enough
of promises and stuff;
their hearts are as hard as stone.

So let’s let them compete,
like wild dogs in the street;
just scrapping over a bone.

Or, like the two bald men –
we all remember them –
still squabbling over a comb.

Stuart McFarlane has spent many years, both abroad and in the UK, teaching English. In the UK this mainly involved teaching Esol to refugees and asylum seekers. He is now semi-retired and so can devote more time to writing poetry. He has had poems published in local magazines and online publications such as 'Borderless Journal', based in Malaysia and 'Culture Matters' and 'The Recusant', based in the UK. Read other articles by Stuart.