I Looked in America's Mirror Tonight

    I looked in America’s mirror tonight
    What I saw was only left or right
       Reflecting a nation irreparably divided
       With no desire to again be united

    I longed for a touch, just a touch, of awareness
    An admission that ‘I might once have been wrong’
        What I witnessed was unbridled aggression
        From each side, a fiercely combative song   

    I searched for a hint of humility
    A confession: ‘Maybe I don’t have all the solutions’
        What I beheld was feisty defiance
        Candidates lip-syncing dubious science 

   I hungered for clear answers to questions
   A yes that’s a yes, a no that’s a no
       What I heard was ‘MY agenda is what to invest in’
       Implied was ‘To hell’s where YOUR question can go…’

    I looked in America’s mirror tonight
    silently praying for some kind of light
       What looked back was darkling belligerence 
       accompanied by saber-rattling dissonance

Copyright © | Year Posted 2024



Post Comments

Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.

Please Login to post a comment

Date: 9/11/2024 4:08:00 PM
Excellent penning, Gershon. The division of America continues. If someone literally took a shot at me while I was on a rally stage, I sure would be hesitant to get back on another stage, grazed ear or not. Trump's got guts. Shalom.
Login to Reply
Date: 9/11/2024 8:15:00 AM
How about that phony debate last night...3 against one?! Give it time to settle. After a few days, Trump will pull ahead even further in the polls, despite the lying, fawning conspiring Marxist sympathizing media. ABC was disgraceful. The public is not as stupid as they think. Trump took a public whipping for all of us...and it will show in the polls to his favor. Give it a few more days. And Truth will prevail.
Login to Reply
Dimino Avatar
Joe Dimino
Date: 9/11/2024 12:15:00 PM
Yep, he could have said a lot more...but he was kept off topic by having to continually defend himself against lies told by Harris and the Moderators, fact checking him during the debate, reinforcing false internet News Propaganda. It was a coordinated effort, undoubtedly rehearsed by Harris and ABC. Disgraceful. Hey, this guy has been put through hell for America, over the past 8 years -- considering all that abuse, he is still a strong man. A lot more he could have said...but he came off as genuine, and Harris as a greatly rehearsed insincere phony, which she is. Give it a week or so, and what seems like a defeat for Trump will turn into a poll victory. The public is not as stupid as Democrats think.
Wolf Avatar
Gershon Wolf
Date: 9/11/2024 11:20:00 AM
'Trump took a public whipping alright.' Fair enough and so true... Still and all, he should have kept the heat up on Commie Kamala on Afghanistan, and taken her to the cleaners on her $25,000 mortgage assistance proposal, which will just increase housing demand, sending housing prices even higher! Keep smiling, Gershon
Dimino Avatar
Joe Dimino
Date: 9/11/2024 8:35:00 AM
To further illustrate -- you are old enough not to have forgotten basic American tenets. Back to our baseball days, in an honest competition, Americans always root for, come to the aid of the under dog. These Marxist morons forget that, or have never learned the nature and spirit of true American Exceptionalism.
Get a Premium Membership
Get more exposure for your poetry and more features with a Premium Membership.
Book: Radiant Verses: A Journey Through Inspiring Poetry

Member Area

My Admin
Profile and Settings
Edit My Poems
Edit My Quotes
Edit My Short Stories
Edit My Articles
My Comments Inboxes
My Comments Outboxes
Soup Mail
Poetry Contests
Contest Results/Status
Followers
Poems of Poets I Follow
Friend Builder

Soup Social

Poetry Forum
New/Upcoming Features
The Wall
Soup Facebook Page
Who is Online
Link to Us

Member Poems

Poems - Top 100 New
Poems - Top 100 All-Time
Poems - Best
Poems - by Topic
Poems - New (All)
Poems - New (PM)
Poems - New by Poet
Poems - Read
Poems - Unread

Member Poets

Poets - Best New
Poets - New
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems Recent
Poets - Top 100 Community
Poets - Top 100 Contest

Famous Poems

Famous Poems - African American
Famous Poems - Best
Famous Poems - Classical
Famous Poems - English
Famous Poems - Haiku
Famous Poems - Love
Famous Poems - Short
Famous Poems - Top 100

Famous Poets

Famous Poets - Living
Famous Poets - Most Popular
Famous Poets - Top 100
Famous Poets - Best
Famous Poets - Women
Famous Poets - African American
Famous Poets - Beat
Famous Poets - Cinquain
Famous Poets - Classical
Famous Poets - English
Famous Poets - Haiku
Famous Poets - Hindi
Famous Poets - Jewish
Famous Poets - Love
Famous Poets - Metaphysical
Famous Poets - Modern
Famous Poets - Punjabi
Famous Poets - Romantic
Famous Poets - Spanish
Famous Poets - Suicidal
Famous Poets - Urdu
Famous Poets - War

Poetry Resources

Anagrams
Bible
Book Store
Character Counter
Cliché Finder
Poetry Clichés
Common Words
Copyright Information
Grammar
Grammar Checker
Homonym
Homophones
How to Write a Poem
Lyrics
Love Poem Generator
New Poetic Forms
Plagiarism Checker
Poetics
Poetry Art
Publishing
Random Word Generator
Spell Checker
Store
What is Good Poetry?
Word Counter