Then and Now

Then we had a beatitude
& Now we have a wanna-be-attitude

Then we had jazz with our rock & roll
& Now we have talk radio with our road rage

Then we had intellectual discoveries
& Now we have video poker machines

Then we had free speech revelations
& Now we have inarticulate cellular drones

Then we had insights and dreams
& Now we have initiatives and schemes

Then we had the A and H Bombs
& Now we have the Alphabet of Bombs

Then we had spiritual courage and trust
& Now we have faith-baseism and Bush

Then we had energy and compassion
& Now we have ennui and revenge

Then we had "Be Here Now…"
& Now we have "Whatever…"

HAMMOND GUTHRIE is the author of AsEverWas: Memoirs of a Beat Survivor. He is the editor of the great online journal The 3rd Page. He can be reached at: writenow@spiritone.com

© 2003– HAMMOND GUTHRIE