Waco Bill's Political Commentary

THE NEWS

It's become an obscene propaganda machine;
a spinning wheel spinning the news.
       The country's grown wary
       of Sam, Wolf, and Harry
confusing their views with the news.

The news lasts a minute-
they spin it all night,
deciding what's wrong, and defining
             what's right.
        Their mission's to mold news,
        and not just unfold news.
(In other words, MAKE IT, THEN
      BREAK IT!)

These “Make It- Then Break It” purveyors
       of views,
are long on the spin and short on the news.
        They'll interview men
        hand selected by them,
who'll buttress the views that they hold.
        Or they'll cite polling news
         in support of their views.
Do you know anyone who's been polled?

What ever happened to WHO, WHAT, and
         WHEN?
It seems that they chiefly rely
       on reporting instead
       of just what the man said
what he meant when he said it and WHY.
                                        Bette Wolf Duncan ©2000 -

OUT-HOUSE DAYS

We've cleared all our streets
of those sheds with two-seats-
but still in so many ways,
while the two-seater shack
is no longer out back,
these are the out-house days.

It used to be that the one place you’d see
most porno-type poop was the privy-
but today out-house porn
is the everyday norm
in the movies, in mags, on TV.

These are the days of the out-house ways,
where the single most popular word
is the one that was writ
in the shed full of it;
although, back then, it seldom was heard.
This poem that I’ve written
is really quite fitten’.
It’s crude and it’s crass- after all.
Thus it goes with an age
where the word that’s the rage
was scratched on the old out-house wall.
Bette Wolf Duncan ©2000 -

Gun Laws

You hear it through the media
each time you turn around
Another madman's took a gun
and shot somebody down

They get themselves atop a tower
somewhere down in Texas
Or lie apon ahill above
a freeway to Los Angeles

Up here north above the line
they choose the alma mater
of Montreal to show their stuff
And make statistics fatter

Oh yeah there's killin's everywhere
on most days it's the norm
From city streets to rural towns
in restraunts and dorms

Now perplexed men they cry Enough
let's end this senseless bloodshed
Let's ban the cause of mayhems' flood
Let's put the age of guns to bed

But really folks is it the gun
that causes this calamity
Or is it just mans' baser self
in naked factuality

Can't axe or knife or wire do
what gun reaps e're the blame
A person killed is dead no less
the end is still the same.

Gun Laws 2

Or is there something different here
our fathers thought they'd tossed
The omnipresent will of state
in constant need to stay boss

Remember old Tom Jefferson
He told us long ago
Folks keep Old Bessie by your side
let freedom ever glow

Who have we got friends 'sides ourselves
to guard the constitution
To keep us free defend our rights
it ain't some institution

We are the ones we must bear arms
Our Grandsires bade us ever
Stand on your feet and mischief meet
with Samuel Colts' revolver.

Brian Brannon ©2004

                                     Brian Brannon-Cowboy Poet, says that the thing that makes you appreciate country life is what makes you a poet. He has been all up and down the Rocky Mountain chain from Dawson in the Yukon, to Jackson Hole in beautiful Wyoming. He is a rich man in memories. And he says, "I ain't finished collectin' 'em untill I kick the milk bucket over! He is from Alberta; and one of his favorite spots is the confluence of the Panther and the Dolmer Rivers. It's just on the eastern side of Banff National Park. There's an eastern facing grass-covered slope that has a couple spots of spruce growing on it Au Natural, that form a perfect" J "and a perfect "I"; (naturally it's know as the JI hill). Brian says that when you ride through the canyon of the Panther and get your first glimpse of that mountain....it'll take your breath away. Then again,just about anywhere in Banff will make any fool feel closer to the Great Spirit. He ought to know...he's a guide who has taken pack trips throughout the west.

         He has had three of his books of poetry published by Hancock House Publishers.   Brian is teamed with cowboy poet, Mike Puhallo, and cowboy cartoonist Wendy Liddle. Their books- Rhymes on the Range, Can't Stop Rhymin' on the Range, and Still Rhymin' On The Rangs . He is at present working on a solo fourth book and a C.D. both tentatively titled Horse-packin' and Poetry. You can read more of Brian's poem on his web site : http://www.brianbrannon.com

TAMARA HILLMAN

Born and raised in a small eastern Washington town, Tamara was entertained and fascinated by real cowboys in their everyday, hardscrabble life. Inspiration, sense of humor, and lingo were gleaned directly from these gentle but rugged men. She has written many articles for COUNTRY, and REMINISCE magazines about ranching and surviving the hardships of rural life, and often recites her cowboy poetry on country radio stations. You can read more of Tamara's cowboy poems at http://www.cowboypoetry.com/
Pettin’ the Bears
We may be just country folk, illiterates to you, but we got somethin’ you ain’t honed, its horse sense, tried ‘n true Ya leave the glitz of Hollywood, an’ city life behind, move out to the country, an’ break them ties that bind Ya build your fancy mansions, an’ cabins in the hills, start shoutin’ out big orders, an’ makin’ all them deals An’ once ya get all settled, an’ fill up all our schools, ya start that politicianin’, an’ changin’ all the rules Environmentalist, I hear, is what ya call yourself, an’ then begin to pass new laws to put loggin’ on the shelf	Ya want to live with critters, as friends, ya say, “AS ONE,” to pet the pretty Grizzly Bears, an’ tramp their space fer fun Ya stop our huntin’ cougars on horseback with our hounds, complainin’ when they multiply, an’ congregate in town Ya just don’t seem to understand, our way with nature works, so why move in with bluster, an’ tell us we’re all jerks? There ain’t no way fer friendly with creatures in the wild, or tryin’ to pet the Grizzlies, to find ‘em meek ‘n mild, But you just keep on tryin’ to pet the pretty bear, soon you’ll find that YOU’RE extinct, an’ we won’t really care… Tamara Hillman©2005
Your comment are invited; and you can contact Tamara by email: westernpoetess@yahoo.com