Satire | Poetry
Scream Inside Your Heart
A Poem for 2020
Theme parks in Japan have banned screaming on roller coasters because it spreads Coronavirus. They advise riders: “Please scream inside your heart.”
Welcome, Roller Coaster Riders.
Thanks to our trained attendants
you are now restrained in place
by a double-locking MAGA mechanism
which may — or may not — release
in November, 2020. Settle in
for non-stop thrills, including . . .
YUGE loop-de-loops
of Trumpian logic
and careening craziness
followed by sickening Covidian climbs
and gut-churning plunges into
economic freefall and deep despair.
F U N !!!
Riders of color and those with special needs
will experience an even more perilous ride.
They — the survivors — are welcome to submit
complaints IN WRITING directly to the office.
Correcting common complaints would require
overhauling the roller coaster’s framework,
so, for your convenience, the owner has provided
a “direct deposit” complaint-shredder by the exit.
