A Modest Proposal

A Modest Proposal By Roy Merritt Doctor Swift wrote it anonymously His delicate modest proposal His idea to save the poor Irish Was to make their children disposal He was lampooning Petty and Bacon Quite popular upon that year Their notions of how society be taken And socially engineered He wrote of the poor Irish How they going to waste And how a child of just one year Might appeal to one’s taste They could be roasted, stewed, Or boiled long in a pot you see To be sliced into ragout And made delicious as fricassee So let no man talk of expedients Of taxes on landlords absentee Let no man talk of new taxes Or leveling them at me No clothing do they need Or furniture to sit astride Not one penny for luxury Or vain human pride It would cure much idleness Keep women safe and pure Parsimony and patriotism The only way to endure Prudence and temperance And love of one’s native sand Was how they should differ From the Laps in Lapland And thus the small children Could prove a fine subject Not be bemoaned as a burden But a benefit to the public You might would put on weight If the child is particularly sweet And I don’t doubt be easy to chew So tender would be their meat I don’t doubt either as times get worse in this nation That some bloody right wing fool Bring Swift into the conversation Instead of depending on food stamps When little food you got Just reach over into that crib And throw the kid into the pot Just reach over into that crib And throw your kid into the pot