Looking Out For Children And Fools Up There?

The arthritis starts to take it's toil
he has served as disposable labor well
the shoes of his trade
valued at over one hundred thousand bucks
while the doctor's appointment is never kept
the trip to the big city too much an expense

The incessant cough shakes the foundation of the house
patched together with much love but little cash
the years of picking grapes
lines etched in the face
exposure to chemicals not fit for rats
retirement funds swindled by Wall Street

Overflowing house not by choice
but by family bonds
one son in prison forever marked as unemployable
a daughter with a doctorate that no one wants to use
grandparents raising their babies' babies

and I still "know that it's true
that for me and for you
the world is a ghetto"

A clock ticking but it isn't heard
by those in the corridors of power
at least not with critical mass
but the tnt of unanswered cries
the jobless bereft of hope
is highly combustible

Violence; to be or not to be?

Sing me that song once more Curtis
"people get ready..."