Extra! Extra! Forget All About it!!!
Once daily papers split the air, landing with a “plop”
on each house’s stairway, two steps from the top.
Truth was dispensed each morning for a price tag nearly free—
a neatly packaged bundle wherein we all could see
how the engine of the world moved forward bit by bit,
and the shiny torch of journalism helped us witness it.
But while we strove for justice and fairness and the truth,
other forces in the world were fighting nail and tooth,
trying to pollute the facts, and we all know why.
They were simply greedy for their share of the pie.
Did fair reporting save the day? Blind justice serve us all?
Or is it now too late to try to save us from our fall?
Rhetoric now flies freely at us through the air.
No more is it delivered daily to our stair.
Any mother’s son expounds with words twisted and ruthless,
all too often based on hate with logic cruel and truthless.
Words winging through the internet too easily meet our eyes
without the screen of logic to filter out the lies.
Reality is now for sale, scripted and rewritten,
that phony glamorous almost-world with which we all are smitten.
Our politicians, movie stars and buffoons playing roles
all have ulterior motives and short-sighted goals
wherein they build their egos, getting richer year by year,
and news of it just fades away into the atmosphere.
Prompt words for The Sunday Whirl Wordle 529 are free, papers, morning, price, wings, split, truth, shiny, engine, witness, why and strive. Top illustration by Melpo Tsiliaki, bottom illustration by Logan Weaver, both on Unsplash.
lifelessons - a blog by Judy Dykstra-Brown 
True indeed.
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I haven’t read a newspaper for years. As you suggest they are an endangered species
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So true, Judy. It’s frightening!
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SAD, but so often television “news programs” are much more slanted toward the business world that supports them, best example “FOX NEWS”, and even less careful in their reporting as to veracity. I would rather read and digest what I am reading than have it broadcast into my eyes and ears without being able to even think about the truth of what is being broadcast. Also, I still read the headline cover stories, editorials, exposes, cartoons, “funny papers”, and obituaries ~! I admit that I have no front steps, but I do get daily news online and A local (paper) once a week. I hope this never dies; unless there is a superior replacement~! This is a world so unknown by the average person who takes his news for granted, never considering the many caring people working at all hours to get that paper first thing in the morning. Otherwise, again, I must say a “great poem”, like a newspaper, it got me thinking~!
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Thanks, Sam. We used to love our weekly “Grit” delivery…more human interest stories.
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I must say I am the dinosaur that still loves the actual printed newspaper. During lockdown I had it delivered. The thrill of getting it was like that lovely birthday card in the post… no online link ever gave me that same feeling!
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I remember the thrill of the funny papers (comics) and Ann Landers. Are you old enough to remember “Grit?”
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Well I live in Ireland so our papers were different but yes, a Sunday newspaper here used to have a comic enclosed. Funny enough during lockdown here one Sunday newspaper re introduced this as a kids newspaper supplement and my daughter loved it!
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A clever move…
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Papers and books hold some of the same in hand qualities. And yes the media all of it plays fast and easy with the truth. just how long now has the world been going to hell in a hand basket ?
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I think from its inception. It seems to have always been intent on both creating and destroying itself at the same time.
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I get the local (four page, sometimes 8) page paper weekly. It’s sometimes annoying, but often refreshing compared to the crap thrown at us constantly by people who just want attention (Lauren Boebert) and are given it by the media. So much vomit. But the good news is that Donald Trump and JFK Jr. will be running mates in 2024.
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?????I hope you are kidding that this is good news.
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I’m kidding that it’s news at all. It’s been made news. If NO one reported it it wouldn’t have legs, but it’s reported and not only by the idiots but by those sources who purport not to be idiots.
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And since JFK Jr. died in a plane crash I take it you mean JFK’s nephew who is an avid anti-vaxxer.
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No. I mean JFK Jr. There are people who think JFK Jr. didn’t die in a plane crash but that there was a conspiracy of some incredibly warped dimension. “…started dropping hints that JFK Jr. had faked his death to avoid being targeted by members of the deep-state conspiracy and was actually Q.”
https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/qanon-jfk-jr-conspiracy-theory-854938/
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Ok.. I see you are referring to the crazy Q Anon story. The sad thing is that if they were to run him as JFK Jr. there are probably tons of people who would vote for them!!! I am sick sick sick of this craziness.
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I’m sick of it, too.
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