Not One of the Gang

You are not one of the gang.

You are not a regular fellow.

Confess, at least, to yourself that you hate regular fellows. You do not care if the home team wins.

Secretly, you despise yourself for standing when the flag is raised.

You do not think that your home town is any better or any different from any other home town.

You hate parades.

You know the mayor lies and the alderman lies and the senator lies and the college president lies and the priest and minister lie.

You know the policeman is not your friend, and lies as well.

And late at night you see them all gathered, and not in your dreams but for real, behind the courthouse sodomizing a child and then setting her aflame, all so they can have enough light to read the evening papers.

JOHN SNIDER lives in Havre, Montana. He can be reached at: snider@msun.edu