Home » Poems » Tom Cunningham » The Doomsday Clock

Notes About The Poem

The Doomsday Clock is a symbol which represents the likelihood of a man-made global catastrophe. Maintained since 1947 by the members of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists' Science and Security Board, the clock represents an analogy for the threat of global nuclear war and climate change.

Scientists recently agreed to move it one hundred seconds to midnight

the closest it has ever been.

Source and picture credit - Wikpedia.com

The Doomsday Clock

the hands have now moved
hundred seconds to midnight ~
tick tock tick tock boom


Written 29th January 2020

earthnatural disastersplanetwarsenryu

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

Andrea Dietrich

Date: 3/29/2020 1:53:00 PM

wow, coming back to this one. You really foretold it with this little poem!

Tom Cunningham
Date: 3/29/2020 2:35:00 PM

Thank you Andrea, frightening stuff, we've been told life may not be the same for six months, that's assuming they find a vaccine. Stay safe. Tom

Caren Krutsinger

Date: 3/22/2020 8:18:00 AM

Your prophecy in the form of this well-timed poem is here!

Tom Cunningham
Date: 3/22/2020 9:08:00 AM

Thank you Caren, its too close to midnight for my liking. Tom

Abdullah Alhemaidy

Date: 2/22/2020 11:22:00 AM

Very interesting! Have a good time Tom :)

Tom Cunningham
Date: 2/22/2020 1:31:00 PM

Thank you very much Abdullah, glad you liked it. Tom

Jennifer Proxenos

Date: 2/6/2020 10:56:00 PM

Wow Tom, such scary thoughts, but it only takes one madman to send off an atomic bomb and therefore a forced reaction to do the same from the West, and we become dust - maybe 10% of Earth's population might live. Well penned my friend. Blessings, Jennifer.

Tom Cunningham
Date: 2/7/2020 3:42:00 AM

Thanks Jennifer, its certainly an unstable world now, you're right, one lunatic with a match, boom. This coronavirus is not helping, the last big one was the Spanish flu, wiped out millions.

Jenish Somadas

Date: 2/3/2020 12:19:00 AM

Great information and wonderfully expressed poem Tom..

Tom Cunningham
Date: 2/3/2020 12:47:00 AM

Thank you Jenish, we live in troubled times, the world is very unstable now, not only the threat of war but all the pollution mankind creates, its bound to cause an effect on our weather although many deny it. Tom

Gordon Mcconnell

Date: 2/2/2020 4:18:00 PM

Tom, Quite a thought indeed, a very well penned write that makes one to ponder.

Tom Cunningham
Date: 2/2/2020 4:29:00 PM

Thank you Gordon, it's very worrying, the world has become very unstable. Tom

Connie Marcum Wong

Date: 2/2/2020 5:51:00 AM

This gives me chills Tom. I hope we as humanity can be wise enough to never let that happen. Excellent senryu! xxoo

Tom Cunningham
Date: 2/2/2020 7:54:00 AM

Thanks Connie, it's certainly worrying, especially if these rogue states develop nuclear capability. Since they created the clock it's the closest it's ever been. Tom

Anne-Lise Andresen

Date: 1/30/2020 2:02:00 PM

- It will be a mega bOOm ! - ... time is out ... - hugs // Anne-Lise :)

Tom Cunningham
Date: 1/30/2020 2:22:00 PM

Thanks Anne, just hope we don't know anything about it. Tom

Gershon Wolf

Date: 1/29/2020 6:24:00 PM

C'mon, Tom! You missed a whole tick and half a tock before the BOOM! LOL. Nice senryu --- not for the human race, of course. ~ Gershon

Tom Cunningham
Date: 1/29/2020 9:44:00 PM

Haha maybe I should have wrote a monoku.

Sandra Adams

Date: 1/29/2020 4:54:00 PM

wow... this is powerful... that ending sums it up...may we all be sleeping if that time comes and not know... hugs

Tom Cunningham
Date: 1/29/2020 9:43:00 PM

Thank you Sandra, I hope we all are. Tom

Andrea Dietrich

Date: 1/29/2020 3:36:00 PM

oooh, that last word says it all. well done!

Tom Cunningham
Date: 1/29/2020 3:44:00 PM

Thanks Andrea, I just hope it's quick and we don't know anything. Tom

Carolyn Devonshire

Date: 1/29/2020 3:17:00 PM

Oh, Lord, how I hate to hear these hands have moved closer to doomsday! What a compelling senryu, my friend. Hugs, Carolyn

Tom Cunningham
Date: 1/29/2020 3:27:00 PM

Thank you Carolyn, it's a frightening thought with climate change and the thought of them lunatics in the axis of evil developing nuclear capabilities that they wouldn't hesitate to use on the western world. Tom

John Lawless

Date: 1/29/2020 10:33:00 AM

CHicken little was right.....I had that printed on a T-shirt years ago. Perhaps If everyone is to blame then no one iS to blame

Tom Cunningham
Date: 1/29/2020 10:38:00 AM

Thanks John, there is truth in what you say, we have to ask ourselves are we really doing enough as individuals. Tom

Gershon Wolf

Date: 1/29/2020 9:34:00 AM

Very accurately and frighteningly penned, Tom. ~ a Baby BOOM-er

Tom Cunningham
Date: 1/29/2020 10:30:00 AM

Don't know about a baby boomer, it will be the mother of all booms lol

Vijay Pandit

Date: 1/29/2020 7:24:00 AM

A powerful write, Tom--it evokes the urgency and warning that the world must heed.

Tom Cunningham
Date: 1/29/2020 9:02:00 AM

Thanks Vijay, whilst most of us want to save our planet a minority are hell bent on destroying it. Tom

Swetha Vangaveti

Date: 1/29/2020 5:38:00 AM

What a clever way of telling that the time has come to wake up to the alarming situations!! Superb write !!!

Tom Cunningham
Date: 1/29/2020 5:42:00 AM

Thank you Swetha, hopefully it's not to late to reverse our situation and put things right. Tom

Demetrios Trifiatis

Date: 1/29/2020 4:43:00 AM

...explosive Senryu my dearest friend, Tom . Do you think that its " boom" will wake slumbering humanity! My all see your wondrous writing!

Tom Cunningham
Date: 1/29/2020 4:55:00 AM

Sadly I think not Demetrious, mankind gets more stupid as the clock ticks. Mankind is playing with fire and we are all going to get burnt. Tom

The Doomsday Clock

Post Comments

Please Login to post a comment

Member Area

Soup Social

Member Poems

Member Poets

Famous Poems

Famous Poets

Poetry Resources