[Newspoetry] National Road Blues

[mlehman]

Hi Everyone,
In the first of three poems from the road, this one was written in Hays, 
Kansas on July 17, inspired (perhaps that's the wrong word, maybe disgusted) 
by the anti-abortion marchers in Wichita.

National Road Blues

As I rolled onto Interstate 70
And gawked at a 100 foot tall cross
It occurred to me that it is
Part of the long history of this road
The old National Road
A path to Manifest Destiny
Where the natives are reduced
To the subject matter of souvenirs
Or, alternatively, operating the ultimate expression
Of the basis of capitalism
For most suckers, gambling
That old National Road
Had the Army rolling on it
And the Air Force flying above it
Along with signs of an apocalypse of reason
"Those who love the world are the enemy of God"
Damning to hell all tree-huggers,
Democrat or Republican
Certainly Ralph Nader
I could've stopped at the "Cruel Grille"
But the carnivore in me couldn't 
Imagine stomaching that
All visibly displayed on the
State tree of Missouri-the "Show Me" state-
The Billboard
Back in Kansas
Once known as the beginning
Of the "Great American Desert"
By those of old that were used to wetter lands
Not imagining yet drier lands to the west
Our manifest destiny to inhabit
Evermore apocalyptic terrain
Camel and rhinoceros were spotted
Perhaps the first sure sign of global warming
The Dreamland Motel still slumbers
For the next McVeigh
Even at three times the distance
Pirate militia radio still comes in
Loud and clear
The judge said to let the
Anti-abortionists march in Wichita
Hoods are optional
We can't abridge their right to intimidate
The last remaining doctor
Offering abortions in Kansas
The others are gone now
Fear drove them out
But the last doctor won't give up
A woman's right to choose
He's been bombed
He's been shot
He still believes in a choice
None of these people has to have
An abortion
But none of them will be satisfied
Until no one can
Have a choice
But God has cast a fiery hell onto his claimants
An editorial comment hard to ignore
As they march in the 100+ degree heat

Mike Lehman