On Troubled Times

Gaudeamus Igitur

“A man who has never gone to school may steal from a freight car; but if he has a university education, he may steal the whole railroad.” — Theodore Roosevelt

Shame! Shame! Shame!
Study is now a two-up game
University’s now an investment den
Entry demands business acumen
A study penalty is what you get
And helplessly land yourself in debt
If you strive towards knowledge and sagacity
Penury’s the outcome of your audacity
There is a penalty for being wise
And each sad debtor cannot eulogise
Should you brush minds with Shakespeare or Dante
The creditor will be your vigilante
Alas the cost of your chosen profession
Will be the cause of your depression
Every university now’s a transnational
But a levy on learning is totally irrational
So many courses have a market focus
As the indigent planners use hocus-pocus
Products for sale is the way it is now
Academia now stands as a sacred cow
For study, students now have less time
That essential other job just doesn’t rhyme
So learning needs debt collector consent
And the scholar quite often cannot pay the rent
In this golden age of study and research
Your fiscal phoenix* is on its perch

*The phoenix, a mythical firebird a symbol of death and rebirth.

What’s In A Name?

I told my love a story that never ends
I gave her advice no wise soul amends
And I gave her a book every scholar defends
How can there be a story that never ends?
How can there be advice no wise soul amends?
How can there be a book every scholar defends?
Why the journey of our togetherness never ends
Net Zero is advice no wise soul amends
And a dictionary is a book every scholar defends

Ah but here is a fiend who denies all this
Who puts a shadow onto every dream of bliss
And so much more
For wise folk to deplore
Cruelty is his favourite trick
He is nothing, yes nothing but a lunatic
Who is this man, can you guess
Creating in our land a dreadful mess?
Stupidly starting a lethal war
Denying the truth as a deadly encore
Ruling the land at fever pitch
Ensuring that he and his friends get rich
Having a war destroy the economy
He would be better doing astronomy
He casts aside allies who are friends by tradition
And the only outcome is infernal perdition
How can a man have such shocking fame?
For the sake of the world we must know his name
No. By his deeds you now know who he is
You would have the answer if this were a quiz
So that’s good; his infamy is the solution
Come on now people and start the revolution

Money Isn’t Funny

War my friend is big business
That belligerent leader is a trader
Dealing in people’s souls
A lucrative enterprise
The military industrial complex
See how the weapons of mass instruction
Persuade the gullible to join in
Give support to genocide
That is the shape of twenty-first century battles
Homes, schools, hospitals are current targets
Where you may ask
At Easter in 2026 the answer is obvious
Who sets this wrong is another question
That figurehead is also highly visible
A liar
A pretender
Has a filthy tongue
Attacks rivals personally
Calls the absolute truth fake news
Constantly devises and uses false superlatives
Has a bleak and warped understanding of history
Is the object of much critical legal action
Buys silence for his guilty behaviour
Despises long held traditions
Rejects climate warnings
Hates many migrants
Does shady deals
Loves to sack
Huge ego
Who is it?
Iago, Uriah Heep or Moriarty? Or your choice.

E Unum Pluribus

Yes, it’s true
It’s happened completely in reverse
No longer E pluribus unum**
But E unum pluribus
From the one many
Can you see it once again written in the annals?
For Rome, Spain, England, France and others
The sun will no longer set on all their lands
It’s happened now to another
The manifest destiny is no longer manifest
No longer destiny
When an ostrogoth rules a nation
Allies run away like golfers from a storm
Like benevolence from ire
Like snow from fire
How sad it is!
Expletives before love songs
War before peace
Passion before compassion
The change is sudden
The change is bleak
The change is obvious
And the effects momentous
Looming
Booming
As a new age is born
The present management
Chatters dangerously
To cast love and friendship aside
And indeed a “whole civilisation will die tonight.”

**From the many one. America’s original catch cry.

Freedom

Freedom is a suggestive word
Enticing the listener towards deceptive paths
Often used by malefactors to promote their deeds
Tradition they say
What we truly stand for
The good old days of our wonderful faction
Small government
No taxes to pay for our social security
Freedom to get rich
And so the game of life proceeds
With joy for the winners
And stark despair for the losers
Thus the promoters of sheer gobbledegook win
Because of freedom
The monopolist corners the market
Because of freedom
Coal is allowed to cause flood and wildfire
Because of freedom
University students share a financial hex
Because of freedom
The chauvinist has his war
Because of freedom
And the rich are free while the poor are in chains
Because of freedom
Freedom only for those with the power to seize it
Look around you at all the winners
How strange that word does rhyme with sinners
It is an odd dream
Or is it a scheme
That turns the philosopher’s*** stone into fools’ gold?

***In a medieval myth this stone turned into gold.

royciebaby