The Brothel Keepers
By smokejack
- 2975 reads
An old man I used to work with
On a building site
Asked me if I was political
Asked if I was left or right
I looked him in the eye
And told him straight
I’m for all the workers
Abandoned to their fate
He seemed to like that response
Said I was wise for my years
I noticed the scars in his voice
Maybe he had met his fears
He asked me to define
What exploitation meant to me
I said it’s when a worker gets a leaf
And the bosses get the tree
He nodded in agreement
This prompted more from me
I said we provide our labour
But it never sets us free
40 years of the hardest graft
Just to fall down on our knees
And as for politicians
My contempt is unrestrained
Promising us the sun
Just before it rains
And the house of commons
Is not full of common folk
Just a hoard of whores
Laughing at democracy’s joke
Every one of them for sale
A price on every vote
Workers lives are sinking
To keep the rich afloat
The old man smiled
Nothing left to see
I am the old man
Looking back at me
©JMcN 2015
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Comments
Brilliant, smokejack. Really
Brilliant, smokejack. Really said something to me.
Rich
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Very clever, very good.
Very clever, very good.
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Very smooth rhymes. Nice riff
Very smooth rhymes. Nice riff on 'Arbeit macht frei' too.
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This is or facebook and
This is or facebook and Twitter pick of the day!
Get a fantastic reading recommendation every day.
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'When a worker gets a leaf
'When a worker gets a leaf and the bosses get the tree'. One of the best ways I've ever heard it expressed.
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I like the analogy of the
I like the analogy of the worker getting the leaf and the bosses get the tree. That's a very good description and very true. Great poem.
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I keep saying, they can't do
I keep saying, they can't do that, but it's already gone.
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