Such As Those

There are those
And such as those
That have the arrogance
To be poetry elites
Or the poetry nazis
They claim to be Poets
They claim to be "Good poets"
A cut above the rest
A cut above their minions
People doth their caps
In deference and worship
Paying homage under threat
Sycophants trip over their tongues
Sucking anal leakage from their
Chosen "Sage," "Guru" or God
This is religious fervour writ large
Making gods out of men
Or women for that matter
Who doles out salvation
Forgiveness, and fake love
Only to those that comply
To those who bow low enough

The term "Honest Critique"
Is usually a writer's double speak
Which allows they said critiquer
To become cruel and unusual
"It's not the critique that's important
It's the tearing them apart that's the thing"
Some critiquers rip poems apart
And rip poets apart all the time
They don't rub people's backs
They just beat them with clubs
Forcing them to drop their quills
And bow their heads, hung low
Never to pick the quill up again
"Honest Critiquers" do this
Out of intellectual snobbery
And an inflated ego ready to burst
But also from an inferiority complex
Because they full well know
They don't deserve that lofty position
They so crave to the point of insanity
That they put themselves on a pedestal

A case in point, from DU
I submitted a poem for critique
Unbeknown to the critiquer
It was a prize-winning
Performance poem of mine
From "The Edinburgh Fringe Festival"
(These accolades don't grow on fuckin trees!)
Anyway I digress, I waited patiently
Given that the poem ran to a few pages
And given the subject of the rant.
The critique arrived and in good time
The reply was quite surprising
It had been torn to shreds
And I was told that it all could
Be reduced to 4 simple lines
You should measure a critique
By the viciousness it contains
And ignore it completely
I thanked them for the critique
Never bit anyone's head off
(Though they deserved it)
And I went on my merry way


A Poet, a memorable poet
Who is, in fact, a good poet
Is this by what he/she writes
Not how he/she writes
That poet is always humble
And self-deprecating
Just for me, the best poets
I have ever read on the underground
Have a comment on their bio, like:
"I am not really a poet"
"I am just a hobbyist"
"I am only a beginner"
"I am not very good"
"I am not well educated"
And liquid gold flows from their pen
But "Some honest critiques."
Remind these poets that they are not
Good enough and others know better
They become sycophants and followers
Or just leave, their tails forced
Between their legs
If they have any