American Betrayal, in Verse

Written by: Diana West 
Sunday, May 04, 2014 4:25 AM  

James Hodge writes in:

For some reason I cannot trace, I was recently reminded of Byron’s poem and this parallel glimmered, so I tried to put it together. … 

BYRON REDUX

The Front Page came down like Montag on a book,
And its minority cohorts knew just what it took–
Regardless of whether they had read it or no–
To defame BETRAYAL as the words of a foe.

Like the leaves of a cactus or the wings of a pig,
The critics were sparse, but tried to seem big.
Like the first hasty weeds when the winter has passed,
Their magnificent assumption was not fated to last.

Like the flight through the air of Odin’s dread spear,
The Truth breathed their cowardly hearts full of fear.
Their outrage swelled up and then spasmed away,
When they saw they could not keep derision at bay.

There lay the pretenders, their mouths open wide,
And what issued therefrom was a remnant of pride.
By the foam of their fury their lips were flecked white,
But the power to reason had long taken flight.

And here their believers, disgruntled and pale,
Incredulous that the invincible could fail–
These titans of culture and giants of thought,
Were not being accorded the respect that they ought.

The weeping and wailing have died to a yawn,
But the animus there is forgotten, not gone.
And so we must ponder what lesson to take:
Your character is known by the enemies you make!