*formatting may be off - can resend through e-mail if needed.Third Populist ManifestoBy Mark LipmanThe sons of anotherWhitman awakeRetake the word Retake the songThere is no time nowfor sleeping till noonin your shuttered roomsThere is no time nowas New York crumbles beneath our feetunder the trampling of a nation of sheepas Kabul is wipedoff the mapas the Palestinianfollows in the footstepsof the ...
*formatting may be off - can resend through e-mail if needed.
Third Populist ManifestoBy Mark LipmanThe sons of another
Whitman awake
Retake the word
Retake the song
There is no time now
for sleeping till noon
in your shuttered rooms
There is no time now
as New York crumbles
beneath our feet
under the trampling
of a nation of sheep
as Kabul is wiped
off the map
as the Palestinian
follows in the footsteps
of the Native American
gone with the echoes
of a thousand mother's cries
everyone asking 'Why?'
Not for freedom
Not for democracy
But for a new kingdom
ruled by philanthropy
Yes, blood is thicker
than water
but not as thick
as oil
How many must still
be killed
to keep the drills
alive?
Where are the new Ginsbergs
the new Dylans
the voices of a new generation
with their cut-up jeans
and back packs?
Where are all the great
minds of today
Still roaming their
dark alleyways?
Yes, Ferlinghetti is still alive
but so too is Berlusconi
The usurper is still
in the House
And all the voices
remain silent
How many Kyotos
must be rejected?
How many Johannesburgs
over-ruled by a party of one?
How many rulers selected
and promises broken
before we stand up
and speak out
and take back
what should be ours
guaranteed by birth?
Whitman's wild children
are all alive and well
So put down your glasses
and pick up your pens
Get on your buses
all going 'Further'
And let your voices
be heard.
My Government Won't Let MeBy Mark LipmanI'm tired, I'm cold, I wanna go to bed,
But my government won't let me.
I'm tired, I'm cold, I wanna go to bed,
But my government won't let me.
The trains are on strike
And the cabs look at me funny
I can't get a ride
Even though I have the money
I'm tired, I'm cold, I wanna go to bed,
But my government won't let me.
I've heard a lot tonight
And I've seen even more.
I want to write it down,
But my government won't let me.
I'm out of my district
And dressed rather strangely,
No one here likes me,
Because my hair's kinda mangy.
There are police on the corners
And men lurking in doorways,
No matter where I turn,
There's an obstacle before me.
I'm tired, I'm cold, I wanna go to bed,
But my government won't let me.
I want to go home
And empty out my head.
I want to lie down
On a warm safe bed,
But my government won't let me.
By speaking my mind,
They hate who I am.
They prefer me to be blind,
Than a liberated man.
They threaten my life
And scare me to death,
Till I cower in a corner,
Holding my breath.
They get in my head
And mess with my brain.
They want to convince me
That I am insane.
I'm tired, I'm cold, I wanna go to bed,
But my government won't let me.
They tell me to trust no one
And I will be safe,
Just like a prisoner,
Behind the walls of a cage.
Hatred and fear,
They consume everyone.
But if we can't love each other,
Then we have no one.
I'm shivering now,
As I write these last words,
Still looking for a cab
And feeling absurd.
But if I don't say it,
Then that leaves no one.
The moment you are silent,
Your government has won.
I'm tired, I'm cold, I wanna go to bed,
But my government won't let me.
I'm tired, I'm cold, I wanna go to bed,
But my government won't let me.
I'm tired, I'm cold, I wanna go to bed,
But my government won't let me.
I'm tired, I'm cold, I wanna go to bed,
But my government won't let me.
Imposing DemocracyBy: Mark LipmanWhen you have to
Terrify your own
People into giving
Their freedoms away,
We say it's
Guaranteeing security.
When you invade
Another country
To steal their wealth
And establish your own regime,
We call it
Setting people free.
When you bomb
A tiny village
While all its people
Are fast asleep,
That is known as
Collateral damage.
And when you rob
From the poor
To subsidize
Your rich friends' wallets,
Well, I'd say that's graft,
But maybe you'd call it
Paying homage.
When there are
Police at every corner
No, that's not repression,
It's maintaining order.
When all the news
Tells you to follow
The government line,
They say that freedom
Of the press is doing
Just fine.
When you're not
Capable of an
Independent thought,
Then you've received
A good education.
And when your health
Care runs out,
That's just the benefits
Of privatization.
When we hide our
Sweat shops in China
We say that slavery
Is abolished.
And when your vote
Isn't even being counted,
There are people who
Would call that
Universal suffrage
When a baby is shot
By a stray bullet
Maybe it's officially
An accident,
But just try telling that
To the mother
And when the ice caps are melted
And the air is polluted,
No, that has not a thing
To do with your profits.
When you say
We're at war,
I ask you
When haven't we been?
That's their version
Of peace without end.
Why is it that
The rules suddenly change
When you're on
The wrong side
Of a color?
And while you're at it,
Can you explain to me
How life in prison
Without a trial
Could ever be
'For their own protection?'
And when you get to choose,
Who has the right to live,
Is that what is meant by
'Having God on your side?'
When judges are allowed
To hand out the jobs
Is that thanks to having
Free and open elections?
I don't know
What you think
About all this going on,
But if that's democracy
Then something is
Very, very wrong.
biografia:
Mark Lipman is a writer, poet, multi-media artist and activist, who began his career as a professional ballet dancer. In 2002, he became writer in residence at the world famous Shakespeare and Company, under the guidance of its founder George Whitman. In that year he worked with Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Jack Hirschman and the Italian poet, Igor Costanzo, in Back to Beat, a Fluxus art and poetry event in Breccia, Italy.
Co-founder of both the Berkeley Stop the War Coalition [USA] and Agir Contre la Guerre [France], Lipman has been an outspoken critic of war and occupation since 2001.
Lipman's first novel, Impermanence [Sophia Press 2001] was nominated for the Bard Literary Prize in 2002. His works include: 60 original paintings; the books Love and Politics [poetry 2003]; Fire in the Desert [novella, 2003]; Tumbleweed [novel, 2004]; A Smuggler's Tale [novel 2006]; Because They Were Happy and Free [Caza de Poesía 2009]; and I Found the Clitoris [short stories, M Press, 2009]. He is also a member of the Revolutionary Poets Brigade [RPB].
www.casadepoesia.com
http://poetsagainstwar.blogspot.com
http://marklipman.blogspot.com
escalatepeace@yahoo.com 
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