Promises

They promised me education, in school, in university, in life. I got a head full of mashed peas and a disappointed mother They promised me safety, At home, on the street, at work. I got 33 wars at any one time, A killing street and The traffic light of life on constant red. They promised me opportunity and freedom. I got stereotypes, bad jokes and a cage called myself, in which I cannot stand up. They promised me equality, in the papers, on the TV, to my face. I got a social divide larger than the Sun and more dangerous to traverse, a president whose greatest threat is a redneck Making use of his right to bear arms, and a society The crux of its existence is the confidence of others. They promised me a future, better than theirs was, family, love, passion, happiness. My future is a remote island, Standing in sizzling heat, Pressed nose to nose against the other 9 billion sons, And the only green, in my life on your planet, Are the gases emanating from the pipes of the industrial whores, And a patch of inorganic forest kept In remembrance of better times. They promised me wealth Let them bury me in money, And push my coffin out to sea.